Customer Ratings & Reviews

PRODUCT TUF GAMING Z890-PLUS WIFI The Goldilocks Win 11 / Intel ASUS Motherboard QUICK OVERVIEW This Motherboard is a nice “step up” from entry level, without being overkill and while keeping most of the important features of the premium offerings from ASUS. I don’t think you can go wrong with this motherboard for all but the most fanatical hard-core users. It even, in many cases, offers more flexibility than some other higher-end models. NOTE: Windows 10 is not fully supported (see below) • Multiple Card Slots for Flexible Expansion • Plenty of USB Ports (rear ports and MB headers) • Plenty of M2 Slots • Plenty of SATA ports • Thunderbolt 4 (40 Gb) and USB (20 Gb) Ports • Advanced Overclocking for RAM and CPU (same as the higher end boards) • WiFi 7 built in (requires Windows 11) • Bluetooth 5.4 built in (requires Windows 11) • Many helpful quick release tabs for M.2 slots, graphics cards, etc make this truly easy to use motherboard, with almost no tools needed on a regular basis. GOLDILOCKS BOARD If you go back a level or two in ASUS motherboard models, then you might lose Thunderbolt 4 (depending on the board) or have a slower RAM top end speed, or fewer card slots or no 20Gb USB ports. If you go up a level or two, you gain more Thunderbolt 4 ports and M.2 slots a little more RAM top end speed, but then you start to lose expansion card slots, due to the limitation of total available PCI lanes. You must decide where to allocate your bandwidth (ports or slots) before you buy a Motherboard. This board should perform well with good flexibility to meet most, if not all, of your current and future needs even if you are not sure what your future needs will be. SETUP The very first thing I did was to flash the BIOS. This was due to several warnings on the ASUS website. One surprise (to me) was the lack of WiFi / Bluetooth and other drivers for Windows 10 from ASUS for this motherboard. After several days of experimentation, I gave up and decided to install Windows 11. TIP: make sure that you download the ASUS LAN or WIFI drivers and have them unzipped on a thumb drive as the compatible drivers are not included by default in the Windows Installation Media. After you finish installing Windows 11, ASUS will detect you need more drivers and prompt you through the process. Regardless, though, you must have a network driver to even get Windows installed. For Windows 11 and with this test/review, I let ASUS install the suggested driver update tool and let it do its thing. Everything was installed properly with no errors in device manager control panel. BIOS If you are familiar with ASUS BIOS screens you will be right at home. It looks similar to the several other ASUS MB’s I use around the house. I’m not a big over-clocker, but it nice to know that everything you would need seems to be there for you, including several “AI” tools to optimize performance. I tend to run my systems STOCK to keep power consumption and cooling requirements low. In my open bench builds (4 so far), I don’t use any extra cooling fans other than a CPU air cooler fan, so I try not to get too crazy with performance boosting. MY USE I’m building an arcade cabinet and I need a ton of USB Ports for various controllers as well as to power external LED lighting effects. Between the 8 Rear Panel Ports and 7 Front Ports (that I wired to the rear of the case with optional not included cables), I now have 15 USB ports. After adding my GPU, I still have 4 PCI Slots left over for additional expansion if I need it. I will use one M.2 slot and still have 3 left over. I will use one SATA port and still have three left over. In short, there is plenty of room for any expansion I could imagine. So far, I can’t think of anything else I need from this Motherboard. NOTE: With my arcade (Windows 10) build I will have to sacrifice 2 USB ports to make up for unsupported motherboard WiFi and Bluetooth, but I still have plenty of ports left over. PERFORMANCE I decided not include a bunch of performance specs in this review, there are simply too many variables between CPU speed, RAM speed, Storage Speed, and overclocking variables to be meaningful unless you have my exact same build down to the component level. I am not (in this case) trying to build a rocket ship, but it is nice to know that I could if I wanted to. I have an I7 CPU, prior generation mid-range GPU (RTX3060), and a large / slow spinning disk. It feels zippy due to my M.2 NVME boot drive and meets my needs perfectly. RECOMMENDATION The more I researched this line from ASUS, the more the TUF GAMING Z890-PLUS WIFI seemed the perfect MB for me. It is just the right balance of ports / slots / performance / expandability and value. I have some misgivings about the lack of full Windows 10 support (at least at the time of this review). I don’t like having unsupported / improperly configured devices in my Device Manager. Nevertheless, I realize that Windows 10 days are all but over, and I need to get on board with Windows 11. This MB from ASUS will likely force the issue for me to upgrade the rest of my systems to Windows 11. I do recommend this MB.

