Asus, Gigabyte, and MSI have unveiled their latest motherboard rosters based on AMD’s X870 and X870E chipsets. These new boards start as low as £200, with fancy models asking for double.
Keep in mind that while Ryzen 9000 Series benefits the most from all of the new feature sets, the AM5 platform is also primed and ready for Ryzen 7000 upwards.
According to @momomo_us, Asus is working on at least nine boards featuring AMD’s latest chipsets. These are priced as follows:
- ROG Crosshair X870E Hero at £472.69 / €704.52
- ROG Strix X870-A Gaming WiFi at £302.70 / €455.40
- ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming WiFi at £385.14
- ROG Strix X870-F Gaming WiFi at £336.70 / €489.90
- ROG Strix X870-I Gaming WiFi at £336.70
- ProArt X870E-Creator WiFi at €547.20
- Prime X870-P WiFi at £213.46 / €328.44
- Prime X870-P at £199.87 / €314.16
- TUF Gaming X870-Plus WiFi at £257.66
On the Gigabyte side, we only have pricing for two models:
- X870 Aorus Elite WiFi 7 at £225.37 / €323
- X870 Aorus Elite WiFi 7 Ice at £217.72 / €313.98
The same goes for MSI, which is working on boards such as the Godlike, Carbon, and Tomahawk spread among the MEG, MPG, MAG, and Pro Series. While we don’t have pricing yet for MSI’s roster, we expect it to stack up in a way similar to the current X670 and X670E lineups.
Though these tags are on the higher side, they aren’t surprising, with some models packed to the brim. Additionally, since the official launch is still ahead, these could simply be placeholders. What is sure is that 600 Series boards will cover the value angle for those on a budget.
Now, regardless of the brand, all boards should get a PCIe Gen 5 x16 slot for graphics cards, accompanied by a Gen 5 M.2 slot for fast storage. Likewise, the CPU power delivery system should be enough to handle any Ryzen CPU regardless of the model since all are above the £200 mark. In other words, you don’t need an expensive version to extract the most out of your new CPU and GPU. Better yet, we recommend waiting for a B850 or going with the existing B650 if you don’t mind the reduced feature set.
The main difference between these boards will reside in their build quality, features, and I/O. For example, Asus boards will boast the new quick graphics card release mechanism, which no longer requires pressing a button to remove the GPU. The Gigabyte X870E Aorus Master, on the other hand, uses a simpler yet easy-to-reach locking system, complemented with a welcome debug display and a heap of USB 3.2 / USB 4 ports.
These new X870 and X870E motherboards are expected to hit store shelves on September 30. Lastly, if you fancy an upgrade to AM5, be it using Ryzen 7000, 8000, or 9000 CPUs, keep in mind that current X670 and B650 boards are fully compatible, so don’t feel the rush to get an 800 Series chipset.
