Foxconn D250S Intel Atom D2500 Intel NM10 Mini ITX Motherboard/CPU Combo

Pros: Price.
Runs cool with no fan.
Low power consumption.
HDMI.

Cons: Video driver support is lacking.

Other Thoughts: This board has the Intel 3600 GMA PowerVR GPU which does not seem to be well supported by Linux even though a driver exists for it. I have tested with the following software, all 32-bit:

Windows 7
MeeGo v1.2.0.5 Netbook
Ubuntu 12.04, 12.10, 13.04
Mint 13 and 14
Fedora 18

I found that only Windows 7 and MeeGo have proper video acceleration.

With Ubuntu 12.04 and Mint 13, the video driver needs to be installed after doing the initial software update. You can install the “Intel Cedarview graphics driver” under System Settings => Additional Drivers (the “drm driver for Intel GMA500” driver needs to be installed first, my system also hung during this installation).

This command line procedure worked well also to install the driver:
# apt-get update
# apt-get install cedarview-drm libva-cedarview-vaapi-driver cedarview-graphics-drivers

Do this if you have the PAE kernel to switch to the generic kernel:
# apt-get install linux-headers-generic linux-image-generic
# apt-get remove linux-headers-.*generic-pae linux-image-.*generic-pae

After rebooting you can open Displays, unset “Mirror displays” and then set a higher resolution which is good. Video acceleration however still does not work. Scrolling a web page up and down in Firefox is not smooth at all which is how I am gaging acceleration. It is smooth with Windows 7 and MeeGo.

Ubuntu 12.10 and Mint 14 both boot to a black screen. Ubuntu 13.04 (daily build) actually had the driver already loaded but when I set the resolution higher, the system slowed way down. Fedora 18 had the driver already loaded but it wasn't accelerated.

I bought this board based on the review here which said: “This board works very well with Linux Mint xfce edition 13or14....64 bit.” which I now don't understand. First, I could not boot 64-bit Linux, it seems the BIOS does not support it, I didn't see a BIOS option to enable this. Also, everything I've read about the Linux driver says it is for 32-bit only, (like the Windows 7 driver). If that reviewer is reading this (or anyone else with a solution), please give an update with more instructions.

I like this motherboard otherwise and wish I could make the video work properly under Linux.

Pros: Bolted into existing Dell 2400 box. Started up without a problem. Loaded Ubuntu on a SSD and is running perfectly. Quiet, and quick starting up with the SSD.

I have two Foxconn barebones systems running this dual core Intel Atom processor and love it.

Cons: I wanted to install a two drive hot swappable drive, but due to only two SATA plugs on the board, it is not possible.

Other Thoughts: At first I could not get my PS2 mouse and keyboard working, until I read the BIOS manual and set it properly. A learning experience.

Pros: Compact, CPU included, got special deal for 49.99 free shipping. Just stick it in the case.

Cons: Only two SATA ports, PCI slot, not the fastest CPU, but serviceable. One note of caution: Don't try and install Linux Mint 14 or later. It is not PAE compatible and won't install. I'll just upgrade to a different MOBO/CPU combo when I want.

Other Thoughts: Used this MOBO at a great price (49.99 free shipping) in my first mini itx computer build. Built a family computer. Installed this mini itx MOBO/CPU combo, hard drive, and optical drive with Linux Mint 12 LDXE, 32 bit. The only hang-up, due to my own inexperience, was attaching the case's front panel connectors to this MOBO. There isn't a reset button and stupid me, I connected the PSU fan connector to the MOBO. I must have stared at that MOBO for 45 minutes trying to find out why it wouldn't boot. Disconnected my dumb mistake, presto...it worked! I'm pretty proud of doing something I never did before, so I took pics of it and sent it out to my friends, who obviously understand that I have total geek written all over me. Oh well. Life is short. I would also add that when running Linux Mint 12 LDXE, this processor on this board runs probably as a netbook would. It's no speed demon and DVD's don't play the greatest, so don't use the MOBO as a home entertainment unit. It does what I want...it's surfing the internet, helping me burn CD's and DVD's, prints, and more. One note of caution: Don't try and install Linux Mint 14 or later. It is not PAE compatible and won't install. I'll just upgrade to a different MOBO/CPU combo when I want. Then again, I got everything on Newegg for $165.00, shipped. For a family computer for $165.00, you can't beat that with a stick.

