Ballistics Report

Performance:
For the price, the ZM6 performs admirably. The 440ZX is positioned as a low-cost 100Mhz part for future Celeron chips, but despite the handicaps built-in by Intel, it holds its own quite well against its big brother, the 440BX. While the short-lived 66Mhz 440LX is still cheaper to buy and implement than the ZX, the strength of "100Mhz" should be enough to push the ZX, and the ZM6 along with it, into the new standard position as the low-cost Socket-370 chipset.

Innovation and Overclocking:
Abit has always been known for bucking the trend, first with Softmenu and voltage adjustment, and now with providing extra PCI and DIMM sockets beyond manufacturer's specifications. It is a bit more complicated and potentially more of a headache if you have multiple bus mastering peripherals or double-sided DIMMs. However, the main focus here is that users have more options with the ZM6 than with any other 440ZX motherboard - you can save money and still have it all.

Setup/Installation:
The manual is Classic Abit, well-written, no broken English, and as always, clear descriptions of each motherboard feature, including the often-confusing BIOS setup. As an Intel-chipset board, you won't see any of the maladies afflicting today's Super-7 motherboards. The only points of contention here are the shared memory banks on DIMM2 and DIMM3, and the slave status of PCI5. Considering that most ZX boards will be stuck at 2 DIMM and 4 PCI however, the ZM6 is a very attractive option if you know the limitations of the chipset.

Price:
ZX isn't positioned as a top-of-the-line chipset, and to justify its price, its feature set has been somewhat slashed by Intel. It is however, the cheapest brand-name 100Mhz part you can get, and expect the ZM6 to cost under or around $100 in most locations when it's released. In the 440ZX range, you're definitely getting the best bang for the buck in terms of feature set.