How to buy a PC motherboard

Level of difficulty: Difficult

Motherboard is the most critical component of a computer system. The circuits designed on the motherboard are responsible for the communication between the various components of the system. It is also known as the main board or primary circuit board. This is place where the central processing unit rests and all other components like the drives, memory units and even the other peripheral devices are all attached to the motherboard.

Materials Needed:
- You would require thorough knowledge of the components of the motherboard and the functionalities you desire of your computer. You must also know the latest trends in the market.
Step 1
There are enough types of motherboards in the market to confuse you. It becomes very difficult to make the choice if you go unprepared. Make sure you review the latest computer magazine and take help from Internet as well to narrow down your choice to a few shortlisted motherboards.
Step 2
Preferably choose a motherboard that comes equipped with a central processing unit. Incase you wish to buy a motherboard that does not have a central processing unit, make sure the motherboard has a CPU slot that is of adequate size for the CPU which you desire to fit in later on.
Step 3
The motherboard will responsible for attaching other hardware components as well. Do see for a motherboard which has the facility to attach all the desired devices.
Step 4
It is always recommended that the motherboard should have a minimum of three DIMM sockets. These sockets will be housing the RAMs. The sockets should be capable to house a RAM of at least 256MB operating at 100 MHz
Step 5
Do not settle for a motherboard that has less than two USB ports. The USB technology has revolutionized the world. Almost everything comes with a USB port. You won’t be very happy if you are not able to attach two pen drives and your mobile phone to the computer at the same time to transfer data from one device to another.
Step 6
Do not blindly take up any extra feature. Evaluate the additional features before taking them.
Step 7
One very important aspect to take into consideration is the warranty and technical support. The warranties range from one year to three years.