I grew up with a technical uncle always preferring ASUS hardware and quality and it has always had me leaning towards Asus. I’m glad that after a decade, I can still trust their hardware and can customize it to my liking. Where to start off! Asus’ TUF Gaming branding is meant to show military style durability for the parts used on their motherboards. On this model specifically, it contains an 8 layered PCB board, tough capacitors (can handle hotter temperatures and are made to have a longer lifespan), and is equipped with multiple heatsinks throughout (on the PCH chipset, VRM, and even one for an M.2 SSD). Still worried about overclocking due to deterioration on the capacitors or RAM slots of the motherboard? Don’t know where to start? Asus ensures their parts are tested to withstand overclocking’s harsher conditions like heat and wear and tear and comes with 3 years of warranty just in case (supports memory overclocking using AMD’s EXPO and in this case, Intel’s XMP tech). Asus even offers their’ AI overclocking tool if you aren’t sure where to start if you’re interested in pushing your hardware. This motherboard is meant for stability and durability. The best part was that everything worked outside of the box. I didn’t experience any issues, didn’t have to update the BIOS (has the Intel Z890 chipset and therefore supports the latest CPU Ultra 2 Gen), and was able to quickly connect all of my hardware very easily. If Intel decides to keep the same socket for the next few processors, it’s nice to know that this motherboard has ASUS’s BIOS FlashBack capability (ability to use a USB drive to flash an older/ newer version of the BIOS without a CPU or memory) and I don’t need to install an old processor to update the BIOS for future processors. Asus had some very handy features like the “Q” connector system where screws aren’t needed to keep in place installed M.2 SSDs and can be easily switched out. Another feature I liked was the included Wifi 7 “Q-Antenna” Wifi 7 where the antenna’s connectors don’t need to be screwed on and plug straight in and fit nicely. Thirdly, it comes with it’s own TUF branded M.2 SSD heatsink! It is blank on arrival and on the M.2 PCIe 5.0 slot ready for an SSD. Lastly, like previously mentioned, AI enhanced features were added for better performance and overclocking support. These software features include an “AI Advisor,” (an AI Chatbot where you can ask questions in conversational language and can help with overclocking and motherboard features) “AI Cooling,” (auto adjusts case fans for efficient cooling) and “AI Networking” (adjust your Wifi channel, antenna orientation, and to show Wifi signal strength). All in all, I tried ASUS’ AI Overclocking and AI Cooling and didn’t experience any issues. I didn’t notice a whole lot of improvement temperature wise with AI Cooling on versus without it but it didn’t hurt to leave it on. Within the BIOS, ASUS includes tons of customization and tuning for CPU and memory voltages and thermals. Undervolting and overclocking settings are not enabled by default but are simple to enable. This is also true with Intel’s XMP; it needs to be enabled to overclock your memory. In my case, after enabling, it automatically recognized my memory (Corsair Dominator series) and set the correct speed profile for it. I found BIOS settings to be straightforward for what I was looking to do in ASUS’ Advanced Mode although with all of the customization settings available, I can imagine it looking daunting. Over on the software side, ASUS’ Armoury Crate adjusts several settings including the Motherboard’s AURA effect, monitoring CPU and memory temps, and best of all, installing all of the computer’s missing drivers. I experienced an issue where my computer was waking up after a few seconds of putting it to “sleep.” I checked in Device Manager and found a few drivers were missing and after checking Armoury Crate, I found I hadn’t installed all of the drivers. After installing and updating the drivers, my “sleep” issue was gone. For some, Armoury Crate can be a love-hate relationship, but I found it to be more helpful than anything. Tip, if and when installing Windows, remember to add Asus’ MediaTek Wifi drivers from their support site to your installation media USB drive. Windows 11 did not let me continue with the setup without Wifi access (it was very annoying). Overall, the simplicity, features, and stability of Asus’s Z890 TUF Gaming motherboard was what attracted me and I could confidently recommend it compared to other motherboards. It made my PC building and hardware install enjoyable and a breeze! I also love that I can easily swap out parts like my SSD and video card with the board’s push connectors.

