The Asus Z77-A Motherboard has included a number of spaces with specific features on the board, including fan expert support. The Asus Z77-A Motherboard has EPU network control support, GPU boost support, and USB 3.0 boost. On the back of the box, we see DIGI+ power control for both the CPU and our GPU. This precise power delivery to these components ensures better energy efficiency and stability. We also see the Asus Z77-A Motherboard using stainless steel on the front I/O to prevent rust and corrosion. The Asus Z77-A Motherboard has some key features, including SATA 6 gigabits per second support, 8 channel HD audio, use of the UEFI BIOS, anti-surge protection, and easy flash support.

When we open the box, we find the front I/O shield as well as two SATA data cables. One of which is right-angled at one end. We also get the Asus Z77-A Motherboard Manual or user's quick start guide with the Asus Z77-A Motherboard Driver and utility CD. But I do recommend downloading the latest Asus Z77-A Motherboard Driver software from the Asus official website.

We find the Intel Z77 chipset with a heatsink on the motherboard underneath. Taking a look at the SATA ports We have four SATA three gigabit per second ports and two SATA six gigabit per second ports. Looking at the expansion slots, we see two PCI slots, two PCI Express x1 slots, and two PCI Express x16 slots. The blue one is electrically wired to run at x16 speeds. Remember, the Asus Z77-A Motherboard has support for PCI Express 3.0 and 2.0 when paired with Intel 3rd generation Intel Core Processors. 

The motherboard has four DDR3 RAM slots that can be overclocked to speeds ranging from 1066 megahertz to 2400 megahertz. The motherboard also has support for Intel Extreme memory profiles, which is XMP for short on the side. The motherboard has a single USB 3.0-panel header. We also see the ATX 24-pin power connector. At the top of the motherboard, we find 4-pin PWM fan headers, perfect for dual fan heatsinks. Above the four PCI Expansion slots, we find another 4-pin PWN fan header and a 3-pin fan header. 

Around the CPU socket area, we will have two blue passive heatsinks to help keep the power delivery components cool. I like the design of the heatsinks. They are a really nice shape of blue and have a unique shape. At the top of the motherboard, we also see an 8-pin CPU power connector. At the bottom of the motherboard near the SATA ports, we see two front-panel USB 2.0 headers, the green power LED for the power button hard drive LED, etc. We also see the front panel audio connector. 

The motherboard features an Intel LGA 1155 socket and will not fit processes that are not compatible with this. The motherboard is also compatible with both Ivy Bridge and Sandy Bridge processors on this platform. We see plenty of space around the CPU socket.

Taking a look at the motherboard back I/O We find two PS2 ports. The purple one is the keyboard, and the green one is the mouse. After that, there are also 2 USB 2.0 ports, a VGA output, and a DVI output. One HDMI output and two USB ports are supported with USB 3.0. After that, a Gigabit Ethernet port with 2 USB 2.0 ports and 3 3.5mm audio jack outputs powered by the Realtec sound chip.

As we briefly touched on earlier, this motherboard supports an Asus EPU, which is a real-time power-saving chip. This helps to reduce power consumption by monitoring the PCs' load and moderating power consumption. This motherboard features digital power for both the CPU and the GPU. We also have support for SATA 6 gigabits per second with two ports on the motherboard, perfect for super-fast SSDs. Network control is a neat feature that allows you to prioritize network traffic for the application. You are using and setting up profiles to run at different times to max network bandwidth. The USB 3.0 boost is another great feature included. This board speeds up USB device transfers by up to 170% and uses the UAS protocol to run multiple commands at different times. Suite 2 is also supported by the motherboard and allows users to do a whole range of things from a single software suite on a computer, including monitoring temperatures, energy management, and monitoring voltages on the motherboard.

The motherboard also has a UEFI BIOS, which provides a much friendlier user interface and is easier to navigate with the ability to usually buy. A mouse in the BIOS screen. Turbo-V is a real-time overclocking utility. which allows you to easily adjust the wide range of voltages for a different number of components through an advanced and easy-to-use interface, saving the need to reboot as it can all be done through the operating system. The ESD stands for Electrostatic Discharged. ESD can be damaging to components. Asus has included built-in protection to help prevent any damage.