Motherboard

Its giveaway month! To celebrate Intel's recent launch of the Z97 platform we have another great competition for our readers – the chance to win one of three Biostar Hi-Fi Z97WE motherboards! The Biostar Hi-Fi Z97WE includes the usual high-end motherboard features like USB 3.0, HDMI and PCI-E slots, as …

Intel Corp. has officially unveiled its latest core-logic sets for desktop computers, the Z97 and H97. The new chips support all existing microprocessors in LGA1150 packaging that belong to the Haswell and Haswell Refresh families as well as the upcoming code-named Broadwell central processing units. The fresh platforms do not …

As you'd expect, with the advent of a new Intel chipset, every major computer brand is pushing through new ranges of systems that promise to be better, faster and more feature-rich than anything you've seen before. KitGuru casts an eye over the interwibble and picks out one such newbie. We …

Gamers have long been one of the core consumer groups for the DIY computing industry, but recent months have seen the popularity of gaming-branded components hit a new level. Motherboards are a great example of this; in the eleven months since the inception of Intel's Z87 chipset, the number of …

Intel's Z97 chipset has launched and TUF series motherboards are part of the Asus welcoming party. Sporting the new Intel chipset and old TUF features that have made previous generation Sabertooth boards lucrative components, we put Asus' Sabertooth Z97 Mark 1 in the firing line of our critical analysis. Do …

Intel's Z97 chipset has arrived, bringing with it a handful of new features, including native support for PCIe-based storage. Motherboard manufacturers have been busy working on their boards based on the 9-series chipset. As of May 11th, the LGA 1150 socket motherboards with Z97 and H97 chipsets are available to purchase. We …

While their competitors have been very actively promoting upcoming motherboards, MSI have been keeping really quiet about what they have planned for the coming weeks. When companies like MSI go quiet, we always wonder what they have up their sleeve. Well we have some news from the MSI camp which …

Release date for the Z97 and H97 chipsets is rapidly approaching and motherboard makers are frantically preparing for the upcoming launch. We have a gallery of pictures for the upcoming Gigabyte motherboards based on the Intel 9-series chipset. No further explanation is required; simply sit back and feast your eyes …

Back in February we tested Asus' SATA Express product demo platform. We could see the potential for the high-speed storage interface, but there was still the question of extensive market adoption lingering overhead. Well, judging by the images of new motherboards based on Intel's upcoming chipset, the 10Gbps SATA Express connection is …

Tending to the needs of budget users wanting Intel's mainstream chipset, the Asus Z97-A motherboard aims to offer a low-cost route onto the LGA1150-based platform. Still managing to offer support for SATA-Express and M.2 storage interfaces, let's take a look at the other features that make Asus' Z97-A an interesting low-cost proposition.  …

KitGuru was recently invited to a press event where Asus discussed and showed-off its series of motherboards based on the ‘future Intel chipset'. While information surrounding the chipset is still under Intel's NDA, prepare to indulge in a photographic gallery of Asus' upcoming motherboards. Asus ‘Z97' Series motherboards Asus' ‘Z97' …

Boards designed for extreme overclockers have been constants for all of Intel's most recent platforms. Gigabyte hit success with the Z87X-OC motherboard by driving the overclocking-geared part to an aggressive mid-range price point. Many of the key overclocking-orientated features were still present, but the bank-busting price tag was not. Gigabyte is attempting to …

It's approaching that time of the year; the launch of Intel's ‘future chipset' is just around the corner and board partners are busy preparing their products for the retail channels. Full reviews of motherboards based on the ‘future Intel chipset' still cannot be published for another few weeks (as we …

Asus Sabertooth motherboards have proven popular since their inception a number of generations ago. Based on their widespread popularity it comes as no surprise that The Ultimate Force (TUF) motherboards are making an appearance for the ‘future Intel chipset'. A number of the upcoming chipset's specifications help bolster the feature-set …

Although Intel Corp. decided not to bring support for next-generation solid-state drives with Serial ATA Express (SATAe) interface this year, Asustek Computer earlier this year demonstrated motherboards with SATA Express connectors and vowed to bring the new interface to the market. On Wednesday the company said that it can now …