I have built many custom PCs over the years, majority with ASUS motherboards and plenty of overclocking. This ASUS TUF GAMING Z890-PLUS WIFI (Socket LGA 1851) Intel Z890 ATX DDR5 Wi-Fi 7 Motherboard is a very well engineered and excellent build. In my opinion it is just the right blend of features and high-end performance but closer to a mid-range price. My current setup is very stable, runs cool and quiet thanks to generous heatsinks and has plenty of headroom for higher performance with a more expensive CPU and GPU. I started off with the base model Intel Ultra 5 Series 2 CPU and scavenged an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 for now and plan to upgrade to the latest Ultra 9 CPU and RTX 4090 when the prices come down a bit. Make sure you do your research before you purchase this Mobo, as the socket LGA 1851 only supports the Intel Ultra Series 2 CPUs, not the Core-I5,7 or 9 series. This motherboard has an insane number of internal and external ports that will satisfy any gamer, power user or peripheral lover alike. It also has the latest PCI 5.0 slots, the latest gen4 M.2 NVMe slots as well as Thunderbolt 4 and 20 Gbps USB Type-C ports. Most motherboards only have two M.2 slots, this one has FOUR and 4x SATA 6Gb/s ports, so 8 hard drives anyone?! As for network connectivity, it has a built-in 2.5 Gb Ethernet port and Wi-Fi 7 with a nice external antenna. I was able to get a 925/920 Mbps speed test over Wi-Fi from my 1 Gbps ISP, that’s pretty much the same as wired speeds. You must use Windows 11 and the latest BIOS and NIC drivers which you should anyway. Almost forgot, the latest Bluetooth v5.4 is also built-in. Tons of USB ports of various versions built-in to the back panel I/O, 6x USB Type-A and 2x USB Type-C, Thunderbolt, DisplayPort and HDMI ports. The classic DTS 7.1 surround sound 5x audio jacks and one optical S/PDIF output ports are still included - very nice touch. Modern UEFI BIOS with tons of tweaking/overclocking features ASUS is well known for. Overall, I’m really excited about this ASUS Z890 - PLUS WIFI 7 motherboard and the nearly limitless capabilities it offers for years to come, not to mention it comes with 3-years warranty - a testament to ASUS quality.

I often build computers for either myself or family and friends and using the ASUS TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi motherboard has been fun to build and it is good for both gaming as well as video editing since I do both. And since it is ready for Intel Core Ultra processors, and it is AI PC ready it is also fun to have. Right out of the box it looks great, and it comes with several useful things including the antenna so you can connect via WiFi7, and you can connect via ethernet too. I also like that it supports up to 192GB of DDR5 memory, so it is super-fast and ready. The Asus Tuf also has plenty of useful ports, including USB C, HDMI, DP, USB with different speeds, Line in, Line out, Mic in and more. The motherboard stays cool due to its design so that is useful, and since it has a tough build, it can handle long gaming days as well as rendering long videos. It also looks cool because with Aura Sync, either using its presets or customizing it. And it sounds great too because it has Realtek 7.1 Audio and DTS audio processing. to enhance sound either outdoor speakers or headset. Overall, it is easy to install and configure, Asus has videos on how to put it together, the instructions are well explained too. It performs great for both gaming as well as video editing and it is also AI Ready.

