It’s no secret that small and neat mini-ITX boards are in increasing demand against the backdrop of large ATX boards, so today we’re going to introduce Gigabyte A620I AX, a bright representative of the current socket. In a detailed review, we’ll tell you about the characteristics of this baby, test it in synthetic benchmarks, measure power consumption, heat, evaluate the software, look for advantages and disadvantages, and compare it with competitors.
Content
| Gigabyte A620I AX specifications | |
| Format | mini-ITX |
| Socket | AM5 |
| Chipset | A620 |
| Power supply phase | 5+2+1 |
| Memory type | DDR5 |
| RAM connectors. | 2 pcs |
| Max. amount of RAM | 96 GB |
| Max. RAM frequency | 6400 MHz |
| PCI-E x16* version | 4.0 |
| PCI-E x16* connectors. | 1 pc |
| M2* connectors. | 1 pc |
| SATA connectors | 2 pcs |
| Graphic connector 1. | Display Port 1.4 |
| Graphic connector 2. | HDMI 2.1 |
| Wi-Fi | Realtek® Wi-Fi 6E RTL8852CE |
| Bluetooth | v5.3 |
| LAN controller | 2.5 Gbps Realtek |
| Sound | 7.1 Realtek |
| Total USB 3.2 Gen1. | 6 pcs |
| Total USB 2.0. | 5 pcs |
| Backlight | 1 x RGB LED strip header |
| Powering the processor | 8 pin |
| Cooler power supply | 3 pcs |
| Dimensions | 170×170 mm |
Gigabyte A620I AX was tested on the basis of a computer with the following components:
The motherboard has a tiny package, the size of a box for a TV set-top box. Inside is the hero of the review itself in an antistatic package, antennas for Wi-Fi, a backplane, SATA cables, a screw for an M.2 drive, and paper documentation.
Everything is modest and nothing superfluous, which also applies to the appearance of Gigabyte A620I AX. The 17×17 cm dimensions are hard to get used to, especially after a Full ATX motherboard. Here is a comparison of the dimensions of this model with MSI B650 Carbon Wi-Fi.
Due to the small size, some SMD components are placed on the back of the board. The textolite is densely dotted with elements, which is not surprising. There’s not even room for a second M.2 drive. The only slot for high-speed PCI-E 4.0 SSDs has no heatsink, which is not the case with the processor power supply.
The small heatsink did its job well, as did the simple 5+2+1 phase power supply subsystem. Since the processor is limited to 90W, an 8-pin power connector is quite enough. The board comes with a standard AMD AM5 mount, on which we installed the AMD Wraith Prism box cooler. This is a more realistic scenario than putting a dropsy .MSI MEG CORELIQUID S360, be quiet! Pure Loop 2 280 or tower be quiet! Dark Rock Elite for 280 W.
ITX boards are usually installed in similarly small cases, where the listed cooling systems will not physically fit. This is one of the reasons why we decided to conduct realistic testing rather than laboratory experiments «in vacuum».
The hero of the review is equipped with a generous set of interfaces, including wireless Wi-Fi and Bluetooth modules. The computer catches the wireless network well only with the use of antennas – without them, the receiver barely breathes. The board operates stably in two bands, but we prioritized connecting to the 5 GHz network.
The manufacturer did not forget about USB Type C on the rear panel, and another Type C can be connected with an internal connector to the front panel of the case. There are 11 USBs in total if you use the internal interfaces. There are DP 1.4 and HDMI 2.1 ports for processors with integrated graphics (i.e. almost all AMD AM5). This board will be well suited for the notional AMD Ryzen 7 8700G with a powerful iGPU.
There are only two RAM slots, with a maximum frequency of 6400 MHz. This suggests that you shouldn’t chase the frequency for this platform, but instead choose modules with low latency. The maximum memory capacity is 96 GB.
Without exaggeration, the strong point of Gigabyte A620I AX is the software. During several days of testing, no problems were found with the board, except that the keyboard did not work after the BIOS update. Rebooting the PC resolved this situation and we will continue to talk about the solid advantages that this small motherboard has provided.
The BIOS and all drivers are updated from the Gigabyte Control Center utility, a useful program that doesn’t have too much functionality, but does its job well. There is no need to download the firmware file to the flash drive and follow the standard procedures that «old school» fans are familiar with – you press a button and everything is automatically downloaded and updated. The main thing is not to forget to uncheck the partner antivirus.
