Introduction

Today we explore Gigabyte’s Intel Z87-based motherboard lineup…

Today, Gigabyte unveiled their Intel Z87-based board lineup to select members of the press at a live event from their headquarters in City of Industry, CA. Their Z87 boards are broken down into four series – the Extreme OC series, the Gaming Series, the Thunderbolt series, and the Standard series.

Intel Z87 motherboard lineup
Courtesy of GIGABYTE

New Features

Gigabyte includes both a new interface for their UEFI BIOS and a new power paradigm, dubbed Ultra Durable 5 Plus, into each of their Intel Z87 boards.

UEFI BIOS Enhancement

UEFI BIOS explanation
Courtesy of GIGABYTE

They also fully redesigned their UEFI BIOS interface to make it more customizable, easier to use, and to allow real-time feedback for settings changes.

UEFI BIOS Home Page
Courtesy of GIGABYTE

The UEFI BIOS Home Page is fully customizable by the end user. The user can place any setting or monitoring option from within the BIOS sub-pages on to the Home Page for easy access.

UEFI BIOS Overclocking Settings
Courtesy of GIGABYTE

Additionally, the user has the option to configure bus speeds and voltages in the BIOS with those settings enacted real-time. This makes for much easier board configuration without the need to reboot in between settings changes.

Ultra Durable 5 Plus

In addition to the UEFI enhancements, Gigabyte upgraded the power components for the Intel Z87 line from the previous generation boards, integrating better MOSFET and capacitor technology for cleaner power delivery.

All Digital Engine DirectFET MOSFETs
Courtesy of GIGABYTE

For the Intel Z87 board's power delivery system, Gigabyte chose to use International Rectifier (IR) DirectFET digital MOSFETs across all power zones on the board. Board power zones include the CPU, the CPU integrated graphics, the system memory, and the CPU integrated power circuitry.

Nippon Chemi-Con Black Solid Capacitors
Courtesy of GIGABYTE

In addition to the IR DirectFET MOSFETS, Gigabyte includes Black Solid Capacitors for the Intel Z87 board power needs. These capacitors, manufactured by Nippon Chemi-Con, are rated for 10,000 hour continuous operation without failure at a temperature of up to 105 degrees Celsius.

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