With many years of experience working with motherboards dating back to Atari 800 forward, I today have on my bench the Asus TUF GAMING Z890-PLUS WIFI, first response was – Wow! The stats and specs are just amazing and topflight all around and trust me I do not amaze easily. ASUS’s Tuf Gaming Z890-Plus WIFI is their latest entry in the marketplace of high tech/bleeding edge machines that are “In Search of Incredible!” I dare say, they have hit their target right on the mark. This motherboard is by far the most incredible display of power, advanced connectivity, and sheer fun of working on that I have ever had in my office lab. Lovely black on gray board with all the goodies you have dreamt of for your Gaming Rig, or an incredibly fast daily driver. Video Content Developers will discover the power to run the most demanding video editing and rendering jobs quickly, imagine rendering with 192GB of DDR5 memory at 6000MHz+. The ASUS TUF Gaming MB provides support for all the top end specs, including PCIe 5.0. Besides installing Corsair DDR5 6000MHz memory I elected to install the MP700 Elite Gen5 NVMe m.2 SSD, which is stupid fast. These drives are ranked up to 10000MB’s Sequential Read and up to 8400MB/s Sequential Write. On the ASUS TUF Gaming board the drive performed above those numbers, please see CrystalDiskMark results in pictures. The ASUS TUF Gaming ATX motherboard is built around Intel’s just released Z890 chipset supporting the LGA 1851 socket and the latest Intel Core Ultra Processors (series 2.) I opted for the Intel Core Ultra 7 (series 2) which is a solid performer, which pushed my testing to new levels. When stress testing and benchmarking I pushed the board hard, for lengthy periods. During stress testing and benchmarking CPU never rose over 33 degrees, much of this must be attested to the extreme cooling system I installed. Oversized heatsinks on the VRMs show that this board is built for overclocking. The BIOS in ASUS’s gaming board have always been top notch. This BIOS does not fail to disappoint as this board’s Bios is more refined and builds upon previous versions. EZ Bios allows for easy access to many key settings: AI Overclocker, XMP modes, Intel RST, and Q Fan control. A CPU temp graph is also displayed in the EZ Bios: a nice touch for quickly verifying the effectiveness of a new CPU cooler on a new build. Advanced Bios is familiar for ASUS gaming board owners and offers granular control for overclocking and more. Pros: - 2.5Gb Ethernet – 2.5Gb the sweet spot - 2.5 switches are now affordable - DDR5 memory – supports up to 9066+ MT/s (OC) – 4 Dimm slots - PCIe 5.0 - PCI-E 5.0 x16 for GPU - Storage 4 x M.2 slots with PCIe 5.0 and 4.0 support - Wi-Fi 7 169 MHz - Speeds up to 2.9Gbps - Bluetooth 5.4 - USB – 8 ports – including USB C 20Gbps and Thunderbolt 4 - Serious VRM Heatsinks (voltage regulator module) - New and improved Advanced UEFI BIOS - new users to advanced gaming - Complete Owner’s Manual & Quick Start Guide (download owner manual) - Advanced AI solutions for networking and cooling - “Military-grade components” - Advanced AI solutions – NPU can be overclocked in BIOS Tweaker with one click Little things I like that make a difference: - Mouse works in UEFI Bios - Large GPU release latch - Wi-Fi antenna – great range - ‘Quality enhancements for PCIe .m2 slots include the ability to secure your .m2 drives without using the tiny little screws to secure .m2 the motherboard. The new Q-Slide the Q-Latch are the ticket – one click and SSD is secured. - Solid .m2 heatsink, serious cooling with machined “TUF” on diagonally facing edge, stunning. If you are looking for equipment that cuts no corners and developed with rock-solid stability to handle your most demanding gaming… Looking for the computer that hits all the right notes with leading technology throughout the system… There are few choices that can match the Asus TUF GAMING Z890-PLUS WIFI.

