Last year ASUS was the first manufacturer to launch a PC Motherboard with Thunderbolt, the P8Z77-V premium and now it has revealed a new Motherboard which is equipped with Thunderbolt 2, the Z87 Deluxe/Quad
We were fully expecting the first computer to ship with Thunderbolt 2 to be the new Mac Pro which is expected to ship in the next couple of months, but now ASUS have beaten Apple to it with the Z87 Deluxe/Quad, a PC motherboard fitted with two Thunderbolt 2 ports.
Based on the Intel Z87 chipset which is compatible with the latest Intel Core processors The Z87 Deluxe/Quad also boasts 8 USB3 ports, 8 USB2 ports, 10 SATA3 connections, two Gigabit Ethernet ports and 2 16 lane PCIe 3 slots.
Two Thunderbolt 2 ports will give you the ability to connect up to twelve devices with 20GB/s bandwidth including two 4K displays. In fact the Z87 Deluxe/Quad also has an HDMI out port with support for 4K so you could have three 4K monitors.
Not only would this make a great platform for a video editing or grading system but I'm sure the Hackintosh community are looking at it with interest.
No news on pricing yet but the previous model sold for $350 dollars so we would expect it to be higher than that.
View the full press release from ASUS on the next page.
ASUS today announced Z87-Deluxe/Quad, the first motherboard in the world with Thunderbolt™ 2 technology certified by Intel®. Based on the new Intel Z87 chipset and ready for the latest 4th generation Intel Core™ processors, the ASUS Z87-Deluxe/Quad ATX motherboard has two Thunderbolt 2 ports for connecting up to 12 devices at once. Each port has up to 20Gbit/s transfer rate and is backwardly compatible with Thunderbolt 1.“Z87-DELUXE/QUAD has been subjected to tremendous compatibility, BIOS validation, video/audio and other tests to verify its quality and design,” said Joe Hsieh, ASUS Corporate Vice President and General Manager of the Motherboard and Desktop System Business Unit. “Being the world’s first certified motherboard for Thunderbolt 2 technology also means setting the standard for all of the upcoming products, which is something that ASUS has always done.”
Twice the performance plus fully 4K display support
The original Thunderbolt standard has four separate transfer channels — two upstream and two downstream — with a maximum transfer rate of 10Gbit/s per channel. Thunderbolt 2 combines these four channels into two 20Gbit/s bi-directional channels, which are 4X faster than USB 3.0. Together with DisplayPort 1.2 support, this enables Thunderbolt 2 to simultaneously deliver extremely high-resolution video to the latest 4K/2K (4096 x 2160) displays and communicate with other bandwidth-hungry devices, such as hard drives. With the onboard HDMI port, ASUS Z87-Deluxe/Quad can drive three 4K UHD displays at once.Thunderbolt 2 also supports daisy-chained connections with up to six devices on each port. With two Thunderbolt 2 ports, ASUS Z87-Deluxe/Quad can connect to up to 12 devices at once, reducing the need for separate hubs and helping maintain a clutter-free workspace.
Always on the cutting edge
Z87-Deluxe/Quad includes a number of exclusive ASUS technologies. Dual Intelligent Processors 4 with 4-Way Optimization is an easy-to-use tuning tool that dynamically adjusts performance and cooling for reduced noise and increased efficiency with a single click. The UEFI BIOS presents a friendly graphical interface, making it easier than ever to set up shortcuts and favorites for quick access to the options that are used most often.Z87-Deluxe/Quad also includes NFC Express, an accessory that can automate common PC tasks simply by tapping the supplied NFC tag or NFC-compatible smart devices to the box. NFC Express can be used for secure Windows user account login without the need to type in a password, and to launch multiple applications to create a particular working set-up. Using the free Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote companion app for NFC-compatible smart devices, users can also wirelessly synchronize photos and videos with their PC and remotely control the system with no complicated set-up in a tap.