We have more than once mentioned the clear trend toward small formfactors that is at Computex this year, not the least noticeable with Asrock’s compact mITX barebone M8 that uses riser cards to make room for enthusiast grade graphics cards.
M8 is designed together with BMW and the case has somewhat sportscar feel to it with a steel frame, black plastic details and tight measurements at 372 x 123 x 400 millimeter. The side is free from screws and is kept in place with magnets, and on the front Asrock has placed a combined Start button, twistable knob and LCD display for showing various system information.
On the inside it has room for a mini-ITX motherboard with Intel Z87 chipset, Bluetooth 4.0 and WiFi networking with 802.11ac support. The I/O panel has 7.1 audio via the Creative Sound Core3D sound processor, Ethernet port, 4 USB 3.0 ports, another 4 USB 2.0, one eSATA and video outputs in the form of Displayport and HDMI.
Since it is a barebone it comes with a motherboard and power supply: SFX at 450 watt. Other than that you are free to choose your own components: processor, up to 16 GB memory, one 2.5-3.5″ storage devices and one graphics card.
The graphics card is the distinguishing feature of the case, since Asrock sends along a riser card that enables you to mount the graphics card parallel to the motherboard, and thus keep the case low. Asrock says M8 can handle top models like Nvidia GTX Titan, which is quite an achievement for a case this size that easily slides into any entertainment unit.
Asrock M8 is estimated to reach stores in July, and cost 499 dollar.
