The ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac Motherboard Review: Mini-ITX with Thunderbolt 3

Conclusion: Your New Motherboard

Prospective buyers looking for Mini-ITX boards are typically looking for a small footprint but still want features. Boards like this depend on the creativity of the board maker to determine what parts can go where. The ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac is one of the most fully featured small form factor boards we have seen in a long while.

Top of the feature list is the fact that there is a Alpine Ridge controller on the motherboard, giving access to a Thunderbolt 3 Type-C port. This port can also accept USB 3.1 devices, act as a Displayport output over Type-C, and also supports Power Delivery 2.0 up to 36 W for fast charging other devices. It's rare to see this on most Z370 motherboards, let alone a mini-ITX model for $180.

Also on the impressive feature list is the options for connectivity: a single Intel network port, Intel 802.11ac Wi-Fi, a full six SATA ports (normally we only see four on a mITX), an PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2 slot, and a PCIe 3.0 x16 slot that can use a riser card for x8/x8 operation. Other plus points are the HDMI 2.0 output for integrated graphics, the high-end Realtek ALC1220 audio codec with additional filtering, and three fan headers (normally we see two).

ASRock labeled this board as a small form factor, gaming-centric motherboard and has brought forth a well-rounded board to market that accomplishes its goals for a gaming rig or a general use system. 

The only thing this board is lacking is multiplies. If a user needs two M.2 slots, or needs two wired network ports, or needs more than one PCIe slot (without a riser), then you might come up short here. But everyone else fits into the 99% who can use this motherboard.

On the aesthetics front, the ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac doesn't have much that catches the eye. The black PCB is function over form, as are many boards of this size - frankly, there just isn't room to do much else. The only real design features are the black slots and headers along with the dual heat pipe connected heatsinks. It does have three RGB LEDs on the backside and bottom of the board for interior case illumination. If more is needed, there is an RGB LED header on the board as well. 

Our performance tested showed the board is quite capable and results were, for the majority of tests, very competitive. The board excelled in boot times going through POST in under 20 seconds, the best we have seen thus far. Power consumption was also on the lowest out of all the Z370 boards we have tested. For raw performance, the ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac easily eclipsed the others in both the 7Zip and 3D Particle movement testing running a bit faster than the rest of the boards in those situations. Our overclocking results mixed in with the others as well showing it is a capable in that respect as well. 

Overall, the ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac will be quite an adept board across multiple use scenarios be it productivity, general use, or gaming. The feature set it brings is comparable to other Mini-ITX boards in its price bracket. The ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac offers users more varied functionality than other competing boards. 

The ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac
Recommended by AnandTech

It's hard to fault this motherboard. It has one of everything, more of some things, high-profile features, and performs really well in all of our testing, beating more expensive boards in the process, while only being a mini-ITX motherboard. For $180, the ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac is great option for any overclocking or gaming machine today.

AnandTech Intel 300-Series Motherboard and CPU Coverage

• The Intel Core i7-8086K Review: Testing Intel's Anniversary 5.0 GHz Turbo CPU
• The Anandtech Coffee Lake Review: Initial Numbers on the Core i7-8700K and Core i5-8400
• Analyzing Z370 for Intel's 8th Generation Coffee Lake: A Quick Look at 50+ Motherboards
   
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