Mini ATX or Mini-ATX is a generic name that may be used by

motherboard A motherboard (also called mainboard, main circuit board, mb, mboard, backplane board, base board, system board, logic board (only in Apple computers) or mobo) is the main printed circuit board (PCB) in general-purpose computers and other expand ...

manufacturers to describe a small motherboard, and has been used by AOpen in reference to a motherboard design with dimensions . Mini-ATX motherboards were designed with MoDT (Mobile on Desktop Technology) which adapt mobile

CPU A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor or just processor, is the electronic circuitry that executes instructions comprising a computer program. The CPU performs basic arithmetic, logic, controlling, and ...

s for lower power requirements and less heat generation, which may be beneficial for

home theater PC A home theater PC (HTPC) or media center computer is a convergent device that combines some or all the capabilities of a personal computer with a software application that focuses on video, photo, audio playback, and sometimes video recording ...

s (HTPC), in-car PCs, or industrial use.

Alternative definition

The term miniATX was originally used in (now obsolete versions of)

Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the devel ...

's ATX specification, and denoted motherboards with dimensions of 284 x 208 mm (11.2 x 8.2 in.), before being abandoned in v2.1 in favor of the microATX specification. The two terms refer to different specifications and should not be conflated.

Features

Size

With dimensions of , an AOpen-spec Mini-ATX motherboard can be placed into a single DIN space for standardized application conditions such as a car, rack mount, tower case, wall mount, etc. which may be impossible for the larger Mini-ITX form factor. The smaller form factor Nano-ITX motherboard lacks a CPU socket module which limits its flexibility for different applications.

Noise

Due to a mobile CPU having lower power requirements, there is less heat generated by the CPU and internal components, and the thermal design is simplified. With its passive cooling design, it is typically noiseless and the manufacturing costs and overall operating power requirements are lower relative to active cooling designs.

Stability

Mini-ATX motherboards are a smaller form factor of the ATX motherboards, They typically use surface-mount technology for component placement, solid state capacitors to ensure stable power delivery and an 8-layer

PCB PCB may refer to: Science and technology * Polychlorinated biphenyl, an organic chlorine compound, now recognized as an environmental toxin and classified as a persistent organic pollutant * Printed circuit board, a board used in electronics * ...

design to increase durability and longevity. This design is aimed to provide a better overall performance and reliability compared to other form factors.

Flexibility

The DC-to-DC converter solution design removes the power supply unit from a Mini-ATX case. This reduces the system size and an external power supply unit brings more flexibility when deploying system.

References

External links

* PCtechguide on the ATX form factor: https://www.pctechguide.com/motherboards/atx-form-factor * Other form factors information from C&T: http://www.codesandtutorials.com/hardware/computerfundamentals/motherboard-types-form_factor.php {{Computer form factors Motherboard form factors