AMD launches a new chipset for motherboards. This is an entry-level product, as the brand renews its offer with the A620A. The brand has opted for a Promotory 19 chip, which we’ve already seen in the past in the Reds’ range. So, what’s new?
A620A: clearly not a revolution, but it’s not expensive!
With the A620A chipset, AMD uses a Promotory 19 chip already in use in the B550 in AM4, for example. However, there are a number of significant changes compared to the A620. The first concerns communication with the CPU, which has evolved – unfortunately, in the wrong direction. Compared to the A620, bandwidth is halved on paper, since the link is made not by four PCIe 4.0 x4 lines, but by four 3.0-standard lines. Some minimize the impact, saying that on this type of product, the difference shouldn’t be felt… But we are moving away from the logic of technological progress
The other difference concerns the management of SATA connectivity, which is now independent and not shared with PCIe. This is a good thing, as it offers greater flexibility in the management of storage peripherals. Finally, there are still eight PCIe 3.0 lines coming from the chipset for expansion cards, for example.
In any case, this is for a very tight budget and/or with fairly limited needs. A motherboard equipped with this chipset will be very well suited to a family machine, whose primary need is Internet browsing, for example. On the other hand, if you’re starting to get demanding, you’ll have to go for the B840/850, to benefit from richer connectivity, for example.
It’s worth noting that, in the past, ASUS and Gigabyte have beaten AMD to the punch by unveiling their motherboards before any Reds were announced.