ASUS Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1 Review

Hardware Canucks has published a review of the ASUS Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1 today. You can see our evaluation here for comparison purposes.

With a staggering 21 different models, ASUS’ Z170 motherboard lineup can be confusing for first-time buyers but there are certain products within it that truly stand out. One of those highlights is the Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1 which may not have the RoG’s gamer-oriented focus or every conceivable feature like the Deluxe. It does however strike an excellent balance between perceived durability and high level features one would expect from a $250 motherboard.

Steve said:

With a staggering 21 different models[...]

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i really wanted to upgrade to skylake from my i7 920, but looking at dozens of motherboards from asus, gigabyte etc. i just thought WTF and closed my browser. i get there are premium and cheaper versions, some get "gamer" slapped on them to be sold at a premium. how does that add up to 21 SKUs? it's like you go into a super market and there are 15 versions of plain yoghurt. i'm not going to bother to make a choice and just buy nothing.

temujin987 said:

i really wanted to upgrade to skylake from my i7 920, but looking at dozens of motherboards from asus, gigabyte etc. i just thought WTF and closed my browser. i get there are premium and cheaper versions, some get "gamer" slapped on them to be sold at a premium. how does that add up to 21 SKUs? it's like you go into a super market and there are 15 versions of plain yoghurt. i'm not going to bother to make a choice and just buy nothing.

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I will agree there are more models than are absolutely necessary.

Otherwise its fairly simple. You have multiple form factors. mITX, mATX, ATX and E-ATX. Each of these will have two or three SKUs. In some cases you'll have more as motherboard for emerging markets have different features to make them sell in those regions. You can bet on there being two to four of each form factor. Then there are other series like the TUF and ROG series.. TUF has two, ROG has four, and Pro Gaming has one. That's six right there. You can reach 21 models pretty easily.

You have to understand that some motherboards have feature sets which cost more or are tailored for certain demographics. Dual NICs, PLX chips and other features can actually reposition a motherboard's cost very easily.