Original Link: https://www.anandtech.com/show/738



Introduction

It's time once again for AnandTech's Memory and Motherboard price guide.

The basic goal is to provide you with the best deals, and follow price trends of the listed products. We have selected a leading team of on-line vendors, and will be tracking their progress on weekly basis. Please note that all vendors were selected according to their best price offered. Some vendors may ask that you place a phone-order to make sure that you receive our listed price; others simply ask that you mention where you found the price (in this case AnandTech). We have tried to eliminate vendors with low feedback rating, but we do encourage you to do some research before purchasing any product from this list.

If you encounter any problems with a vendor on our list, please email us, and we will take appropriate action. Remember that we will only list vendors with positive customer feedback. If you have any suggestions, don't hesitate to let us know.

Also be sure to check out AnandTech's Hot Deals Forum for even more great memory, motherboard, CPU, video card and other technology buys.

Disclaimer

AnandTech does not endorse any vendor listed in the following price guide. AnandTech does not receive any advertising fees and/or sponsorship from the listed vendors. All views expressed by listed vendors do not reflect the opinions of AnandTech.

AnandTech, nor any of the vendors mentioned guarantee that the prices listed in this guide are accurate.

This Week

Welcome to the 2nd Edition of the March Memory and Motherboard Price Guide. In past weeks you've seen our motherboard price guide grow and this week is no exception as we add KM133 boards and VIA Pro266 boards to our list.

Prices for VIA Pro266 motherboards are higher than VIA Apollo Pro 133A and i815E/EP but by not as high of a margin as you might expect. Prices in general for Socket-370/Slot-1/Socket-423 boards have been sluggish as prices have for the most part have stabilized with the exception of some scattered fluctuations.

Most of the KT133A motherboards have fallen in price making this platform even more attractive if you're looking for a better performing Socket A solution. Take for instance our recommended KT133A board, the Iwill KK266. The KK266 is actually cheaper than our recommended KT133 board, the Abit KT7-RAID.

In the memory arena we've got a mixed bag of price changes with PC2100 DDR SDRAM still dropping although its PC1600 cousin has not changed a bit in price. Prices for PC133 SDRAM are both up and down and PC100 SDRAM is on the rise as well. Overall the slowing tech industry is having a ripple effect with memory and motherboard prices as we are beginning see more and more prices stabilizing and in some cases increasing rather than dropping as we have seen in past months.



Memory

AnandTech Weekly Memory Prices
Memory Type - Size
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
PC2100 DDR - 256MB $222 $37 Mark One Computers Check Vendor Standard Ground
PC2100 DDR - 128MB $112 $25 Mark One Computers Check Vendor Standard Ground
PC2100 DDR - 64MB NA      
PC1600 DDR - 256MB $95 $0 Crucial $5.50 UPS Ground
PC1600 DDR - 128MB $55 $0 Crucial $5.50 UPS Ground
PC1600 DDR - 64MB $39 $7 Crucial $5.50 UPS Ground
PC800 RDRAM - 256MB $349 $28 StarComponents $11.00 Lifetime Warranty
PC800 RDRAM - 128MB $155 $6 Hardware Pro Check Vendor  
PC800 RDRAM - 64MB $65 $10 Coast to Coast Memory $6.50 USPS
VC133 - 128MB $99 $0 Micro X-Press Check Vendor FedEx Saver
VC133 - 64MB $59 $0 Micro X-Press Check Vendor FedEx Saver
"PC150" CAS2 - 256MB $99 NA PC Progress $14.00 UPS Ground
"PC150" CAS2 - 128MB $56 NA PC Progress $14.00 UPS Ground
"PC150" CAS3 - 256MB $120 $14 MWave Check Vendor Ground
"PC150" CAS3 - 128MB $50 $8 MWave Check Vendor Ground
PC133 CAS3 - 256MB $71 $5 Core Computer Inc. Check Vendor UPS Ground
PC133 CAS3 - 128MB $39 $0 Core Computer Inc. Check Vendor UPS Ground
PC133 CAS3 - 64MB $22 $3 Core Computer Inc. Check Vendor UPS Ground
PC133 CAS2 - 256MB $92 $2.50 PowerUp Inc. $8.29 UPS Ground
PC133 CAS2 - 128MB $49 $1 PowerUp Inc. $8.29 UPS Ground
PC133 CAS2 - 64MB $32 $0 Crucial $5.50 UPS Ground
PC100 ECC 512MB $235 NA StarComponents $11.00 Lifetime Warranty
PC100 ECC 128MB $46 $1 AccessMicro $8.95 USPS Ground
PC100 ECC 64MB $29 $9 AxionTech Check Vendor UPS Ground
PC100 512MB $581 NA Crucial $5.50 UPS Ground
PC100 256MB $71 $3 Core Computer Inc. Check Vendor UPS Ground
PC100 128MB $40 $1 Core Computer Inc. Check Vendor UPS Ground
PC100 64MB $21 $1 Core Computer Inc. Check Vendor UPS Ground

