This looked like a good option for a Z97 board after several SATA ports on a mid-range competitor's board failed after 3 months. I've had it a few months and so far it's been great. The board is stiffer than the other one and just feels all around more premium quality, but then it was almost double the price. For no good reason that I can remember I've always had a bias against Asus but I'll be going with Asus again.
I don't know enough about the BIOS features to comment too much but it looked good and was easy to navigate.
I have two minor criticsms:
SATA ports on the side of the board. I know this is good for cable management (my case is now far better organised) but it's also frustrating connecting them when they're hidden behind harddrives. I'm not a fan, but that's just personal preference.
It has a kind of foil covered foam backplate with plastic on the outside. This looks good and it's nice to not have the feeling of metal scratching metal when you're searching for a port blind but it was a pain to install and seemed to be putting a lot of pressure on the ports once I managed to crush the foam enough to get the screws in.
| Brand | ASUS |
|---|---|
| Product Dimensions | 26.42 x 32.77 x 6.86 cm; 1.72 Kilograms |
| Item model number | Z97-PRO |
| Manufacturer | Asus |
| Form Factor | ATX |
| Processor Socket | Intel LGA 1150 |
| Processor Count | 1 |
| Memory Technology | DDR3 |
| Computer Memory Type | DDR3 SDRAM |
| Memory Clock Speed | 1.3 MHz |
| Graphics Card Interface | PCI-E |
| Number of USB 2.0 Ports | 2 |
| Are Batteries Included | No |
| Lithium Battery Energy Content | 1 Watt Hours |
| Lithium Battery Packaging | Batteries contained in equipment |
| Lithium Battery Voltage | 1 Volts |
| Lithium Battery Weight | 1 Grams |
| Number Of Lithium Ion Cells | 1 |
| Item Weight | 1.72 kg |
