Our Z690i Aorus Ultra has the originality of offering an ultra-compact format through the Mini-ITX form factor. Space is therefore limited to integrate the maximum potential of Intel’s Alder Lake platform. Its membership in the Aorus family ensures that it has equipment that meets certain constraints related to PC gaming.
Read more @ GinjFo (French)
The main features of the MEG Z690I UNIFY include a powerful CPU power supply with 105 A converters, Thunderbolt 4 and of course the PEG slot with PCIe 5.0 support. In addition, there are a few M.2 interfaces, several SATA ports and, of course, a few USB sockets from the current generations. The two DDR5 UDIMM slots are located close to the LGA1700 socket and thus enable very high clock rates on paper. Up to 64 GB can be accommodated.
Read more @ Hardwareluxx (German)
The cheapest ASUS board that passed us was the B660-Creator D4 with a price tag of 235 euros. ASUS is known to be a bit more expensive, and we can understand that in part as their bios and software experience is generally just a bit better than the rest. But B660 boards in this segment struggle with mid-range Z690 boards that often go a bit further with features.
Read more @ Tech Testers (Dutch)
ASRock has a wide range of AMD and Intel motherboards with the Phantom line both in the entry level and mid-range sectors. Packed into the ITX form factor, the ASRock Z690 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB4 has a robust VRM deploying ten 105 A power stages. It also includes DDR5 and PCIe 5.0-ready solutions for those looking for the newest technology. The features found on the more common ATX form factor are present and accounted for. Equipped with 2.5 GbE Ethernet powered by the Killer E3001G, DDR5-6400+ memory support, ASRock’s software suite, and Wi-Fi Ready, the time has come to jump in and find out what this ASRock Z690 ITX motherboard is all about!
Read more @ TechPowerUp
In testing, the Ultra DDR4 performed quite well. We did see some decrease in performance, likely due to the use of DDR4 over the DDR5 we have tested previous boards with. That said, performance loss was minimal, around 100 points in both 1t and nT R23, while other benchmarks such as PCMark and 3DMark showed no loss at all. Storage performance was slightly lower than we typically see, peaking at 420MB/s in 3DMark Storage but again not too far off the average.
Read more @ TweakTown
ITX motherboards are coming with more complex design and detailed aesthetics, and this MSI MEG Z690I UNIFY is an example of the former. Until recently, ITX motherboards had 2 M.2 slots at most, and this model includes a total of 3. Without giving up an elegant and discreet aesthetic based on the black color that is very characteristic of the UNIFY series.
Read more @ Professional Review (Spanish)
ASRock delivers a Mini ITX Z690 motherboard at around 300 USD. It’s loaded with premium features and is DDR5 compatible. Armed with two M.2 slots and a plethora of speedy USB ports on the board, as well as the ALC1220 audio codec and integrated Wi-Fi 6E. Additionally, ASRock offers a proper VRM design.
Read more @ Guru3D
ITX motherboards have come an awfully long way since when they first appeared on the market. Indeed the shift has been so dramatic that their intended use has changed too. Initially they seemed to exist solely to be installed into non-standard cases. Anyone who was around the internet back in the day will remember people having systems build in to their Millenium Falcon, or an old army ammo box, really the possibilities of squeezing a tiny system into a tiny case were almost limitless. What they all had in common though was the case being their primary function.
Read more @ OC3D
You also get the Thunderbolt™ 4 Type-C connector, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C, 4 x Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A, and 3 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (1 Rear, 2 Front). And finally, for connectivity, you get the Killer E3100 2.5GB LAN as well as the Killer AX1675 802.11ax supporting WiFi 6e + Bluetooth. The rear I/O panel includes a HDMI port, DisplayPort, BIOS flashback, Clear CMOS button, and connectors for your WiFi antenna, as well as an array of audio connectors.
Read more @ FunkyKit
Once again, the engineers overcame themselves and made a miracle because the main motto of the company is “in search of the incredible.” Without exaggeration, we can say that this is a unique device and we had to do the impossible to cram at least part of the functionality into such a small format. And we are promised a lot of power phases, good cooling and good overclocking.
Read more @ Overclockers Russia (Russian)