Bitcoin mining hardware designer Bitmain has released the AntMiner S3, the latest member of its AntMiner family based on 28nm silicon.

The AntMiner S3 claims to deliver up to 478GH/s while consuming 366W of electricity, making power efficiency one of Bitmain’s biggest selling points. It is priced at 0.75 BTC.

Since the S3 churns out 478GH/s (±5%) and consumes 366W, Bitmain says its power efficiency is 0.77J/GH at the wall. It uses a standard ATX PSU, which is not provided by Bitmain.

Due to the relatively low overall consumption, customers can opt for an affordable mainstream power supply unit, although a PSU with a good efficiency rating is advisable. The whole unit measures 331 mm x 137 mm x 160 mm and it is cooled by two standard 140mm server fans, placed at the front and back.

The AntMiner S3 is the company’s third generation bitcoin miner and it is based on the new BM1382 ASIC, which is a 28nm part. The BM1382 should offer a 20% power saving compared to the company’s old 55nm chips.

This is Bitmain’s official spec for the new ASIC, which underwent testing earlier this month:

The company says the AntMiner S3 should start shipping from 10th July. The miner does not need a proxy server and Bitmain says it has gone to great lengths to reduce the unit's noise levels.

AntMiner S3 should produce significantly less heat than its predecessors and with customised heat sinks mounted to all hash boards, the fans do not have to run too fast to keep the miner cool.

Due to its relatively low unit price, limited requirements and the fact that users can reuse off the shelf PSUs, the AntMiner S3 should appeal to smaller mining outfits or individual miners.

Disclaimer: This article should not be viewed as an endorsement of any of the companies mentioned. Please do your own extensive research before considering investing any funds in these products.