Intel's motherboard partners will soon be releasing their brand new Z790 refresh motherboard with WIFI 7 being a major feature. A detailed chart showcases the differences between the WIFI 7 capabilities of various Z790 refresh motherboards from ASUS, MSI & Gigabyte.
Some ASUS Z790 Refresh Motherboards May Not Feature Full 320MHz WIFI 7 Bandwidth, MSI & Gigabyte Offer Great WIFI 7 Support
Almost all major vendors are preparing some sort of refresh of their existing Z790 motherboards to launch alongside the Intel 14th Gen Raptor Lake Refresh CPU family. These Z790 motherboards will be getting better I/O, better cooling, better VRMs, and slightly better aesthetics too. One of the new features will be the addition of the WIFI 7 standard which supports an ultra-wide 320 MHz band & a 4096-QAM.
The new networking solution will allow for faster transfer and bandwidth versus the existing WIFI 6E solution. The WIFI 7 solution will be available from a diverse range of manufacturers such as Qualcomm (NVM865), MediaTek (MT7927, RZ738), Intel BE200, and Intel BE202. The first three WIFI 7 modules will feature the full 320 MHz bandwidth, 4096 QAM, and up to 5.8 Gbps transfer rates. However, the Intel BE202 solution will feature a 160MHz bandwidth, 1024 QAM, and a transfer rate of up to 2.4 Gbps.
Based on the chart, it looks like the entirety of MSI and Gigabyte motherboards will be equipped with the full implementation of WIFI 7. MSI Z790 refresh motherboards specifically will be using the Qualcomm NCM865 modules while Gigabyte will be using a mix of Qualcomm, MediaTek, and Intel solutions for its new AORUS Z790 Refresh motherboards. Meanwhile, ASUS seems to be using the Intel BE202 solution on its ROG STRIX Z790-A Gaming WIFI II motherboard while the high-end ROG series might stick with the Intel BE200 solution.
This can be confirmed by heading over to the ASUS ROG STRIX Z790-A Gaming WIFI II motherboard product page which lists down 160MHz bandwidth and 2.4 Gbps transfer rates. This is the same as the WIFI 6E solution so it might be unwise to call it WIFI 7. Although this is just one motherboard, it remains to be seen if other products will also feature the Intel BE202 module since the company is yet to announce the remaining motherboards within its Z790 Refresh lineup. Expect motherboards to launch around 16th/17th October which is the launch day for Intel's 14th Gen family.
Intel Z790 Refresh Motherboard (WIFI 7 Support):
| WIFI 7 Support | Qualcomm NCM865 | Mediatek MT7927/RZ738 | Intel BE200 | Intel BE202 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WIFI 7 Functionality | 320 MHz / 4096 QAM / 5.8 Gbps | 320 MHz / 4096 QAM / 5.8 Gbps | 320 MHz / 4096 QAM / 5.8 Gbps | 160 MHz / 1024 QAM / 2.4 Gbps |
| MSI Motherboards | Z790 GODLIKE MAX Z790 ACE MAX Z790 Carbon MAX WIFI Z790 EDGE TI MAX WIFI Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Gigabyte Motherboards | AORUS Xtreme X AORUS Master X | AORUS PRO X | AORUS Elite X AORUS PRO X | N/A |
| ASUS Motherboards | N/A | N/A | ROG Maximus Z790 DARK HERO | ROG STRIX Z790-A Gaming WIFI II |
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