ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI vs ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI

Researched, not hands-on tested.How we review ›

all judged against motherboards at a similar price

The ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI scores 7.1/10 overall, ahead of the ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI at 6.8/10.

The ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI leads on power delivery and BIOS and support.

The ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI leads on connectivity and value.

They score the same on platform and features.

ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI

6.8/10verdict: good, not the best

This board is for AMD AM5 builders who want a B850 ATX board with Wi-Fi 7, 2.5GbE and plenty of NVMe storage. It suits Ryzen 9000, 8000 and 7000 CPUs, including high-core chips, given its 16-phase CPU power design. It is a weaker fit for anyone who needs many SATA ports or rear USB4.

Typically about £270.99 in the UK when we researched itSearch Amazon UK

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ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI

7.1/10verdict: good, not the best

This is a Mini-ITX LGA1851 board for compact Intel builds that need a lot of fast I/O. It suits buyers who want Thunderbolt 4, a 20Gbps USB-C port and Wi-Fi 7 on a B860 platform. It is less suited to anyone who wants BIOS Flashback or needs settled memory behaviour.

Typically about £199.99 in the UK when we researched itSearch Amazon UK

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Scores, criterion by criterion

Criterion	Weight	ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI	ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI
Platform and features	25%	7/10	7/10
Connectivity	25%	7/10	9/10
Power delivery	20%	8/10	7/10
BIOS and support	15%	6/10	5/10
Value	15%	5/10	6/10
Overall		6.8/10	7.1/10

Specifications

Spec	ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI	ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI
CPU socket (e.g. AM5, AM4, LGA1851, LGA1700)	AM5, for Ryzen 9000, 8000 and 7000 series	LGA1851
Chipset	AMD B850	Intel B860
Form factor (ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX, E-ATX)	ATX, 12 x 9.6 in (30.5 x 24.4 cm)	Mini-ITX (6.7 x 6.7 in)
Memory: type (DDR4 or DDR5), number of slots, maximum capacity and speed	DDR5, 4 DIMM slots, dual channel, max 256GB, up to 8000+ MT/s (OC) with Ryzen 9000/8000/7000; supports ECC and non-ECC unbuffered modules	DDR5, 2 DIMM slots, max 128GB, up to 9066+ MT/s (OC), non-ECC unbuffered, CUDIMM supported
M.2 NVMe slots and their PCIe generation	4 M.2 slots (Key M): M.2_1 and M.2_2 PCIe 5.0 x4 with Ryzen 7000/9000 and PCIe 4.0 x4 with Ryzen 8000; M.2_3 and M.2_4 PCIe 4.0 x4 from chipset, M.2_3 disabled when chipset-fed x16 slot is in use	2 slots: M.2_1 PCIe 5.0 x4 (CPU-attached, 2260/2280); M.2_2 PCIe 4.0 x4 (chipset-attached, 2242/2260/2280)
PCIe slots	1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 slot (Q-Release Slim, SafeSlot) for Ryzen 7000/9000; 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16 slot (x4 mode) from chipset	1 x PCIe 5.0 x16
Wired and wireless networking (e.g. 2.5GbE, Wi-Fi 7)	1 x Intel 2.5Gb Ethernet; Wi-Fi 7 (2x2 802.11be), 2.4/5/6GHz, 160MHz, up to 2.9Gbps; Bluetooth 5.4	Intel 2.5GbE (one port); Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) 2x2; Bluetooth 5.4
Rear USB ports, including USB-C and USB4	12 rear ports: 1 x USB 20Gbps (USB Type-C), 3 x USB 10Gbps (2 Type-A, 1 Type-C), 4 x USB 5Gbps (Type-A), 4 x USB 2.0 (Type-A); no rear USB4 port	Rear: 1 Thunderbolt 4 USB-C, 1 USB 20Gbps USB-C, 1 USB 10Gbps Type-A, 3 USB 5Gbps Type-A, 2 USB 2.0 Type-A (8 ports); front USB-C 10Gbps header

Strengths and weaknesses

ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI

+ Two PCIe 5.0 M.2 slots plus a PCIe 5.0 x16 slot
+ Wi-Fi 7, Intel 2.5GbE and a rear 20Gbps USB-C port
+ 16-phase CPU power with BIOS FlashBack
− Only two SATA 6Gb/s ports
− No rear USB4 port
− Owners report BIOS freezes and occasional USB detection problems

Skip it if:

Builders who need many SATA ports for bulk drive storage
Buyers who want a rear USB4 port
Anyone planning heavy manual BIOS tuning who wants minimal reported quirks

Read the full ASUS ROG STRIX B850-F GAMING WIFI review ›

ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI

+ Thunderbolt 4, 20Gbps USB-C and Wi-Fi 7 on one board
+ PCIe 5.0 x16 slot and PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot
+ 10+1+2+1 VRM with 80A DrMOS, praised by owners
− No BIOS Flashback, according to TechPowerUp
− Some memory boot and profile problems reported
− Armoury Crate software criticised by an owner and a reviewer

Skip it if:

Buyers who want BIOS Flashback for updating without a CPU installed.
Builders who need more than two DIMM slots or a second Ethernet port.
Anyone pairing the top LGA1851 chip with a cramped, poorly ventilated case.

Read the full ASUS ROG STRIX B860-I GAMING WIFI review ›

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