PCIx1? whats it used for?

Question

okay so i suppose when it comes to the new motherboards (PCiE) im a bit of a noob.

PCI Express is the new AGP. i accept that. ive seen PCI-E X1, X2 and X16

i know the X16 is the video card slot but what about the other two? what are they used for?

specifically i was wondering what type of card would fit into the slot, considering its size.

i do assume the X1 slot is the small, inch long one.

geez im a noob.

Answer 1

Ive heard that more manufacturers are going to be switching to PCI E 1x or 4x at some point, but as it stands now they don't really have much to expand to. The 1x I've seen has some decent video (albeit overpriced) cards and some controllers for hard drives and sound cards, but thats about it. They seem to be coming out with cards like this on a limited basis, I'm sure the popularity will pick up in the next few years, but as it stands PCI regular is just cheaper to manufacturer for. One day though all of a sudden you'll notice the new cards being all PCI 1x and 4x. My suggestion if your looking into motherboards is to get one that has 2 or 3 regular PCI at least 1 PCI 1x and at least 1 PCI 16x. That'll make sure you have support for the past and room for new cards as well.

Answer 2

the "X" refers to bit transfer speed, check the link below for specifications

Answer 3

Here's an article that tells you what you want to know:

http://arstechnica.com/articles/paedia/hardware/pcie.ars/1