ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I Gaming WiFi Motherboard Review – Features, Design & BIOS

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The X670E Chipset & Mini-ITX Form Factor

The X670E chipset is the top-end option geared towards enthusiasts and overclockers to get the best build money can buy. This chipset will utilise the most amount of PCI-E lanes, giving consumers the most in terms of upgrade paths along with the most amount of slots. This also allows users to enjoy brand new features like USB4, and support for a powerful WiFi 6E modular.

However, when you start to look at small form factors, the amount accessible to you starts being put into question. Because Mini-ITX motherboards are so small, although you’re getting the benefits of a portable setup, you’ll start sacrificing a number of these new features. Mini-ITX boards only tend to have one PCI-E x16 slot, so for multi-GPU users, Mini-ITX boards are pretty much out of the question. You’ll also be limited on the number of storage options too. Although the ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I is a top-end board, there is only likely to be one or two SSD slots for you to use.

One benefit of the X670E platform utilising DDR5 is that the individual DIMMs themselves can be much bigger compared to the previous generation. Though you’ll only have two DIMM slots on this Mini-ITX, the sticks of RAM can be much bigger, still allowing for high performance without sacrificing too much capacity. With concerns to other features, Mini-ITX motherboards on the new platform should be very capable, generally speaking, but will lose certain features here and there based on the sheer size.

Table of Differences

To provide some context on the differences between the X670E chipset and alternative options, the table below highlights the key differences between two different motherboards as a point of comparison. We’ve taken a look at the ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I, and compared it against a Gigabyte board on the X670 chipset to give you an idea of the sacrifices you might make between chipsets.

Comparison of Features

At a quick glance, both of the boards hold up relatively well against each other. The biggest difference that you’ll see here is the inclusion of PCI-E 5.0 on both boards. The X670 chipset has far less accessibility to the new standard of PCI-E 5.0. This means that upgrading to the newest GPUs and SSDs will be somewhat problematic. The ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I has dual PCI-E 5.0 slots, with one of them being an x16 for your GPU, and one x4 for SSDs. Despite being small in size, you can still upgrade to the latest hardware which is good to see.

Looking at rear IO, we’re also seeing much better high speed USB options on the X670E-I. The Gigabyte X670 AORUS Elite AX still has plenty of options when it comes to rear and front IO, but there are less top-end options. Networking is the same on both boards, with users having access to 2.5 Gigabit LAN and a WiFi 6E module.

Generally speaking, both of these boards are relatively similar when it comes to features. However, consumers will potentially lose out on upgradeability when it comes to the standard X670 chipset. If you’re looking to pick up some of the latest components, then you’ll want to weigh up your options when it comes to chipsets. But if you’re not worried about getting an upgrade to an RTX 4000 card, or one of AMD’s latest GPUs, then you may find that the X670 chipset is a suitable solution!

ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I Gaming WiFi Aesthetics & Design

Moving onto the design of the ROG Stix X670E-I, I’m pretty impressed with the overall design of this board. ASUS seem to have embraced the smaller form factor fully and have put many nice design elements into the board as possible. The board has a shimmering black design with various ROG logos on the SSD heatsink and rear IO panel. We’re seeing less of an extended heatsink design on this board, possibly due to the size, but there seems to be plenty of cooling on the VRMs. There’s also less exposed PCB on this board, based on how many features have been crammed into this design.

Look at the rest of the board, you’ll notice that it is quite chunky. Compared to other designs with large heatsinks for SSDs, the X670E-I reigns supreme with a massive heatsink for the PCI-E 5.0 M.2 SSD. However, this will help alleviate some of the thermal issues that come with powerful SSDs. Otherwise, the rest of the motherboard is relatively simple overall. ASUS are well known for going a bit crazy with the RGB, but we’re not seeing that on this motherboard, instead the Mini-ITX design is more minimalist which I prefer. I’m very happy with the aesthetic that this board offers, and I hope ASUS provide similar designs for other additions.

Features

Now onto the section you’ve all been waiting for – the features. Even though this motherboard has a smaller more compact design, there’s plenty of features on offer for consumers to sink their teeth into, and we’ve noted them down below.

PCI-E 5.0 Support

The ROG Strix X670E-I allows users to embrace brand new components by utilising the new standard for PCI-Express, PCI-E 5.0. For GPUs, there is one x16 slot, fully compliant with the Gen5 technology. You’ve also got access to a Gen5 slot on the M.2 side and a Gen4 SSD slot if you need some extra storage space.

ASUS ROG FPS-II Card

The ROG FPS-II Card is a unique add-in option that is included in the box with this motherboard. The card has to USB Type-C ports that easily slot into the connectors on the right side of the board. The point of the card is to allow you to easily access your front panel and extra ports, along with the ability to clear CMOS and enable CPU overvoltage.

ASUS ROG Strix Hive

The ASUS ROG Strix Hive is a brand new inclusion in the wake of Ryzen 7000 CPUs. This magnetic add-on allows you to quickly change various settings on the fly without having to go back into your BIOS and restart your PC. The Hive also houses a top-shelf audio codec and DAC, bringing incredible quality audio to your PC!

USB4 Ports

USB4 ports are a new addition to the PC gaming and building scene, giving users access to hyper-fast speeds. It also brings the ability to charge devices at rapid speeds with QuickCharge 4+. The ROG Strix X670E-I has two on the rear IO in the Type-C format for you to use to your heart’s content.

What’s In The Box?

The ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I Gaming WiFi motherboard comes with a load of extra features in the box that supplements building your PC, but also adds some usability features that can make your gaming experience much better.

ROG FPS-II Card

ROG Strix Hive

SATA Cables

Cable Ties

WiFi Antenna

M.2 Latch

BIOS

Compatible Processors

Although Ryzen 7000 CPUs aren’t locked behind a particular chipset, finding the best CPU for your motherboard is vital in getting the best value for money. As much as you could throw a low-end CPU into this motherboard, the ROG Strix X670E-I will be better suited with some more high-end Ryzen 7000 CPUs to get the best out of the performance.

Conclusion