Introduction

Next time you're upgrading and installing a motherboard, take a closer look at the connectors on the rear ATX panel. What you'll notice, is that there are probably 2 or 3 of these connectors made by Foxconn. This is nothing new, in fact they've been making these components for many years. But what's really interesting is that they started to make their own brand of motherboards a few years back, but with limited success. It's now 2011, and with the recent launch of Intel's Sandy Bridge processors earlier this month, what better time for Foxconn to release a P67 motherboard to take advantage of this.

For those who don't know Foxconn, they're a subsiduary of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. ... a Taiwanese based I.T. company which probably produces more than one 3rd of all consumer electronics in the world. They are huge! In 2009, Foxconn was reported as the largest exporter of manufactured electronics in Greater China, and accounted for 44.2% of electronics manufacturing during that year. Read more.They operate several "mini-industrial cites" in China with numerous production lines producing everything under the sun, including Apple iPhones, iPods, iPads, Wii's, Xbox's, PS3's, notebooks, netbooks and lots more. In fact, they take orders from big names like HP, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft to make all these products.

With such a huge client list and a massive product profile, it should come as second nature for Foxconn when it comes to producing motherboards. The only thing is ... have they done their homework in terms of marketing. Let's not forget, what makes a motherboard attractive to consumers are the innovative features, the glossy packaging and most important ... its performance.

In this review, we'll be taking a look at the Foxconn P67A-S motherboard. It utilises the Intel P67 chipset, which we all know has been released at the same time to complement perfectly with Intel's new Sandy Bridge processors socket LGA 1155. The motherboard supports dual channel DDR3 channel memory, SATA3, USB 3.0, and dual PCIE x16 slots for Nvidia SLI or CrossfireX multi-GPU configuration.

The Foxconn P67A-S is aimed and targeted at the higher-end of the mainstream market, and comes with some suprising features which are normally found on higher-end enthusiast motherboards. These include solid capacitors, digital PWM, a 2-digit debug diagnostic LEDs, as well as onboard power-on and reset buttons. The motherboard uses a black colored PCB, and there's also a unique looking heatsink that somewhat resembles a shark-fin.

Foxconn has also included their "FOX ONE" technology on this motherboard. It's a dedicated onboard chipset, which controls and monitors system performance, reduces noise and energy consumption ... all of which could increase its overall performance. To make things a little more interesting, the Foxconn P67A-S features the new UEFI (firmware/BIOS) for adjusting various motherboard and CPU options. 

As I've mentioned earlier, it's vital for Foxconn to get the marketing and packaging right. Without it, it's very difficult in today's extremely competitive motherboard market. Just take a look at some of the marketing and packaging which Gigabyte has done for their motherboards, and you'll know what I mean. So far the Foxconn P67A-S, does look pretty good. Let's hope the peformance is just as good.

It will be interesting to see how well the Foxconn P67A-S can compete against other motherboards in its class. We'll be comparing it with the original Intel DP67BG and the Gigabyte P67A-UD4. We expect the Foxconn P67A-S to produce similar results during our tests, but has it got what it takes to attract the users? We will soon find out.

We'll be testing the Foxconn P67A-S motherboard, using the following components, which includes ... an Intel Core i7-2600K procesor (LGA 1155), Geforce GTX 460 (1Gb GDDR5), 4Gb Crucial Ballistix DDR3-2133, Arctic Cooling Freezer13 CPU cooler and a Thermaltake ToughPower XT 875W power supply. 

Right, let's move on and take a closer look at the specifications and features of the Foxconn P67A-S motherboard ...

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