Congatec announced a pair of computer-on-modules that feature AMD's G-Series processors, ranging from the single-core, 1.2GHz T44R to the dual-core, 1.6GHz T56N. The Conga-EAF and Conga-XAF support up to 4GB of DDR3 memory, offer dual video outputs and dual SATA ports, and deliver 1080p-compatible video output, the company says.

According to Congatec, its Conga-EAF (left) and Conga-XAF (right) are both 4.5 x 3.7-inch modules that are essentially similar except the former is an ETX module, while the latter is an XTX module. The difference, the company says, is that ETX supports the ISA bus, while XTX drops this and includes PCI Express x4 instead, also providing additional SATA and USB interfaces.

The lineage here is interesting in that ETX was originally developed by Kontron, which later switched to the 4.92 x 3.75-inch ETXexpress format, the basis of the PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group (PICMG) COM Express standard. Congatec, meanwhile, moved forward with its 2005 XTX (eXpress Technology for ETX) standard: This maintains the same four baseboard connector types and locations as ETX, but replaces the ISA bus on the "X2" connector with four PCI Express lanes, four Serial ATA ports, two additional USB ports, and the Low Pin Count (LPC) bus.

XTX connector allocation

Congatec gained adherents such as Ampro, but it's fair to say things have been pretty quiet lately in both the ETX and XTX front. (We covered an Intel Atom-equipped ETX module from Adlink last week, as it happens.) This is due partly to Intel's discontinuance of the 855 chipset family, claims Congatec, adding that AMD's new embedded-specific G-Series processors now can step into the breach.

Both the Conga-EAF and Conga-XAF are offered with any of the five G-Series devices in the table above, all including onboard GPUs (graphics processing units) that are claimed to deliver glitch-free 1080p video and DirectX 11 compatibility. They're teamed on the Congatec modules with the A55E I/O controller, which uses PCI Express Gen 2 for its UMI (unified media interface) connection to the G-Series processing units, according to AMD.

The modules accept up to 4GB of DDR3 memory in a single DIMM slot, says Congatec. We'd guess both provide 10/100 Ethernet, though this was listed only on the Conga-EAF data sheet (no sheet for the Conga-XAF has yet been posted, and the Conga-XAF's product mage doesn't mention networking).

According to Congatec, both modules including dual video outputs that may be used either as DisplayPort or HDMI 1.3a. The first port is available on a dedicated FCC connector, while the second port is multiplexed with LVDS, the company adds.

As suggested earlier, the Conga-EAF includes ISA and PCI expansion, while the Conga-XAF offers PCI and three PCI Express x1 lanes. Both have two SATA ports, two serial ports, two EIDE ports, I2C, a parallel port, a floppy port, and a PS/2 port, says Congatec.

Congatec says the Conga-EAF has four USB 2.0 ports, while the Conga-XAF has six. Both include multi-stage watchdog timers, and the Conga-EAF is available with an optional TPM (trusted platform module), the company adds.

Features and specifications listed for the Conga-EAF and Conga-XAF include:

• Processor — AMD G-Series processors (all models, as listed earlier in this story)
• Chipset — AMD A55E
• Memory — up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM via single SODIMM slot
• Networking — 10/100 Ethernet
• Expansion:
  • Conga-EAF — ISA and PCI
  • Conga-XAF — PCI and 3 x PCI Express x1; 2 x ExpressCard
• Other I/O:
  • 2 x video (either may be DisplayPort or HDMI 1.3a)
  • 2 x SATA
  • 2 x EIDE
  • 4 x USB 2.0 (plus two additional on Conga-XAF)
  • LPC
  • I2C
  • 2 x serial
  • PS/2
  • floppy
  • LPT
• Power consumption — from 9 to 18Watts typical
• Operating range — 32 to 140 deg. F
• Dimensions — 4.5 x 3.7 inches (114 x 95mm)

Further information

Congatec said the Conga-EAF and Conga-XAF are compatible with Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows Embedded Standard, and Windows CE 6.0; Linux was not mentioned but AMD itself has promised G-Series support for this operating system.

More information may be found on the Conga-EAF product page and the Conga-XAF product page.

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