In spite of PC1600 DDR SDRAM having stabilized in price, PC2100 modules continue to fall in price by significant margins making them cheaper than PC800 RDRAM. It will be interesting to watch how far DDR SDRAM prices will drop as Crucial, the memory giant, will soon be selling their PC2100 modules. On the other hand, PC2100 modules may also stabilize in the coming weeks as we are beginning to see other memory types slow in price changes.

Besides a few drops with "PC150" and PC133 CAS3 SDRAM, memory prices have remained the same or have experienced a price hike in some instances. For the end user this means that for the time being memory prices, especially with PC133 SDRAM, will probably drop no further than they have in the past and if anything will rise in price so now may be the time to buy RAM if you've been putting it off.

Related Articles

Make sure you check out our latest Memory and Chipset reviews for more information.

Memory Reviews Publication Date
PC133 SDRAM Roundup - April 2000 April 3rd, 2000

Chipset Reviews Publication Date
DDR SDRAM on the AMD Athlon - Performance Preview September 14th, 2000
AMD's 760 Chipset: DDR for the Athlon is here October 30th, 2000
ALi MAGiK 1 Chipset: The Athlon gets a second DDR platform November 29th, 2000
VIA KT133A Socket-A Chipset: AMD 760 Performance without DDR SDRAM December 21st, 2000


Socket-370/Slot-1/Socket-423 Motherboards

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - Intel Socket-370 i815E
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
ASUS CUSL2 $131 $1 Jazz Technology USA Check Vendor UPS Ground
ABIT SE6 $122 $0 MicroBarn Check Vendor UPS Ground
ABIT SA6R $133 $6 Essential Computer $12.00 2 Day FedEx
Transcend TS-ASL3 $101 $0 Jazz Technology USA Check Vendor UPS Ground
Microstar 815E Pro $100 $0 MicroBarn Check Vendor UPS Ground
AOpen AX3S Pro $123 $0 AxionTech Check Vendor UPS Ground

 

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - i815EP Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
Epox EP-3SPA3 $97 $2 MWave Check Vendor UPS Ground
ASUS CUSL2-C $109 $0 PCBoost $15.85 UPS Ground
Gigabyte GA-6OXE
$116 $0 MWave Check Vendor UPS Ground
MSI 815EP PRO-R
$124 $0 PC Progress $14.00 UPS Ground

 

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - Intel Socket-370/Slot-1 VIA Apollo Pro 133A Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
AOpen AX34 Pro $109 $0 Essential Computer $12.00 2 Day FedEx
AOpen AX64 Pro $95 $0 Essential Computer $12.00 2 Day FedEx
Microstar MS-6309 $94 $0 SpartanTech $13.00 UPS Ground
Soyo SY-6VCA $96 $6 MWave Check Vendor UPS Ground
Soyo SY-7VCA $96 $0 Krex Computers Check Vendor UPS Ground
Shuttle AV64 $76 $0 Krex Computers Check Vendor UPS Ground
ASUS P3V4X $118 $9 SpartanTech $13.00 UPS Ground
ASUS CUV4X $100 $0 PCBoost $15.85 UPS Ground
Dual CPU
Microstar 694D Pro $109 $0 FTI Computer Check Vendor UPS Ground
ASUS CUV4X-D $162 NA SpartanTech $13.00 UPS Ground
ABIT VP6 $148 NA Essential Computer $12.00 2 Day FedEx
Tyan S1854 Trinity 400 90 $2 MWave Check Vendor UPS Ground

 

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - i850 Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
Intel D850GB $191 $7 Z-Buy Free Free Freight 3 Days FedEx
ASUS P4T $195 $14 AllStarshop Check Vendor UPS Ground
Gigabyte GA-8TX $207 $1 MWave $8.00 Priority Shipping
Supermicro P4STA $235 $0 Acme Micro Check Vendor UPS Ground
MSI MS-850 Pro $206 $29 SpartanTech $13.00 UPS Ground

 

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - VIA Pro266 Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
Shuttle AV32 $131 NA Bunta Technology Check Vendor UPS Ground
Microstar Pro266 Master $126 NA AllStarshop Check Vendor UPS Ground
Chaintech 6VJD $150 NA AxionTech Check Vendor UPS Ground
AOpen AX37 Pro $134 NA Hardware Pro Check Vendor
Gigabyte GA-6RX $185 NA PC Progress $14.00 UPS Ground

