ASRock B860 Challenger WIFI White Motherboard Review – Budget-Friendly, & Intel 200S Plus Ready!

The Intel LGA 1700 platform was launched three years ago in 2021, and it has since seen a total of 3 generations of CPUs: Alder Lake (12th Gen), Raptor Lake (13th Gen), and Raptor Lake Refresh (14th Gen). We have seen at least three generations of motherboards, first with the 600-series, which had Z690 as the top SKU, and then two generations of 700-series based on the top Z790 chipset, which included a soft refresh for the 14th Gen lineup.

In late 2024, Intel introduced its next-generation 800-series chipsets, and with the Core Ultra 200S CPU series, the company also launched a brand new socket called LGA 1851. Today, we will be taking a look at the latest motherboards based on the value-oriented B860 chipset.

We received a load of motherboards from various manufacturers, so let's start by taking a look at these updated designs. For this review, we will be testing out ASRock's newest B860 Challenger WIFI White, a stunning white motherboard designed for budget users with a retail price of $179 US.

The Intel LGA 1851 Platform

For its Arrow Lake lineup, Intel introduced a brand new socket, which ends the reign of the LGA 1700 series after a little over three years. The new socket was LGA 1851, and this was first featured on the 800-series motherboards.

The 800-series chipsets include several SKUs, but the one we are looking at today is the entry-tier B860. This platform offers a total of 34 PCIe lanes, of which 20 are PCIe Gen 5.0, and these come from both the CPU and the PCH. The B860 PCH features up to 14 PCIe 4.0 lanes, up to 6 USB 3.2 ports including 2 20G, 4 10G, and 6 5G options, up to 12 USB 2.0 links & up to 4 SATA III links.

In terms of memory support, the new B860 motherboards offer up to DDR5-6400 (native) capabilities and expanded speeds over 8000 MT/s with XMP. The platform supports up to 48 GB DIMMs in the dual-channel mode for up to 192 GB capacities in UDIMM, CUDIMM, SODIMM, and CSODIMM flavors.

Cooler Compatibility With LGA 1851 Socket

The Intel LGA 1851 socket is compatible with LGA 1700 socketed coolers, though some coolers might require an offset kit for proper thermal load balance. The socket also has a revised ILM called RL-ILM, which uses a spacer between the loading mechanism to ensure proper pressure for the new Arrow Lake CPUs.

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