The ASUS TUF line of products - including this motherboard - are built and advertised as having extra durability built-in right up front to get the job done for a long time. In the case of this motherboard at least, it's very true and you can tell from the moment you unbox it and pick it up. First off, it's VERY weighty, much more so than other ATX motherboards. But it's not just the weight, it's WHERE the weight is coming from. The biggest enemy of your desktop components living a nice long life isn't bumps and physical damage (since most desktop computers tend to sit in one place), it's HEAT. Particularly if you're using high end components like the latest PCIe 5.0 SSDs, the components you place on and around the motherboard can generate a lot of heat, as can significant power draws by the CPU, GPU or other devices. This heat can lead to premature failure if not managed correctly. This TUF series board then has a LOT of cooling capacity where it counts to keep you running cool for a long time. Just look at the heat sink on that first SSD slot - it's HUGE with a lot of cooling capacity. Similarly for the heatsink over the power delivery section in the top left and the chipset in the lower right. That's a lot of cooling right off the bat. Of course, you won't be sacrificing the latest in connectivity options with this board in the name of that extra durability. You still get PCIe Gen 5 in both an NVMe slot AND an x16 slot for a GPU or other add-in card. And you still get TONs of rear-panel connectivity, including both DisplayPort and HDMI if you're using the onboard integrated graphics, Thunderbolt 4 (on a desktop!), another USB-C 20Gbps with video out, multiple USB-A 10Gbps and 5Gbps ports, plus 2.5Gbe ethernet and the typical audio ports. You get built in WiFi 7 and front panel ports for additional USB-C 20Gbps and USB-A at both 5Gbps (3.0) and 2.0 speeds. That's a TON of connectivity - and of course there's a plethora of PCIe 4.0 connections for both add on cards AND additional NVMe SSDs (up to 4 total!) so you shouldn't lack for the ability to connect something to a computer built with this motherboard. The motherboard was easy to build with - I'm using a full-sized ATX case, so I have lots of room to access various parts. Dropping in a Core Ultra 5 245K with an AIO watercooling loop, 32GB of high speed DDR5 RAM (2x 16GB dual channel kit - always dual channel for batter performance), 2 SSDs (a 1TB NVMe boot drive under that massive heatsink and a 4TB NVMe storage drive under the lower sink) was simple as was connecting all of the various leads to the front USB-A and USB-C on the case. Installing Windows went very easily (still waiting on my GPU to come in, but I can use the the integrated graphics on the CPU through the monitor connections on the board) and installing drivers from the ASUS website also went well (I did use an ethernet cable to connect during the install / setup process). Now the computer is running rock solid, hanging TUF one might say. So if you want a solid, reliable motherboard from a great name in the industry with all the latest bells and whistles, this is a great board to check out. Give it a try today!

The fun part all comes when you start it up. You immediately get a jump start and realize how much smoother the frames are and smooth the motherboard can function with high intense games like Fortnite. For me that is a gauge of how well a motherboard can help because I've had a few PCs where the FPS (frames per second) or how much static the visuals contain. As with newer ASUS technology you get great features. One particular one that I don't have in my ROG is the AI Cooling feature. Which essentially is your smart assistant that helps you know how to cool or effectively use your computer. So imagine this is telling you... "hey, the computer is warming up, here is what you can do to work smarter not harder". Asus made sure that this was going to look sleek but also be effectively quieter. It is quiet but who cares if a little noise comes on when the fans go into full throttle. For me that's when I know I'm hitting a peak in my game. Overall, I love the motherboard. It is truly a piece of art and true to form with any ASUS product as being cutting edge and forward thinking. The cooling feature is what helped me decide to try it out. I have ASUS products in my home and was proud to give this one a go. I'm feeling like the possibilities are endless and building a second PC has been a fun jump start to the holiday season for me.

Asus is a great brand and they’ve outdone themselves again. You exactly what you pay for. They have added a few new features and are starting to be more competitive with other brands for gaming motherboards. At first look everything seems to be in the right place. I love the gaming badge that they’ve placed in multiple areas. It seems very tough and well built. However, don’t drop it. Treat it with care install it and enjoy it. The style for CPU power is pretty typical, but it supports memory over locking and that’s a huge feature when you’re into the gaming world. It has a heat sync with several USB headers for case connectivity and the BIOS flashback button is typical for any aces product. All of these slots available seem to be exactly what you need. Nothing overboard and I’m not missing anything. This offers enough options and the PCI expansion is a highlight so again you get what you pay for and I really enjoy putting together computer systems with this type of product. This is now my second one and I’m glad I chose this one.

Great mobo for this price for ASUS. Been building gaming PC's since late 90's and this board has great features for the cost. Good chipset and the board looks great.

Great motherboard for a good price. Sturdy and easy to install.

Very well made board. Wi Fi works great. I use this computer as a media center with my large screen TV as the monitor. HDMI output from an older RTX3070 goes to my AV amp. Great sound and video output for TV, YouTube videos, anything online is available by using a computer for access.