 

March madness may be sweeping the country but it's having little effect with Socket-370/Slot-1/Socket-423 motherboards. Prices with i815E and i815EP boards have been quiet since our last guide except for some modest drops. We still recommend both the ASUS CUSL2 and CUSL2-C because they both share stability, a solid design, and great overclocking features. VIA Apollo Pro 133A-based boards have not changed in price again illustrating the general trend towards stabilization in pricing. Though we've added some more dual Socket-370 motherboards to the list the Microstar 694D Pro receives our recommendation not only because of its price but also it sports a good list of features and is the most stable dual Socket-370 to enter our labs to date.

Though prices with Socket-370 and Slot-1 boards are relatively quiet, Socket-423 boards continue to fall in price with the MSI MS-850-Pro and ASUS P4T being the movers and shakers of the bunch with drops of $29 and $14 this week.

This week we introduce VIA Pro266-based motherboards which gives DDR power to Socket-370 CPUs making the DDR market even more competitive since Socket A DDR solutions have been in the marketplace for some time now. The VIA Pro266 chipset, like the AMD 760 or ALi MAGiK 1 chipset, is the first chipset to provide DDR SDRAM support for the Pentium III allowing for more memory bandwidth and a larger memory capacity. We recently reviewed the Gigabyte GA-6RX and were generally pleased with the board since it provided onboard Creative audio and a Promise IDE RAID controller though we wouldn't recommend it due to its price tag and other limitations.

Related Articles

Make sure you check out our latest i815 Socket-370 Motherboard reviews for more information.

Socket-370/Slot-1 Motherboard Reviews Publication Date
Tyan S1854 Trinity 400 VIA Apollo Pro 133A Slot-1/Socket-370 ATX January 11th, 2000
VIA Apollo Pro 133/133A Motherboard Roundup - February 2000
February 28th, 2000
Shuttle AV64 VIA Apollo Pro 133A March 4th, 2000
ASUS CUSL2 Socket-370 i815E ATX
July 9th, 2000
VIA Apollo Pro 133A with Dual Processors July 13th, 2000
VIA Apollo Pro 133A Motherboard Roundup - July 2000 July 21st, 2000
Intel i815(E) Chipset
June 27th, 2000
Intel i815 / i815E Motherboard Roundup - August 2000
August 3rd, 2000
ABIT SE6 Socket-370 i815E ATX
October 25th, 2000
Transcend TS-ASL3 Socket-370 i815E ATX
October 27th, 2000
ABIT SA6R Socket-370 i815E + RAID ATX November 13th, 2000
EPoX EP-3SPA3 i815EP Socket-370 ATX March 15th, 2001


Socket-A Motherboards

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - AMD Socket-A VIA KT133 Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
ASUS A7V (Non-RAID) $133 $3 PCBoost $15.85 UPS Ground
ABIT KT7-RAID $144 $1 SMK Internet Components $15.25 UPS Ground
ABIT KT7 $127 $2 SMK Internet Components $15.25 UPS Ground
Microstar K7T Pro2A $103 $0 PCBoost $15.85 UPS Ground
Microstar K7T Pro2 $107 $0 PowerUp Inc. $8.29 UPS Ground
Chaintech 7AJA $94 $0 PCBoost Check Vendor UPS Ground
Chaintech CT-7AIA $85 $2 Openlinx $7.00 UPS Flat Rate
EPoX EP-8KTA2 $97 $3 Newegg Free FedEx Saver Shipping
FIC AZ11 $76 $2 GPS Computer Services $10.00 UPS Ground
Gigabyte GA-7ZX $105 $0 Essential Computer $12.00 2 Day FedEx
AOpen AK73 Pro $120 $9 Hardware Pro Check Vendor
AOpen AK73-1394 $155 $7 Hardware Pro Check Vendor


AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - Socket-A VIA KT133A Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
Epox 8KTA3 $112 $14 Newegg Free FedEx Saver Shipping
Abit KT7A-RAID $145 $3 MicroBarn Check Vendor UPS Ground
Abit KT7A $127 $4 MicroBarn Check Vendor UPS Ground
Iwill KK266 $129 $2 Newegg Free FedEx Saver Shipping
Iwill KK266-R $145 $7 Essential Computer $12.00 2 Day FedEx
ASUS A7V133 $133 $7 Ajump Check Vendor
MSI K7T Turbo $110 $5 MicroBarn Check Vendor UPS Ground
AOpen AK73 ProA $130 NA Hardware Pro Check Vendor

 

