PCI Express, the much-anticipated replacement for the AGP8X graphics interface, has been at the centre of a number of graphics card and motherboard debuts at Computex in Taiwan this week.

As well as the motherboards from Gigabyte showcased earlier in the week, Abit has announced production of new PCI Express-supporting motherboards to take advantage of the latest Intel chipsets, and six ATI-based graphics cards to support the interface.

Abit also has new AMD 939-pin motherboards and AGP8X graphics cards on the horizon, both targeting gaming enthusiasts.

For Intel, it has its flagship AA8 DuraMax motherboard, with PCI Express and DDR2 support, using the 925X chipset.

A key feature of the motherboard is its Northbridge fan, which has been turned on its side so that it now stands tall, improving the airflow and helping to cool down both the PCI Express and Southbridge.

The Abit AG8 motherboard is similar to the AA8, but uses Intel's 915P chipset and DDR1 memory. Due to its lower price Abit expects the AG8 to be more popular.

Both will be available once Intel ships its two new 915 and 925 chipsets in late June, and will come bundled with Abit's newest technology for overclocking, the µGuru Clock.

While this will take the risk out of pushing a system for hardcore overclockers, for those more risk averse it will provide an easy way to get extra PC performance, by helping to control system temperature, voltage and clock speed.

Abit's overclocking technology is also supported on the new AMD motherboards, although it will not be part of the bundle. The AV8 supports the 64-bit 939-pin socket, and will be available in limited numbers from next week before widely shipping a fortnight later.

As well as the six PCI Express ATI graphics cards, Abit is also releasing two fast cards supporting the incumbent, older AGP8X interface, all from late June.

Five of the cards use the fast ATI Radeon X800 and X600 XT and Pro VPUs and are aimed at keen gamers, with the low-end card running on ATI's X300 SE VPU.

Thomas Hsu, Abit's sales manager for South East Asia and Oceana, said the company is using ATI graphics processors because, unlike those from nVidia, they support native PCI Express, making its systems faster. But he added that he expects AGP8X cards to outsell PCI Express by about 7:3.

"So AGP will still be major, but as the replacement cycle starts PCI Express will rise," he said.