ASUS P5K3 Deluxe Motherboard

Market forecasts predict DDR3 memory poised to replace its predecessor DDR2 as the main volume product this year. Already aware of this, memory chip manufacturers like Micron Technology, Samsung Semiconductor, Hynix Semiconductor and Qimonda have begun tooling up for mass production. As a result we should finally start to see the dizzying prices of DDR3 come down - being affordable will no doubt help to spur adoption in the market. With price drops looming, many will be looking for quality motherboards suitable for high-speed DDR3. With this in mind Benchmark Reviews thought it would be of interest to examine one of the more mature DDR3 based motherboard offerings on the market today; the ASUS P5K3 Deluxe Wi-Fi-AP Motherboard based on the Intel P35 chipset.

The ASUS P5K3 Deluxe Motherboard with Intel's 82-P35 Express Memory Controller Hub (MCH) is the first motherboard built to officially support DDR3-1066. For the P5K3 Deluxe however, ASUS has managed improve upon this by building in native DDR3-1333 support. With high-speed DDR3 and ASUS overclocking tools, the P5K3 Deluxe able to overclock to an ultra high frequency achieving DDR3-2000.

With that said, let's take a look at the many features of ASUS' first P35 based DDR3 motherboard: The P5K3 Deluxe Wi-Fi AP.

The ASUS P5K3 Deluxe Wi-Fi-AP P35 Motherboard is among the top of ASUS' lineup built around Intel's P35 Express chipset. Considered an overclockers board the P5K3 Deluxe features a base FSB of 667MHz, native support for DDR3 SDRAM operating in Dual Channel mode at 1333MHz, and is CrossFire ready with support for dual PCI Express (PCIe) based x16 graphics cards. With so many features built into it the P5K3 Deluxe is blatantly a design intended for enthusiasts. However, its innovation and ease of use should make it appealing to even first time buyers.

ASUS establishes the P5K3 as a "Deluxe" motherboard by offering the following integrated features:

About the company: ASUSTeK Computer Incorporated (ASUS)

Perhaps best known by enthusiasts for their motherboards, ASUS is a company recognized for high-quality and innovation in the consumer electronics industry. A leading provider of computer components and peripherals, ASUS offers an ever expanding product portfolio hoping to bring their level of expertise to a wide market.

From Wikipedia:

ASUS was founded in 1989 in Taiwan by TH Tung, Ted Hsu, Wayne Hsieh and MT Liao - all four were computer engineers from Acer. The current CEO and Chairman of ASUS, Jonney Shih, joined the company in 1994. According to the ASUS sales manager, Alexander Kim, the name ASUS originated from Pegasus, the winged horse of Greek mythology. The first three letters of the word were dropped to give the resulting name a high position in alphabetical listings.

From the ASUS website:

The philosophy of ASUS product development is to do the fundamentals well first before moving forward. Started with computer components such as motherboards, graphic cards, and optical storage devices, ASUS now has now over 16 product lines, including desktop barebone systems, servers, notebooks, handhelds, network devices, broadband communications, LCD monitors, TVs, wireless applications, and CPT (chassis, power supply and thermal) products.

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