APRIL 2020 PCWorld 101HOW ATX12VO COULD
MAKE PSUS CHEAPER
ATX12VO means change, and change can be
scary, but it’s not all bad. One power supply
maker told PCWorld that the move to ATX12VO
should make PSUs “drastically” cheaper to build.
Jon Gerow, director of research and develop-
ment for another PSU maker, Corsair, agreed
costs should go down while efficiency goes up.
But the power load isn’t really going away,
because people still need those rails. “5V is
still largely used,” Gerow explained. “It’s what
powers your SSDs, your USB ports and all of
your RGB lighting.” While 3.3V isn’t used as
widely, according to Gerow, he added that
Corsair uses it to power the LEDs in the
company’s AIO coolers.
Instead, the power load is moving. Rather
than being a small circuit board in a PSU,
3.3-volt and 5-volt power will be integrated
into the motherboard.
There are pros and cons
to this change. According to
Corsair’s Gerow, the move
offers more opportunities for
customization. “You can
scale the +3.3V and +5V for
exactly what the build needs
and no more than that,”
Gerow said. On the
downside, you’re adding
features to the motherboard,
which means more cost and
more demand on the limited
real estate of the board. And, of course, these
circuits will need to be kept cool, making
ventilation more of an issue.
PCWorld asked Gerow whether the
motherboard or the PSU was better at power
efficiency overall. Gerow said the answer
depends. “Motherboards have to do it on
such a smaller scale, so it’s easier to regulate
these smaller loads with smaller components,”
he explained. But as well all know, mother-
boards can be delicate creatures. “These
smaller components are also more susceptible
to damage from ‘bad power,’” Gerow said,
“so the PSU and motherboard really need to
work together as a team.”WHAT MOTHERBOARD
VENDORS THINK
Motherboard vendors that PCWorld tapped
for comment seemed largely optimistic aboutIntel’s new ATX12VO uses a tiny 10-pin connector versus the typical 24-
pin Main Power Connector used on most DIY desktops today.