Nice MB, it got everything I needed, paired up with new i7 no issue so far

Asus tuf gaming Z890-PLUS WIFI is an ATX motherboard, currently have the intel version that utilize the LGA 1851 socket. supports DDR5, with 4 M.2 slots. equip with the latest wifi 7, with multiple USB port including 2 thunderbolt USB type C. when it comes to cooling this feature large VRM heatsink, M.2 and PCH heatsinks with latest from ASUS AI cooling. for a more optimize thermal management. this board is currently on my latest build. as usual installation process is fairly simple. Asus made sure setting up process is simplified. i really like th M.2 Q release and PCLe Q release and you can go wrong for easy BIOS flashback button. the motherboard has been performing very well providing and stable haven't fully involve myself with overclocking maybe in the future its something i would let my self get into it more. when it comes to motherboard just always keep in mind you keep up with the latest drivers in the future that can be downloaded through Asus website. since its Asus you will be messing around and use their software Armoury Crate Software, honestly ive grown to love the application. i think it the best looking software out there, its easy to learn and ethically its easy on the eyes, you can also manage your RGB lighting via Aura sync. overall i think ASUS TUF gaming Z890-Plus is a great looking and great motherboard to look out for. its perfect if you want to build a high end system with guarantee to be future proof. this motherboard offer a great cooling solution, this offer a great balance from all its I/O features and performance for the price thats hard to turn down. this perfect for gamers who want to the a great performing motherboard for their latest PC build.

It has been some time (way too long) since I built my last machine, but this board has turned out to not only to be easy to build with, but also full of a really nice set of features at this price point. Of course this will be a personal thing, but I think it looks great. Black, mostly plain, and not of a TON of wild branding. Beyond that though, and more importantly, it is very well built. It has a good weight, and they definitely put some thought into it. There is cooling everywhere (VRM, M.2, capacitors…etc), the power connectors seem solid, and there are quite a few fan headers to use when adding your cooling solutions. Everything is located in good spots (check tour PCI uses though), and having some quick release options really made building easy. It is more or less the same on the software side. The BIOS is easy to work with as well as update, and drivers for me were no issue. I think where this board really shines is in its feature set. It comes with quite a few expansion slots for future upgradability (mix of PCI-5 and PCI-4), 4 M.2 slots (as well as 4 SATA) that should handle storage needs, support for 192GB DDR5 RAM, Wi-Fi 7 (with an antenna), Bluetooth 5.4, “good” 2.5 Gb internet, and wonderful port connectivity. Display port, HDMI, audio ins/outs, and a really nice number and mix of USB (A and C) ports (1 Thunderbolt (40GB), 1 20GB, 2 10GB, 3 5 GB) in addition to headers for more. All in all, I think they made smart choices here, and it is good, solid hardware. It should appeal to a wide range of users. Ultimately, I think this is a quality board and I like it. It is easy to build with as well as set up, it is well built, and it comes with a nice blend of features. I think for all that it has right now, as well as having a little room for future upgradeability, the value is there, and I can easily see this lasting some time for me.

ASUS has developed another top of the line gaming motherboard with the TUF Gaming Z890-Plus WIFI motherboard. The first thing I noticed about it was the weight. It's heavy for a motherboard. This is mostly due to the number and size of all of the heatsinks on it. ASUS has put a lot of thought into addressing heat dissipation. This board comes with the new Z890 chipset and supports the new LGA 1851 CPUs from Intel. It also supports the new DDR5 RAM, PCI-E 5.0. ASUS also added in 4 M.2 slots. My M.2 SSDs don't have heatsinks on them, so I didn't have an issue using those. Two of the M.2 slots are beneath a long heat sink that spans the width of the board and there is a machined heat sink with the TUF logo machined into it. The machining of that heat sink is well done and a nice touch. That particular heat sink locks into place so all of that together I thought showed that ASUS put some thought into it. The fourth M.2 slot is in an open area of the board just in front of the two PCI-E x1 slots. I'm still able to use all of my SATA drives from my previous setup with this board as it has 4 SATA connects. Storage support is certainly not lacking on this board. There are numerous headers for CPU fans, case fans, AIO cooler, CPU cooler, ARGB, etc. ASUS has added in WiFi 7 with an external antenna. Some boards don't have that and I'm stuck with the signal being what it is where I place the case, but with the external antenna, I was able to place it in an optimal location and I'm getting exceptional speeds to my router. The wired NIC that comes built-in is 2.5Gb. I would need to step up to a higher level board to get 10Gb, but as this is an entry level board, I have 2.5Gb built-in which I find ok. This cuts down on costs which would help ASUS to get the price down to the entry level price point. There is built-in audio (Realtek 7.1 surround) with the board, but it also has two PCI-E x1 slots if I do want to add in a 3rd party audio card. There is also a PCI-E x4 slot. The spacing of the PCI-E x16 slots are such that I can get to one of the PCI-E x1 slots and the PCI-E x4 slot with video cards in both the x16 slots which is a plus as my other board's placement of the single x1 slot made it inaccessible for me with video cards in place, but with this board, one of the x1 slots is covered, but the 2nd one is not. I only need to access one of them, so this works out for me. My Tests so far with the board show that it's more than capable of handling the throughput that I need to run first person shooters with nVidia GPUs. I'm getting the latest CPU socket type for Intel CPUs, PCI-E 5.0, dual GPU support, and WiFi 7 with the Z890-Plus WiFI TUF Gaming board. This is a good motherboard for an entry level gaming computer build. I'm happy to see that I get all of that at a good price point. If you are someone wanting to get into building your own gaming system on a budget then this is definitely a good start.

