Is the Asus ROG Strix X870-I mini-ITX worth buying for high-end gaming PCs?

The ROG Strix X870-I Gaming WiFi is a compact mini-ITX board designed to handle top-of-the-line AMD chips in small form factor PCs. It is filled to the brim with hardware support and accessories, such as the Hive II, to make compact builds easier. Some of the features on the board are quite innovative, such as the stacked SSD mounting rig that ensures multiple storage devices can be mounted without requiring back-mounted slots that make building difficult.

I spent a few weeks with the X870-I and tested it with high-end devices to check whether the investment is worthwhile over cheaper B650 and B750 alternatives. Let's dive deep into the board and performance benchmarks.

---

The Asus ROG Strix X870-I WiFi targets high-end compact builds

The ROG Strix X870-I Gaming Wifi is a high-end mini-ITX board for gaming PCs (Image via Amazon)

The X870-I, as the name suggests, bundles the high-end X870 chipset. For some basics, it's the standard 170 x 170 mm mini-ITX design with dual DDR5 slots. The maximum the board supports is 128 GB with operating clocks of DDR5-8600. This is standard for most X870 designs out there.

In terms of expansion slots, you get a single PCIe Gen 5.0 x16 for the graphics card, and a Gen 5 and a Gen 4 M.2 NVMe slot for storage. Other than this, you can mount the ROG FPS-II card bundled in the box to get 2x SATA3 slots.

The detailed specs of the board are as follows:

The X870-I is a premium design, with prices starting at $450. This makes it much costlier than most entry-level and high-end designs based on the chipset. However, the pricing is consistent with high-end ITX designs.

---

Unboxing experience

The ROG Strix X870-I comes in a stylish package with a bunch of accessories in the box (Image via Sportskeeda)

The ROG Strix X870-I comes packaged in a stylish box with two compartments: one for the board and the other for the accessories. You get the FPS-II card for extra storage ports and the ROG Strix Hive II for ease of use. Alongside this, you get a bunch of SATA connectors and zipties, which are standard for most motherboards.

Overall, the unboxing experience is decent. It's better than its peers, X870-I and X870-A, in terms of the accessories.

---

Components

The X870-I is built well with high-quality components (Image via Sportskeeda)

The board comes in an all-black build, with streaks of silver to help with the aesthetics. The X870 in an ITX form factor presents a significant design challenge, and the ROG Strix achieves it with a few interesting decisions. Right off the bat, some clever design decisions are clubbing all ARGB ports and fan headers at the top of the board. No ports towards the bottom means fewer build hassles and easy accessibility (as most ITX cases have removable top covers).

The VRM heatsinks on the X870-I are smaller than its larger ATX counterparts (Image via Sportskeeda)

The I/O cover and heatsink mass definitely take a hit on the ROG Strix X870-I. Since high-end chips like the Ryzen 9 9950X3D we used for this build require a capable power solution, Asus has offsetted heatsink mass with active cooling. Under the heatsink, the board bundles a small fan with outlets towards the rear to help keep the capacitors and power stages cool.

The X870-I stacks one SSD atop another, given its limited space (Image via Sportskeeda)

The chipset and NVMe heatsinks are cooled by this massive heatsink in the south, which also doubles up as a two-compartment SSD container. The top slot supports Gen 4 SSDs, while you need to open it up for the Gen 5 slot. This design is quite ingenious as it solves several problems with the ITX form factor while maintaining compatibility with ITX cases.

The rear I/O of the X870-I is plush despite size constraints (Image via Sportskeeda)

The rear I/O of the ROG Strix X870-I definitely takes a hit given the size constraints and the fan vents. However, it is still definitely flush for most users. You get three USB Type-C ports, with DisplayPort on two. There's also an HDMI port, BIOS flash switches, four USB 3.2, and three USB 2 ports. Other than this, you get WiFi 7 connectivity built-in, which means connectivity-wise, most users will be set.

The ROG Strix X870-I is pretty easy to build with (Image via Sportskeeda)

For the build, I used the DeepCool CH160 Mesh with the Strix X870-I motherboard. Given the design choices, building with the board felt like a breeze. It supports both AM4 and newer AM5-first coolers without any issues.

---

Motherboard operating temperatures

After building with the board, it was put to the test with system torture. The board held its ground pretty well despite the constraints of ITX design and poorer workflow compared to roomier ATX setups.

The X870 chipset ran much hotter than ATX boards, given the cooling solution that repurposes the same heatsinks for two SSDs and the southbridge. The average delta with the ITX board was 27°C over the flagship-grade X870-A and 16°C over the cheaper X870-P.

Looking at the average motherboard temperatures (all sensors), they also ran a similar 17°C hotter. This is a universal issue with the ITX form factor and something you must make peace with.

In GPU stress, we noticed similar patterns as the X870-I ran about 15-16°C hotter than its ATX counterparts. The temperatures, however, are still decent and don't throttle any of the parts. However, even with the highest-end chip, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D, the board still holds its ground pretty well.

---

Value and conclusion

The ROG Strix X870-I Gaming ITX is one of the most expensive high-end boards out there. It costs twice that of the cheaper X870-P while bundling fewer ports, slots, and running hotter. However, for portability and a compact build, that's the mini-ITX tax you'll have to pay.

Most users won't need top-of-the-line hardware, and some compromises are worth it for a rig that doesn't hog half of your desk. The final decision comes down to two questions: Are you willing to make the performance compromise for portability? Do you have $450 to spend on a motherboard? If the answers to these questions are yes, the ROG Strix X870-I is a decent choice.

For most gamers, motherboard temperatures won't matter much, and the Strix did a good job with the Ryzen 9 9950X3D, making it a decent buy in the SFF market.

Edited by Sijo Samuel Paul