MSI A88XM-E35 Motherboard Review: Micro-A88X for $68

MSI A88XM-E35 Conclusion

Markets in the technology industry go through cycles. At the beginning we start with dozens of companies with lots of ideas trying to get the attention of end-users. Consolidation occurs as one company buys another, or some of the less successful ideas cause companies to fold. Once a base level of performance has been reached, the market has a race to the bottom where margins are low but volumes are high. Once users are fed up with all the cheap hardware, some manufacturers start focusing on the enthusiasts and the high-end, trying to deliver everything that anyone would ever want (within certain limits). The market then balances out, and the final 4-6 manufacturers fight each other on both fronts – the low margin/high volume parts, and the more profitable / low volume parts. The halo effect of having the best high end product can have an effect of sales lower down the product stack in this era. Many of the tech industries are currently going through this process, with some having reached the final point in our current expectations of the industry. We have seen this general trend occur (or start to occur) in motherboards, memory, monitors, tablets, notebooks, graphics cards, storage and so on.

So where does this place the A88XM-E35?  This is clearly a low margin/high volume part, destined for users and system integrators that want to develop small form factor systems within a PC environment. The line here is clearly being blurred – even with a $68 motherboard like the A88XM-E35, putting a full system together (plus monitor, OS) can still be $350 or so, right where Windows tablets are picking up the pace.  The upside of a desktop system can be the free reign of power consumption, giving rise to better performance.  For Kaveri, this might also mean access to HSA.

The A88XM-E35 does have one significant flaw. This is the lack of power delivery heatsinks, which when using a high-end Kaveri APU can result in restarts during heavy CPU loading. For this review we had to use an extra fan specifically pointed at this area of the motherboard, and for users purchasing this product we recommend similar action. This need for an extra fan on the power delivery seems to be a trend on FM2+ motherboards that we have reviewed, which usually points to a potential flaw in the general design.

However when using the fan on the power delivery, the A88XM-E35 comes across as a nice inexpensive motherboard. FM2+ products range from around $68 all the way up to $123, meaning that if all you need is something to run an OS on it can be as cheap-as-chips. There are no extras on the motherboard, but one PCIe 3.0 x16 slot, a USB 3.0 header, six SATA 6 Gbps ports, four USB 2.0 ports on the rear panel, two USB 3.0 ports on the rear panel and basic networking/audio is all a family computer might need.

Performance is consummate with other FM2+ motherboards we have come across, and MSI’s software package is slowly improving. The BIOS is being updated to make it easier to use, including a graphical representation of fan controls as well as improved navigation. The Windows software installation comically uses Military Class III wallpapers despite being a Military Class 4 motherboard, but we still get favorites like Live Update 5. There are a couple of software issues (latest Live Update 5 from the web does not work, still no indication of file size until it starts downloading) but nothing mission critical.

I guess I should not be surprised that this $68 MSI motherboard works as well as it does. It is a piece of hardware designed to do a job, and a lot of the tweaks to make it feel like a premium product are all in software. There are some things you cannot avoid in hardware, and a cheaper product does not get the optimizations (e.g. POST time, USB speed) that the higher end products, but if you need something to get up and go with AMD, MSI has you covered with the A88XM-E35.

Given everything that has been said, I should be giving this motherboard an award for its price point and experience. It should be receiving a recommended level award, but as it stands the lack of a power delivery heatsink leading to restart issues is a critical flaw. Given the issues we have had with our FM2+ reviews up until this point, I wonder if a $0.50 or $1 heatsink would have made much difference. But because MSI has not added one (of their design), I cannot make the comparison. Should a user have enough budget to aim a fan at this area, then the motherboard can be recommended – but that adds another $4-$10 on the overall cost.