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Intel P55 Motherboard Roundup
[Abstract]
Introduction It's still early days yet since the launch of Intel's new mainstream Lynnfield processors and the LGA1156 motherboards that support it. So far, we have no proper sales figures from...
[Content] PCDigitalMobileGame
Conclusion
Motherboard vendors have tried to stay relevant and differentiate their products in various ways. DFI has gone for the enthusiast niche with features that are friendly to overclockers like the many profiles for settings (CMOS Reloaded), though with ABS, it has also tried to bring in beginners. The new DFI P55 board adds in a feature to restore and update the BIOS, aptly known as BIOSecure. While the concept itself is hardly new - other vendors have gone with dual BIOS and BIOS flashing utilities - it manages to do both.
For US$190, this DFI hits most of the right spots at a very good price point. |
That feature is just the icing for a pretty good board that got things mostly right. The layout for example, has given us no cause for complaints and the feature list is also competitive, with perhaps the lack of FireWire and only having eight SATA ports some minor drawbacks for those who are counting. Performance is like most of the P55 boards we have seen and the only black mark is the memory compatibility issue that we encountered. This was solved eventually using another memory brand but it certainly gave us some initial doubts. But as with all new boards, newer and improved BIOS in the coming weeks and months will no doubt diminish this issue.
Temperature and the power draw are generally decent, though we recorded slightly higher temperatures on this board. The power consumption numbers were good though, especially at full load. Throw in an improved BIOS layout and the various DFI proprietary features and the LANParty DK P55-T3eH9 becomes a rather attractive P55 contender. The US$190 price tag is another sweetener that compares favorably against some of the more costly, bigger brands. If you're looking for a decently specced mainstream performance P55 board without an overdose of features (or frills you're unlikely to use), this DFI board demands your consideration with its mainstream roots and price.
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