Back to the similarities. nForce 730i and G45 both include individual PCI Express x16 slots compliant with the 2.0 specification. On G45, you'd use that slot as a reprieve from the anemic integrated core, replacing it completely with a discrete board. GeForce 9300 gives you two options: either populate the slot with a high-end card and shut off the integrated core altogether, or add a discrete GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 8500 GT card to enable GeForce Boost. We've covered the basic functionality of GeForce Boost already. In short, it works similarly to SLI, leveraging the mGPU and a discrete GPU cooperatively.
For the rest of G45's base functionality, you have to move away from the Intel's memory controller hub and down to its ICH10 controller—the southbridge in any other language. A 2 GB/s interface connects the two components. Although it's loaded down with 12 USB 2.0 ports offering 480 Mb/s of throughput each, six PCI Express x1 slots able to move 500 MB/s apiece, Gigabit Ethernet, six SATA 3 Gb/s ports, and a High Definition Audio controller, Intel apparently doesn't see there being any issues with bandwidth.
Nvidia circumvents that challenge altogether by using a single-chip design. The same component hosting the GeForce 9300 graphics and memory controller also delivers four PCI Express x1 slots (2.0 versus Intel's 1.1), six SATA ports, Gigabit Ethernet, 12 USB 1.0 ports 7.1-channel LPCM HD Audio, and five standard PCI slots. As with Intel, Nvidia's storage subsystem supports RAID 0, 1, 0+1, and 5 arrays, too.