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - Socket A VIA KM133 Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
Microstar KM133M-ProA $98 NA MWave Check Vendor Ground
ECS K7VMA $89 NA Micro Pro Check Vendor UPS Ground Insured
Biostar M7VKE $101 NA MWave Check Vendor Ground
Gigabyte GA-7ZMM $117 NA Wired Zone $10.00 UPS Ground Insured

AnandTech Weekly Motherboard Prices - Socket-A DDR Motherboards
Motherboard Model
Price
Change
Vendor
Shipping
Promotion
AMD 760
ASUS A7M266 $187 $17 Z-Buy Free Free Freight 3 Days FedEx
Gigabyte GA-7DXC $169 $10 Hardware Pro Check Vendor  
FIC AD11 $175 $0 Newegg Free FedEx Saver Shipping
Ali Magik 1
Iwill KA266 $150 $5 Newegg Free FedEx Saver Shipping
Iwill KA266-R $162 $8 Newegg Free FedEx Saver Shipping
ASUS A7A266 $205 NA Ajump Check Vendor  

The Socket A arena gets more and more crowded with the many platforms currently available. Like their i815E counterparts, KT133-based boards have not changed significantly in price except for several boards which show some modest drops and a few small price hikes. KT133A boards on the other hand are showing a downward trend in price and as stated earlier the Iwill KK266, our KT133A pick, runs cheaper than our KT133 pick, the Abit KT7-RAID by $15 making it a very attractive buy. The Iwill KK266 was a very impressive board which featured a clean layout, superb performance and stability features, and possess the ability to overclock and make tweaks right in the BIOS.

New to our Socket A listings are VIA KM133-based motherboards which is a low cost solution which includes integrated S3 ProSavage video for the budget market. The combination of cheap AMD Duron processor and a KM133-based motherboard can make for a very low-priced solution since Duron prices are running quite low. Unfortunately, the Gigabyte GA-7ZMM was not an appealing KM133 motherboard receiving a rating of 5 out of 10 in our latest review, thus we have yet to recommend one.

Prices with the AMD 760 and ALi Magik-1 line of motherboards continue to decrease in price as these solutions slowly gain numbers in the market. Though the ASUS A7M266 is well priced in comparison to other AMD 760 boards it's lacking with a multiplier adjustment which keeps it from earning our recommendation. New to the ALi Magik 1 list is the ASUS A7A266 motherboard which was recently released into the market.

Related Articles

Make sure you check out our latest Socket-A motherboard and chipset reviews for more information.


Socket-A Motherboard Reviews Publication Date
VIA KX133 Athlon Chipset - Guide
February 7th, 2000
FIC AZ-11 Socket-A KT133 ATX
July 8th, 2000
Gigabyte GA-7ZX Socket-A KT133 ATX
July 15th, 2000
Microstar K7T Pro Socket-A KT133 ATX
July 23rd, 2000
ABIT KT7-RAID Socket-A KT133 ATX
August 12th, 2000
ASUS A7V Socket-A KT133 ATX
August 22nd, 2000
Chaintech CT-7AIV2 Socket-A KT133 microATX
October 5th, 2000
Microstar K7T Pro2 Socket-A KT133 ATX
October 16th, 2000
AMD 760: DDR for the Athlon is here October 30th, 2000
EPoX EP-8KTA2 Socket-A KT133 (686B) ATX
November 14th, 2000
FIC AZ-11E Socket-A KT133 ATX
November 15th , 2000
ALi MAGIK1: The Athlon gets a second DDR platform November 29th, 2000
Socket-A VIA KT133 Motherboard Roundup - November 2000 November 30th, 2000
AOpen AK73 Pro Socket-A KT133 (686B) ATX December 7th, 2000
VIA KT133A Socket-A Chipset: AMD 760 Performance without DDR SDRAM December 21st, 2000
ABIT KT7A-RAID Socket-A KT133A ATX
January 21st, 2001
AOpen AK73-1394 Socket-A KT133 ATX
January 21st, 2001
EPoX EP-8KTA3 Socket-A KT133A ATX January 25th, 2001
MSI K7T Turbo Socket-A KT133A ATX January 30th, 2001
ASUS A7V133 Socket-A KT133A ATX
February 12th, 2001
FIC AD11 Socket-A AMD 760 DDR ATX February 13th, 2001
Iwill KK266 Socket-A KT133A ATX February 22nd, 2001
Gigabyte GA-6RX Apollo Pro266 ATX March 8th, 2001
Gigabyte GA-7ZMM Socket-A KM133 micro-ATX March 11th, 2001
AOpen AK73 ProA KT133A ATX March 12th, 2001

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