Asus has always had a strong line in the gaming computer market. So, I was very excited to try out the Asus TUF Gaming Z890-Plus Wi-Fi Motherboard. After trying this out, it certainly did not disappoint. I was already looking at upgrading my homebuilt system. The rig I used this with was the Intel Core Ultra 7 256 KF, Corsair liquid CPU cooler, and Asus Dual EVO video card among other equipment. This system performed to my liking. The specs are pretty much given for the part. It has an LGA 1851 Socket which will allow it to run the Intel Core Ultra Processors. This was a little limiting for the compatible CPUs. I had 5 to choose from that worked with this setup. The big thing was I did add a CPU cooler to the setup just to make sure all was good with the system. Even though it is designed for thermal control, I still added it to be safe. With 4 memory slots available, the board can support up to 192 gigabytes of memory. Out of the box, it is a sleek looking board. I was a little surprised with the weight. The board itself weighs nearly 4 pounds, so it is TUF as advertised. It does have a built in HDMI port as well as a DP port for video and has ethernet built in. It also has many USB-A ports for use. In addition, the board supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth. I did try the Wi-Fi, and the connection was smooth and easy. It worked very well when I used it and I didn’t notice any issues, but I think most gamers will prefer Ethernet. And for the most part, that is what I used. Getting down to the real meat of the board though, I wanted to see how it would do with game play. I tried it out with FortNite, Rocket League, and Call of Duty. Honestly, I got the performance that I wanted and expected. The board supported all my needs. Is this the hottest, greatest motherboard on the market? If you are a pro gamer, then no. But for most people, this is going to be a great motherboard to use. The built-in video and sound outputs are usable. I would probably at least recommend upping the video card. The card I added worked great and had no compatibility issues with the motherboard. The games were fast and had no hiccups are substantial lag. In the end, if you are looking to build a new rig for gaming, this board will work very well. It is a beast of a board. It will allow you to customize your rig with the hardware that you want. The one thing I will say is that would be limited with CPUs to the Intel Core Ultra series hardware. But the board is set and ready to use modern features including the AI coming out. I recommend this board for folks looking to build their own computer.

I have traditionally gone between MSI and ASUS for all of my motherboard needs. The reason is reputation and past experience. Although I've had some issues with my current ASUS motherboard, which is actually a ROG Strix, it's of my own making (USB port situation) as I accidentally broke off a few pins on a USB header, I've never had any serious issues with either ASUS or MSI in my 30 or so years of installing and building computers. The motherboard lives up to it's name, it looks like a tank of a motherboard and isn't too flashy, but rather a subdued, seriously body armored look to it. With having room for 4 NVME SSDs I can say this is one reason I typically have gone with ASUS, due to having just a bit more than the competition when it comes to things like how many SSD's that you can add. The first thing you'll notice is the new UEFI, or BIOS, interface, which now features a better resolution, and it's about time since this is 2024 after all. I have always liked to use the Advanced mode, but the Simple mode is also one that works fine. The memory I chose to use with this motherboard is the G-Skillz Trident DDR5 6000 memory and it used the XMP profile without any issue. I also should note that I did not have to do any sort of motherboard flash to use but your mileage may vary. Everything on the board is very clearly marked, the heatsink covers for the multiple SSDs are easy to access and the screen free release for the drives is what every motherboard should use (and what most do). The lights on ASUS motherboards will help you troubleshoot if you have issues doing a boot on the first (or 500th) time. I will be using this with a Core Ultra 7 265K, which I'm still waiting on a sale for, and I hear the game performance is good but not as good as it should be. This will be my more modern build after upgrading from an i5-12600 and I'm really looking forward to using this motherboard as the heart of my next system.

