{"id":1229045,"date":"2026-02-25T00:34:58","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T00:34:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tJEEwe56hYJP2BvEwurqMR"},"modified":"2026-02-25T00:34:58","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T00:34:58","slug":"asrock-phantom-gaming-b860i-lightning-wi-fi-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/asrock-phantom-gaming-b860i-lightning-wi-fi-review\/","title":{"rendered":"ASRock Phantom Gaming B860I Lightning Wi-Fi review"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If you\u2019re dead-set on owning an Intel system and have a Core Ultra 200-series Arrow Lake processor in your sights, as well as a Mini-ITX case, then ASRock has not one, but three motherboards vying for your attention. The Phantom Gaming B860I Lightning Wi-Fi we\u2019re looking at here is the middle of the three in terms of price and features, sitting at $219, which is also roughly what the competition has its B860 offerings set at too.<\/p>\n

It’s less imposing than those options from Asus or Gigabyte, with smaller heatsinks and perhaps lacking a little wow-factor in the aesthetics department too by comparison, with Gigabyte offering an all-white motherboard and Asus sporting a moody black design with large heatsinks.<\/p>\n

However, ASRock has done a decent job of making that price tag go a long way.<\/p>\n

It has managed to cram in a lot at this price, including Thunderbolt 4 support. Of course, being a B860 chipset-based board, it lacks the ability to overclock K-series CPUs, which is only possible on motherboards using the Z890 chipset. That\u2019s maybe less of an issue for small form factor PC owners, who generally prefer to dump less heat into their systems anyway. Plus Intel now has a variety of non-K models available, including some that cost less than $250.<\/p>\n

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B860I Lightning Wi-Fi specs<\/div>\n
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\"ASRock<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>

(Image credit: Future)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Socket:<\/strong> Intel LGA1851
Chipset<\/strong>: Intel B860
CPU compatibility:<\/strong> Intel Core Ultra 200 desktop
Form factor<\/strong>: Mini-ITX
Memory support:<\/strong> DDR5-4800 to DDR5-9333 (OC), up to 128 GB
Storage:<\/strong> 2x M.2, 3x SATA
USB (rear)<\/strong>: 1x Thunderbolt 4 Type-C 40 Gbps, 2x USB 3.1 Type-A 10 Gbps, 4x USB 3.0 Type-A 5 Gbps, 1 x USB 2.0
Display:<\/strong> 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x USB\/DisplayPort
Networking:<\/strong> Realtek 2.5G LAN, Wi-Fi 6E
Audio:<\/strong> Realtek ALC1220
Price:<\/strong> $219<\/a> | \u00a3235<\/a> | $440<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Other modern features you get in spite of the $200 price tag are PCIe 5.0 support for both graphics cards and SSDs, although both are somewhat pointless right now with graphics cards not benefitting and compatible SSDs only offering higher sequential speeds rather than better all-round performance.<\/p>\n

The heatsink for the primary M.2 slot is quite small too, so I have my doubts it can cool anything hotter-running than a PCIe 4.0 effectively anyway. There\u2019s a second M.2 port, limited to PCIe 4.0, located on the rear of the PCB.<\/p>\n

The rest of the specification is decent, with ASRock not skimping in areas usually in line for cuts at this price point. There\u2019s Realtek ALC1220 audio, 2.5 Gbps LAN and seven Type-A USB ports, so even if you have half a dozen peripherals to plug in, you\u2019ll still have a port left over. The power delivery isn\u2019t the most extensive out there with 10 100 A power stages, but as the board won\u2019t be involved in overclocking, that\u2019s plenty.<\/p>\n

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\"ASRock<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>

(Image credit: Future)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite the Phantom Gaming B860I Lightning Wi-Fi being mid-range, it even has a VRM cooling fan embedded behind the I\/O panel. Thankfully, this didn\u2019t spin up to any noticeable levels during out benchmarks so ASRock seems to have fine-tuned it to only ramp up when the VRMs get extremely toasty. Seeing as we were using a Core Ultra 9 285K, it\u2019s unlikely it will be a problem, and even if it is you can control the speed in the EFI or in ASRock\u2019s software.<\/p>\n

If you have older SSDs and hard disks that require SATA ports, there are three of them on the PCB and there are also three 4-pin fan headers, which is typical of most Mini-ITX motherboards. ASRock also managed to squeeze in two 3-pin RGB headers and the front Type-C port even offers USB 3.1 speeds.<\/p>\n

Probably the biggest issues here other than a comparatively small SSD heatsink, are the lack of a quick-release GPU mechanism so removing your graphics card could be a bit fiddly. Also, ASRock\u2019s EFI isn\u2019t the best and feels a bit clunky and dated compared to the competition.<\/p>\n