MSI Z87 XPower Motherboard Review

With its emergence as the new standard for high-speed portable devices, USB 3.0 performance on a modern motherboard needs to be good to ensure that data transferral bottlenecks aren't created.

We tested USB 3.0 performance using a Kingston HyperX 3K SSD connected to an Icy Box IB-223StU3 USB 3.0 enclosure. ATTO was the benchmark which was used.

Performance differences between the Z87-native USB 3.0 ports and those powered by ASMedia's controllers are non-existent.

One thing we did notice is that MSI's Z87 XPower motherboard doesn't feature any form of ‘Turbo' USB 3.0 mode. We have seen ASRock and Asus successfully activate UASP on some of their motherboards' USB 3.0 ports to unlock limitations relating to transfer speeds. We hope that MSI incorporates a similar ‘Turbo Mode' on its future motherboards to allow the full potential of USB 3.0 to be utilised.

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