MicroStar International is working on a new family of mainboards based on Intel Corp.’s upcoming Z97 core-logic that will support the forthcoming microprocessors for enthusiasts code-named Devil’s Canyon as well as future chips based on the Broadwell micro-architecture. All mainboards will be aimed primarily at gamers, but who said that …

Biostar, a second-tier maker of mainboards that specializes on various niche and unique solutions, this week introduced BTC-24GH, a special mainboard designed for Bitcoin mining and featuring 64 special-purpose ASICs [application-specific integrated circuits] which were specifically designed for mining of the virtual currency. In the world of crypto currencies, a …

MSI has debuted a load of imagery and details about its upcoming line of “Gaming” motherboards, which are focused on exactly that. While we'll have to keep you guessing on what chipset it uses, we can tell and show you a lot about the upcoming range of boards. First off, …

Thunderbolt continues to gain pace in the marketplace, especially amongst professional users to whom time is money. Today we take a look at Asus's Thunderbolt 2-equipped Z87-Deluxe/Quad, aimed at small-scale professional users who regularly transfer large amounts of data. Asus has taken its standard Z87-Deluxe motherboard and added an Intel …

We managed to get some time with MSI's Joran Schoonderwoerd at the MSI stand in CEBIT – check out the video below. Under NDA we can't divulge any information on the upcoming boards and the board names are partially masked to protect the Intel NDA, but we have attached some …

One of the coolest rumoured features of Intel's next-gen chipset mainboards is the ability to get OCZ Revo type speeds for small, affordable SSD units. Asrock and Plextor have a next-gen demo at CeBIT 2014 and there's no Intel in sight. To say that SATA has been holding SSD back …

The SAPPHIRE BP-FT3GS features the latest embedded SOC architecture from AMD in a very small 100 x 100mm (or 4 x 4 inch) format. The latest AMD G-Series FT3 SOC combines a low power CPU, control circuitry and discrete level graphics in a single device. This low-power solution delivers much …

While not everything is clear about Intel Corp.’s new microprocessor introduction plans, it looks like the company has finalized its desktop chipset launch schedule. According to a media report, Intel’s new core-logic sets aimed at enthusiasts will debut in mid-May. Such a release timetable will allow Intel and its partners …

Almost three years has passed since SandForce introduced its SF2200 series of controllers. Despite well-publicised problems SandForce's SF2281, in particular, was a radical product; it was one of the first controllers employed by SSD manufacturers to push the SATA 6Gbps connection to its realistic limits. Wind the clock forward to …

We are currently running a fantastic competition thanks to our good friends at Gigabyte UK. One lucky reader will have the chance to win some incredible hardware , in fact the main components to build a new, kick ass system! Be sure to join in the fun over at the …

Much of the computing industry is rapidly moving towards physically smaller components without downsizing performance. Can MSI's Mini-ITX Z87I Gaming AC prove that Small Form Factor gamers need not worry about finding a motherboard which tends to their requirements? MSI's first take on a gaming-orientated Mini-ITX motherboard sees the inclusion …

Intel Corp.’s next-generation 9 core-logic sets may not be packed with loads of innovations, but they still feature technologies not available on today’s platforms. Among those are support for higher-performing storage devices and improved security. Intel 9-series chipsets – Z97 and H97 – are expected to be shipped sometime in …

Today we are going to take a look at the Gigabyte F2A88XM-DS2 motherboard, aimed at those looking to build an AMD APU based system with a limited budget.  This particular motherboard is a bit of a departure from the usual high end product we are used to receiving from Gigabyte …

With so much of Haswell’s performance being related to on-chip parameters, many users are quick to question the relevance of a high-end motherboard. Does MSI’s Z87-G43 Gaming act as proof that an entry-level board can compete with the high-end contenders on the Z87 chipset? Featuring support for two-way CrossFire (albeit …

The 4770K offers quite possibly the highest per-clock performance numbers of any consumer-grade processor currently on the market. It’s just that fact which makes Haswell’s multiplier-unlocked Core i7 a plausible option for workstation applications. And with that possible usage scenario comes the requirement for workstation-grade LGA 1150 motherboards. Is ASRock’s …