If you are in the market for a brand new motherboard, you might want to take a minute to read this report on seven P4 motherboards and how they measured up under the Tom’s Hardware ‘microscope’. While I do not want to spoil the ending for ya, I will say that they did a great job at pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of each board when it came time to wrap things up.

Over the last few months, Intel has taken a lot of heat over its latest P4 processor. Its most recent Prescott core is literally a “hot little item” that cooks along between 84 and 115 W max, depending on the model. By contrast, AMD CPUs go up to a maximum of 89 W, and their latest generation only goes to 67 W. AMD is still ahead of Intel technologically thanks mainly to their CPUs’ 64-bit capability, NX bit, and Cool ‘n’ Quiet feature. But the introduction of reworked, faster P4 processors will soon renew the attractiveness of Intel’s solutions.

Intel can claim some advantages for its latest platforms. The 915 and 925 chipsets are without doubt among the best on the market today from a technological standpoint. And while it is true that motherboard manufacturers enjoy fewer and fewer differentiating features due to the advancing degree of component integration, Intel has developed a variety of options for adapting products to meet a range of different requirements.