Mini-ITX motherboards
Motherboards (1 - 5)
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| Asus Maximus VIII Impact | Asus ROG Strix Z390-I Gaming | ASRock Z490 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB3 | Asus ROG Strix X570-I Gaming | MSI Z370I Gaming Pro Carbon AC | Asus ROG Strix Z370-I Gaming | Asus ROG Strix Z270I Gaming | Asus H170I-Plus D3 | Gigabyte B550I Aorus Pro AX | ASRock FM2A88X-ITX Plus | |
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| RAM speedIt can support faster memory, which will give quicker system performance. | ||||||||||
| RAM speedIt can support faster memory, which will give quicker system performance. | 2133MHz | 2666MHz | 2933MHz | 2666MHz | 2667MHz | 2400MHz | 2133MHz | 1600MHz | 3200MHz | 2133MHz |
| Overclocked RAM speedThe motherboard supports overclocking the RAM to a higher speed. By increasing the speed at which the memory runs, you can boost the performance of your computer. | ||||||||||
| Overclocked RAM speedThe motherboard supports overclocking the RAM to a higher speed. By increasing the speed at which the memory runs, you can boost the performance of your computer. | 4133MHz | 4800MHz | 4666MHz | 4800MHz | 4500MHz | 4333MHz | 4266MHz | 1866MHz | 5300MHz | 2400MHz |
| Memory slotsMore memory slots (also known as DIMM slots) allow you to add more RAM to your computer. It is also useful when upgrading, as you can add RAM to an empty slot instead of replacing an existing memory module. | ||||||||||
| Memory slotsMore memory slots (also known as DIMM slots) allow you to add more RAM to your computer. It is also useful when upgrading, as you can add RAM to an empty slot instead of replacing an existing memory module. | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Maximum memory sizeThe maximum amount of memory (RAM) supported. | ||||||||||
| Maximum memory sizeThe maximum amount of memory (RAM) supported. | 32GB | 64GB | 64GB | 64GB | 32GB | 32GB | 32GB | 32GB | 64GB | 32GB |
| Fan headersFan headers are connection points on the motherboard that cooling fans can be connected to. Fans can also be connected straight to the power supply, but when connected to the motherboard you gain much finer control over them through software. | ||||||||||
| Fan headersFan headers are connection points on the motherboard that cooling fans can be connected to. Fans can also be connected straight to the power supply, but when connected to the motherboard you gain much finer control over them through software. | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| SATA 3 connectorsSATA is an interface used to connect mass storage devices such as hard drives and Blu-ray drives. SATA 3 has a native transfer rate of 6 Gbit/s, which is twice as fast as SATA 2, the previous revision. This is particularly useful if you use an SSD as it can perform at higher speeds. | ||||||||||
| SATA 3 connectorsSATA is an interface used to connect mass storage devices such as hard drives and Blu-ray drives. SATA 3 has a native transfer rate of 6 Gbit/s, which is twice as fast as SATA 2, the previous revision. This is particularly useful if you use an SSD as it can perform at higher speeds. | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
| PCIe 3.0 x16 slotsPCIe slots allow you to connect various components to the motherboard, such as graphics cards and sound cards. The number after the 'x' represents the number of lanes, with more lanes supporting higher data transfer rates. PCI Express 3.0 has a bit rate of 8 GT/s, delivering 985 MB/s per lane. | ||||||||||
| PCIe 3.0 x16 slotsPCIe slots allow you to connect various components to the motherboard, such as graphics cards and sound cards. The number after the 'x' represents the number of lanes, with more lanes supporting higher data transfer rates. PCI Express 3.0 has a bit rate of 8 GT/s, delivering 985 MB/s per lane. | 1 | 1 | 1 | N.A. | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | N.A. | 1 |
| USB 3.0 portsMore USB 3.0 ports allow you to connect more devices to your computer that support USB 3.0. USB 3.0 is an improved version of USB 2.0 which offers faster transfer rates. | ||||||||||
| USB 3.0 portsMore USB 3.0 ports allow you to connect more devices to your computer that support USB 3.0. USB 3.0 is an improved version of USB 2.0 which offers faster transfer rates. | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 2 |
| Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) connectivityWi-Fi 6, released in 2019, is based on the IEEE 802.11ax wireless LAN standard. Designed to operate in all frequency bands between 1 and 6 GHz, it offers higher data rates and lower latency compared to previous Wi-Fi technologies. | ||||||||||
| Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) connectivityWi-Fi 6, released in 2019, is based on the IEEE 802.11ax wireless LAN standard. Designed to operate in all frequency bands between 1 and 6 GHz, it offers higher data rates and lower latency compared to previous Wi-Fi technologies. | ||||||||||
When it comes to choosing a motherboard for your desktop PC, you’ve generally got three choices (in order of descending size): ATX, Micro ATX, and Mini ITX. As the smallest option, Mini ITX motherboards are often overlooked as they appear to be less powerful at first glance. However, that’s not always the case. Here’s what to know about Mini ITX motherboards and whether or not it’s the right fit for you and your computer.
Size
Mini ITX motherboards measure 170×170 mm, but again, size isn’t everything. Tech experts note that in terms of motherboard sizes, it’s really only important to measure to ensure that the motherboard can fit inside of the computer. While a Mini ITX motherboard will fit in just about any desktop computer case, a larger motherboard such as an ATX motherboard might not. Keep this in mind when building your PC.
RAM
With these types of motherboards, you’ll mostly be concerned about the number of RAM slots. Mini ITX motherboards come with two RAM slots whereas the others come with four or sometimes even eight. Depending on what kinds of tasks you need to carry out, two RAM slots is usually enough as Mini ITX motherboards can accommodate up to 32GB of RAM total. A great gaming setup will do just fine with 32GB of RAM, and if you’re using the PC to engage in everyday processing tasks, that will be more than enough.
PCIe Slots
The only other major difference you’ll need to keep in mind when comparing motherboards is the number of PCIe slots, which allow you to connect various components to the motherboard, such as graphics cards and sound cards. ATX motherboards undoubtedly win here as they often come with three slots whereas Mini ITX motherboards come with just one. Again, if you’re using the computer to complete basic tasks, this will likely be fine. If you eventually want to add expansion cards or add more GPUs, you’ll need more PCIe slots.
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