HardOCP has reviewed the Abit AN8 Ultra motherboard today based on the nForce4 Ultra chipset.  Looks like the guys didn’t find the fanless design all that appealing…
Remember that you are hearing all of this from a person that has been a huge fan of ABIT motherboards since their introduction of the “soft bios” in the mid-90s. Based on the ABIT motherboards that I have experienced over the last year, I have to wonder if ABIT has simply lost its grip on their marketing and engineering teams. Certainly, their marketing of the “Fatal1ty” line of motherboards consisted of some statements that were simply not true, although most of that product line consisted of very solid products. Then you have examples of ABIT’s engineering — like the AN8 Ultra reviewed today — and it makes you wonder if ABIT still knows what is important in the enthusiast motherboard market. If they do know, it seems that they are not putting that knowledge into action. I hope we see some products out of ABIT soon that live up to their products of the past. If not, ABIT will continue to lose market share.