Pros: Installs Easy, had pretty good reviews , but any thing with "linux" in it was what i was looking for. this was to be my micro build and i wanted to put ubuntu on it. well thats what made me decide to write a review.

Cons: Having all kinds of trouble getting ubuntu to boot on it. the installation went ok, i thought everything was great. well it boots to a black screen. and i cant get it to do anything. NEED Help Please. anyone with experience getting a linux distro on this motherboard please help!

Other Thoughts: NEED Help Please. anyone with experience getting a linux distro on this motherboard please help!

Pros: - tiny size
- HDMI video output
- low power
- killer CPU heatsink - I added a 90mm fan to the CPU heatsink and with both cores maxed at 100% for 1.5 hours, CPU temp only hit 31C!

Cons: - onboard Intel GMA 3600 graphics only works with 32-bit Windows 7
- limitations to using 32-bit Win7:
- video only through HDMI (no audio)
- can't make use of the full 4GB RAM
- graphics drivers not included on driver disc

Other Thoughts: Great little board for a simple HTPC with HDMI video and 2-channel stereo audio. Paired it with an FSP Group 300W PSU and 4GB G.Skill RAM and it's solid and reliable, and runs very cool.

Took one egg off for the graphics driver hassle and 32-bit only drivers. Would have loved to make full use of the 4GB of RAM.

In case anyone still needs the proper graphics driver, I've tested and verified that this one works:
http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?ProductID=3468&DwnldID=20785&lang=eng&iid=dc_rss

Pros: Nice small in-expensive little system with enough horsepower to meet my needs. The built in chip cooler keeps the CPU cool enough that a fan is not needed.

Cons: Not all drivers for this board are Windows XP compatible.

Other Thoughts: I bought this to put my old dead laptop (Windows XP) HD in so that I could continue using all my old programs, some of which do not work in newer versions of Windows , but on my TV. The graphics card on this does not have any working XP drivers. The HDMI port works physically without drivers, but the VGA port does not. Also since the graphics are not supported on XP there is no audio over the HDMI port. I have the system working on my TV using the HDMI, but have the audio output connected to my receiver. Other than the driver compatibility issue with XP, this board is functionally and spec wise equivalent to my old laptop. If everything continues the way it is, I will continue to be able to use my old computer for many years.

Pros: Runs stable
Fairly fast
Cheap

Cons: None

Other Thoughts: I highly recommend this for a solid board with decent performance, small size, and low power consumption.

Pros: Quiet, Low power consumption

Cons: Only 2 SATA ports and compatible with only Win 7 (on Windows OS platforms)

Other Thoughts: My previous board was a Zotac GF6100-E-E, which was wonderful as long as it worked. This was utilized (so is this D250) as a mainboard for an in-dash Car-PC. The board functions the way it should, as long as the proper OS and drivers are installed. I would recommend this board (or any CPU integrated board) over the normal ones.

Pros: This board works very well with Linux Mint xfce edition 13or14....64 bit.

Cons: For the price, none.

Other Thoughts: This netbook board is made for a very low cpu resource OS like Linux Mint xfce edition. I have 4 gig ram, 32 gig SSD, in a mini ITX case. For net surfing, email, and utube and hulu movies. Works just fine for me. Board is not for games, but Linux games like freeDoom and chocolate Doom are played every day just fine on my 24" IPS led monitor. All eqipment purchased at Newegg.

Pros: None, it does not work

Cons: This board arrived DOA in August, it took us this long to get a replacement. FoxConn ignores support requests and now we received a USED, broken and filthy board as a replacement. At the same time we had another board replaced, that was was filthy and not working. We had to pay for shipping twice and it makes this not worth it.