What Would You Like to See from Intel’s Enthusiast-class Motherboards?

In our ‘In the TG Lab’ look at Intel’s DX58SO2 motherboard, I mentioned that while the company has been producing enthusiast-class motherboards for quite some time, enthusiasts haven’t exactly noticed – or at least there has been a reason why they haven’t been adopting them. The latter is a group I tend to belong to. What are the reasons, and what can Intel do to change our minds?

I can’t remember the exact model of the first Intel motherboard I ever used, but it was circa 2006 and was equipped with the dual-core Pentium 820 D. I admit that even at this time, before I became lucky enough to have the chance to test out a huge collection of boards, it didn’t impress me too much. The BIOS was slow, and I couldn’t overclock the CPU at all. Fast-forward to 2011, and I seem to have the same complaints.

I’ve had the chance to meet with Intel’s motherboard team on multiple occasions over the past year or so, and it’s clear to me that the folks there are working hard to deliver product that enthusiasts want to purchase. So my question to you all is, what do you want to see Intel change with its motherboards – in essence, what would it take for an Intel motherboard to look attractive to you?

I appreciate the goal of Intel’s to keep its boards as stable as possible, and if it came down to it, I’d no doubt pick up such a board for something like a workstation or high-powered server. But, I need none of those. As an enthusiast, I appreciate a robust BIOS, and also good overclocking abilities. Sadly, Intel’s recent boards haven’t improved much in those regards at all (as far as personal experience goes).

In thinking about this over the past couple of days, I’ve come to realize that most of the complaints I have about Intel boards wouldn’t even exist if the price were right. Without going into specifics (I could go all day if I did), Intel has a lot of competition, and most of that competition can be had for a lower price, and with no noticeable drop in features. In fact, where the BIOS is concerned, you might actually gain features.

Given that Intel brings us the fastest processors on the planet, one would automatically assume that its motherboards could keep up, but many would argue that here. So, what do you want to see Intel do to make its motherboards better, if anything? Don’t be afraid about being specific, or thorough! On the same token, if you like what Intel’s doing and don’t want things to change, please tell us what you love about Intel’s boards!