ASUS PRIME Z490-A LGA 1200 (Intel 10th Gen) Intel Z490 SATA 6Gb/s ATX Intel Motherboard (14 DrMOS Power Stages, Dual M.2, Intel 2.5Gb Ethernet, USB 3.2 Front Panel Type-C, Thunderbolt 3 Support, Aura Sync RGB)

Pros: none

Cons: Memory channel B is dead. ASUS technical support will not help because g.skill F4-3200C14D-32GVK is not supported (g.skill says it works just fine in this motherboard). Memory works when installed in sockets A1 and A2, but dual channel speed is lost.

Overall Review: This is not the first time I have had an ASUS motherboard fail immediately, but it is the first time they have refused to take responsibility. ASUS charges a premium for reliability that is no longer warranted. Buy something else for less.

Pros: I’m dumb and it was easy.

Cons: None

Overall Review: Wanted to upgrade into the new 10th gen so bought this with the i7 10700k works perfect right out the box over clocking was easy and I’m not the smartest when it comes to those things so I would recommend for sure.

Pros: Great and fully working out of the box great features and good looking in a case with window

Cons: only thing id change is id have the m.2 ssd port over the primary pci e port so i could fit a heatsink on my m.2 ssd

Overall Review: id buy it again

Pros: -Great looking board, easy UEFI to get to and use, especially since mouse can work not just keyboard. Easy and advance mode, I use easy, not Bios literate here. haha but easy all the same, updating? easy get file from site, unpack it, run the renamer, put the new name file on usb, restart and go into bios and update bios option use the file. simple. -RGB on it is pretty nice, GPU covers the chipset RGB though haha, not bad though. -Comes with 2 - 3-pin A-RGB and 4-Pin RGB connectors. 1 3 & 4 at the bottom and the other one of each top right of the board. -Back I/O 7 USB slots, 1 Type-C slot, 1 HDMI & DP slot, very nice, lots of slots are always nice, full set of audio plugs too. I/O panel, preinstalled no need to remember to put it on first. :) -fits 2 M.2 cards on the board, top does PCIE 3.0x4 and SATA, bottom only does PCIE 3.0x4 though. -Has a Type-C on board connect for Case Type-C port.

Cons: -I want more Fan headers >_> It has two specifically for Case Fans, and then it's got the AIO, W_pump, and an Optional CPU header. My case came with 3 and I have three others I installed. Couple splitters though, do me for now till I get a nice hub to put them in for easy speed control. -Intel I225-V Gb. Port for your cable internet connection. Read around, it's not ASUS only, it's an issue with most boards I've seen that have this port in particular for the I225-V. It's got issues apparently. Lots of them. I saved myself the trouble and bought ahead of time a WiFi PCI-e card w/ antenna. didn't even bother to see if I would have the issue on first boot. went in, using the WiFi (working perfectly) to ASUS site got the Zip with the fix file and used it, then used the cable port, works fine so far, but keeping the WiFi plugged in in case it fails until a real fix is put out if it's still issue or I change the Mobo if it's an issue that can't ever be fixed, far from ASUS blame though, sometimes these things happen, we are in an age most of us have the ability to work around it. Zip file, has TWO PACKS IN IT ONE IS THE FIX FIRMWARE the other is the Driver. the fix firmware has a instruction walkthrough in it. USE IT, FOLLOW IT, and don't be surprised when the bottom orange text hits, it's the same screen the have showing in the instruction at the end. follow the instruction and it should probably work for you, if not, check Reddit up a few good posts have some nice alternate solutions on them to use. - I greatly dislike the GPU x16 slot puts the GPU DIRECTLY over the top M.2 slot, even though it has a heat-sink, I don't like the idea of slotting a card in there to be constantly subjected to GPU heat. Personal issue of course, but maybe I might not be the only one who doesn't liek that. ( I have a RTX 2070 triple fan) -the other Labeled Chassis_Fan 4-pin plug is right above the top x16 slot. No way to hide a cable coming to that from like, anywhere. it's gonna stand out no matter what. Much dislike. But small issue overall, still a 5-star board in my book for a first time builder.

Overall Review: I'd say it's a good board overall, and for me, it works. I bought it by accident. I meant to get the 390 version, but Black Friday sale had this at the same price I saw the 390 at so I just hit buy didn't even realize xD. Turns out with the sale they had, and the extra promocode money off the board turned out to be the same price with restock/shipping back to get the 390 as it was for me to just take back the i7-9 I had gotten from MIcro and exchange it for a i5-10 I now have xD and I got it right away instead of having to wait like two more weeks for ship back and rebuy haha. Yes, this board comes with the nasty 490 common I225 issue. it is mostly fixable though and if you have access to good WiFi totally able to ignore it if the fixes you find from ASUS or others fail. The board is big, spaced out fairly well, looks sleek as heck, and the couple RGB on it looks pretty. I love it. From a purely outside view not including my simple needs this board is probably a 7/ maybe 8 out of 10 with the Cable port issue, again, multiple reposts from multiple 490 board makers have this issue. But personally, and you're anything like me, WiFi usable and don't mind some Fan hubs amazing card with easy to boot and use functions, especially for a first timer. Plus having the 2 each 4 and 3 pin A-/RGB connectors is super nice for us RGB loving folks. One annoying thing, once you get power to the board? the Boards RGB lighting is on. Just on. in Bios you can find the option, (can't remember where off top of head) to stealth mode which renders all RGB and LED off during sleep/off/soft off Aura off only does some LED off but not all, stealth is the mode that said it does pretty much any hooked to it. Gonna find out once I power down the PC for sure. Will update if it doesn't turn them off! If it does, assume that's what did it to get them off when PC off. Pics to just kinda show the board a little. nice board really.

Cons: Poor quality control - bent pins - bent capacitors - loose rear IO shield

Overall Review: PC did not post. I should have known looking at the build quality of this board when taking it out of the box.

Pros: - Interesting aesthetic design choices - RGB highlights are a nice touch - Solid construction on most pieces - Good variety of ports - Good value for a mid-level gaming motherboard

Cons: - Instructions were a little confusing at times - Ejection tabs for PCIe slots feels cheap

Overall Review: Not many bad things to say about this product. It looks nice with my CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT cooler and NZXT H510 case with the window. My only gripe with the design is the ejection tabs feeling flimsy but that is by no means a deal breaker if you're careful. Got a great deal on the board during the holidays and my new PC runs perfectly so I'm a satisfied customer.

Cons: Absurdly, it neither comes with a TPM nor supports adding one. Unacceptable in a modern motherboard.

Overall Review: Would not recommend. Half considering returning it, but it's too much of a hassle. Kinda wish I'd known before I bought this.

Pros: Very fast, reliable and beautiful to look at.

Cons: It did not recognize the speed of my CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3600 memory. Even with overclocking it was only stable up to 3200. I called Asus support and got a technician within 2 minutes or less. He had me make a minor change in the bios settings and it has been working perfectly ever since.

Overall Review: Excellent MB overall. Just wish it had recognized my Corsair 3600 memory right away. Nice to know, however, that real, human, Asus technicians are available by telephone if needed within 2 minutes or less.