Gigabyte F2A88XN-WIFI: Mini-ITX Board for Kaveri (FM2+)

Conclusion

The GA-F2A88XN-WIFI is essentially the GA-F2A85XN-WIFI that Gigabyte launched last year except that it adds with support for the FM2+ APUs (Kaveri) and features 802.11ac WiFi support. The board layout is completely identical to the last year’s offering and we are fine with that. Why mess with things that are working. We do, however, think Gigabyte could have include maybe a couple more SATA port and even include a DisplayPort as oppose to dual HDM for future proofing. Still, you cannot go wrong with the board if you are looking to build a small form factor PC as it is packed with enough goodies that you may need (unless you need more than 4 SATA ports). We definitely appreciate the inclusion of the Intel 7260 802.11 ac and Bluetooth 4.0. This feature along sets the board apart from many mini-ITX board on the market. Software side, the Gigabyte UEFI BIOS is easy to navigate albeit outdated UI probably can get some upgrade. Though its Easy Tune software utility definitely need major overhaul as it has not been updated for years and there is virtually no new features. Well, it is possible that Gigabyte is moving away from Windows Apps and move into more mobile Apps through the Cloud Station. Unfortunately, at it’s current incarnation, the App is still buggy and we could not get it to connect to our PC. Ultimately, at retail price of $106.69, the F2A88XN-WIFI is great choice FM2+ mini ITX motherboard. If you are on the market for one to go with a small PC, we would not hesitate to recommend this board for what it offers at its price.