MSI Z87I Gaming AC (LGA 1150) Mini-ITX Review

Final Thoughts

Pricing

MSI’s Z87I Gaming AC motherboard is priced at $199.99 | $199.99 in the USA, £125.84 | £129.99 in the UK and €159.90 in Europe. The MSI Z87I Gaming AC motherboard comes with a three year limited manufacturer warranty with MSI.

Overview

MSI’s Z87I Gaming AC mini-ITX motherboard is an interesting proposal. What sets it apart from other mini-ITX Z87 motherboards on the market is the extensive connectivity options – Gigabit Killer NIC ethernet, 802.11 AC, Bluetooth 4.0 and Intel WiDi certainly is more than you’d get from similarly priced rival products. Those things aside this motherboard is pretty similar to every other Z87 mini-ITX motherboard with identical, SATA, USB, RAM and PCIe configurations. The layout more broadly is something I’ve failed to get my head around. I’m not quite sure what MSI were thinking with the layout they’ve designed. I have no quibbles with them moving things from their typical locations to other alternative locations. For example moving the 24pin to the top of the motherboard is not an issue for me, it is still easily accessible and in a position where it can be cable managed. What you have to remember is this is a mini-ITX motherboard designed for mini-ITX cases – I hold nothing against MSI for scrapping the traditional ATX motherboard layout in favour of something fresh that is more suited to a mini-ITX case. What I do have a problem with, is putting certain things in nonsensical places. The CPU 8 pin and front panel connectors are both in central locations, this means you’ll have cables trawling all the way across your motherboard, as if the cables running from the mPCI combo card weren’t enough clutter. That also begs the question – why did MSI not put the combo card by the rear I/O (which would reduce/eliminate the required cabling it has) and move the front panel connectors and SATA ports to the front of the board where the combo card is – that would have made infinite more sense. Even in mini-ITX cases where you mount the motherboard horizontally, not vertically, the front of the cases is still facing the same part of the motherboard and generally speaking storage drives and front panel connectors are always at the front of most cases. I understand what MSI were trying to do, but I don’t understand why they’ve done it the way they have.

Putting the layout issues aside I think there is very little for me to criticise MSI on. This is a very attractive product with a very rich feature set and extensive connectivity options. The MSI Z87I Gaming AC has bags of performance, a functional UEFI BIOS, a competitive price point, great quality audio and impressive power consumption. Other than the layout issue the only other thing I want to mark MSI down on is the low resolution BIOS, but realistically this is a very minor problem that only has aesthetic implications. If you can see past the layout issue, which is easily done if like the majority of people your case doesn’t have a window, then the MSI Z87I Gaming AC motherboard really does have an incredible amount of functionality, connectivity and performance for the money.

Pros

• Amazing connectivity options (WiDi, AC WiFi, BT 4.0, Gigabit Ethernet, eSATA…)
• Attractive design
• Competitive pricing
• Lower power consumption than rivals

Cons

• Confused and impractical layout in places
• Low resolution BIOS compared to rivals

“MSI’s Z87I Gaming AC motherboard is a solid choice for any gamer or system builder who wants the features and style of a gaming motherboard, the connectivity options of a prosumer motherboard and the performance and overclocking of an enthusiast motherboard. There are few drawbacks on this excellent motherboard and it is definitely worth it’s price point. I look forward to seeing how MSI can improve their mini-ITX design when Z97 is bestowed upon us later this year.”

Thanks to MSI for providing this review sample.