This is an excellent motherboard bare-bones kit that upgrades your gaming rig to current state of the art. Wi-Fi 7 802.11 BE is theoretically nearly 5 times as fast as Wi-FI 6 was. You just need to bring over your own processor, hard drive, ram, power supply, and OS. It should be noted that this board supports Intel’s new ultra processors utilizing the Intel Z890 chip set. What really makes this gaming motherboard stand out is its incredible amount of expansion slots andI/O ports. Its ATX form factor ensures that it will fit most of the enclosures out there and the “TUFF” moniker cannot be understated either. This motherboard is extremely well built and will not flex while adding your peripheral cards and RAM. The Bluetooth version is 5.4 which now offers a theoretical 800 foot range. In my testing, I got nowhere near that however, 100 foot range is easily accomplished. This is a fantastic motherboard for someone that wants the next generation of an AI gaming desktop computer and wants to start from the very ground floor.

I’ll start this review with a note about some BIOS / Windows version issues. You need Windows 11 24H2 for Wi-Fi 7 support and the BIOS from the factory has a bug specifically with 24H2 that prevents video output. So, the very first thing you should do is update the BIOS (available on the asus website). This is just normal best practice with a new motherboard, but it’s really critical for this specific model – assuming you want to make the most of what you just bought. If you want fast, this is the board for you. Between Wi-Fi 7 support (even only with 160 MHz support) and the 2.5Gb Ethernet port, you’ll have no problems with connectivity. Fun fact, a normal Gigabit Ethernet port maxes out at about 950 Mbps, so you’ll never saturate your Gigabit home internet connection without moving to 2.5Gb Ethernet or a fast Wi-Fi connection (assuming your AP also has 2.5 or above Ethernet backhaul). USB ports are also fast and I appreciate the inclusion of a Thunderbolt port. Note that the USB PD is limited to 5V/3A (15 watts), so you won’t get fast charging (25 watts) or super fast charging (45 watts) on your phone. Not a huge deal at all, just FYI. Speed does come at a price, as the socket LGA1851 CPUs are spendy, but that’s what you can expect when you get the latest bleeding-edge device. Everything else is pretty standard RE: RAM, M.2 slots (though PCIe 5.0 support is nice), SATA, etc. Can’t really speak to all of the “AI” features of this board, but I guess that will come with time. End of the day, great choice and I would (and have) reccomend to a friend.

The ASUS Z890 utilizes an ATX form factor, this fits into any ATX chassis with plenty of room to plus the cables in. The Processor Socket is LGA 1871 currently is limited to a single series of Intel Ultra processors. Currently available Processors available are Intel Core Ultra 9 Series2, Intel Core Ultra 7 Series 2 and Intel Core Ultra 5 Series 2. While these processors do not match the speed of the Intel I series or the cost. They will do for the average gamer. The wireless networking standard is Wi-Fi 7, allowing for faster movement of those 1’s and 0’s. There are 4 memory slots for DDR5 memory up to 192 gigabytes. The current operating system of Windows 11 home/pro will be right at home here, and I had no problems loading it. There are 4 M.2 slots, 2 PCI-E x16 slots and 4 memory slots. Connectivity is Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. There is also 1 2.5 gigabyte ethernet port available. As with other ASUS products, the TUF Gaming Z890 motherboard has exceptional quality and is sturdily built. I had no problems installing and upgrading to this motherboard. Even after a few days of use I can tell it is worth the upgrade from my older Z790 LGA 1700 motherboard.