The BIOS itself is as simple and concise as possible, it supports Full-HD monitors, so it scales normally. The functionality is limited because it’s an A620 chipset, but there is an option to overclock the RAM. In general, for full use of the computer, you don’t even need to enter the BIOS because almost everything is done directly from the proprietary utility.
Gigabyte A620I AX allows you to change the frequency of the RAM, set XMP profiles, and control the fan speed from the Gigabyte Control Center. It’s nice that the manufacturer thought of doing everything in this way, that is, as convenient as possible for the consumer.
Another nice bonus is the system’s bootup speed. The computer started up in 20 seconds with the XMP profile of the 6000CL40 RAM enabled, which is 2.5 times faster than the MSI B650 Carbon Wi-Fi with the latest BIOS. Of course, 20 seconds isn’t very fast compared to laptops or other systems, but the result is really good for the AM5 platform.
The AMD Wraith Prism boxed cooler with inexpensive Arctic MX-4 thermal paste handles the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 processor. By default, the system set incredibly high speeds (up to 2700 rpm), so we immediately corrected the curve in Gigabyte Control Center.
We managed to optimize the schedule to a state where the fan was running at an average of 1500-1800 rpm under maximum CPU load. At the same time, temperatures were quite low – only 63-65 °C in the AIDA 64 stress test. In idle mode, we got a little more than 1000 rpm. The room temperature during the tests was 17 °C.
Of course, these results are only due to the TDP limit of 90 watts. However, this does not prevent the processor from being productive, as evidenced by the synthetic benchmarks CPU-Z, Cinebench 2024 and Geekbench 6. We got only 5-10% worse results than with a TDP of 170 W and powerful cooling.
The radiators and capacitors of the Gigabyte A620I AX heat up quickly, but did not exceed 46 °C. The pyrometer recorded at different points from 35 to 45 °C. The problem may be with the high-speed drive because Kingston KC3000 1024GB does not have a bundled radiator, like the board itself. The SSD speed was like any other board with PCI-E 4.0 support and slightly exceeded 7000 MB/s.
After about 30 minutes of testing, the disk got pretty hot. The pyrometer recorded almost 45 °C, and the sensors in AIDA exceeded 50 °C. For this motherboard, you need to choose either a slower disk or one with a bundled radiator. In a cramped case with a discrete graphics card, the conventional Kingston KC3000 can overheat.
This also applies to the rest of the components. We tested the board for a long time, but in a huge case, and at a low room temperature. There is no doubt that owners of mini-ITX cases will not be able to count on such low temperatures of all PC components. We believe that the board has done its job, but it doesn’t have a big margin of error.
The RAM showed the usual AMD AM5 results with high latency. Manually, you can slightly reduce this indicator because the RAM modules are relatively good, but even so, the speed is more than adequate. The main thing is that the XMP profile was activated with one button directly from Windows, the system rebooted and immediately worked at a frequency of 6000 MHz.
The entire system unit consumed no more than 147–150 watts in stress tests. In the «desktop» mode, this figure dropped to 72–75 watts. Note that there was no discrete graphics card connected to the computer and only one case fan and one drive, so 75 watts is quite a lot.
Gigabyte A620I AX is sold at a price of UAH 7039. For the version with the B650 chipset, you’ll have to pay 7800 UAH. It seems to be a small overpayment, although for most users there will be no strong advantages from switching to B650. The hero of the review is the only representative of A620 motherboards on the Ukrainian market in mini ITX format, so let’s take a look at a few more compact models of different sockets with DDR5 that can be purchased for a similar amount.
Biostar B660T-SILVER — an inexpensive and nice model for Intel LGA 1700 with good power and two connectors for M2 SSDs. Among the disadvantages is the lack of bundled Wi-Fi and USB Type C on the back. The price starts at 5500 UAH.
Asus ROG STRIX B760-I GAMING WIFI is a bit more expensive and equipped with large radiators. This baby supports high-frequency memory up to 7600 MHz and has a generous set of interfaces. ROG SupremeFX audio is a bonus. The price starts at 8500 UAH.
MSI MPG B650I EDGE WIFI is an exemplary representative of the mini-ITX AM5 socket with a powerful 11-phase power supply. Judging only by the characteristics, the board is almost devoid of serious drawbacks, but the price is higher — 10,200 UAH.
