This is the spiritual successor to Z68, with almost the exact same feature set. It has everything Z68 does and then some. For example, USB 3.0 has been integrated into the chipset; four USB 3.0 ports can be powered in this way, along with several of the older USB 2.0 ports. That means an add-on controller chip is no longer required, though many motherboards will still have one so that they can sport more than four USB 3.0 ports. SSD caching, overclocking, dual PCI-Express x8 slots, etc are all still available as well.
Another aspect of the chipset that has been improved is the support for onboard graphics. Once the matching 3rd-generation processors are out, motherboards will be able to offer three simultaneous monitor outputs instead of just two. Onboard graphics will also be faster, but both of those are functions of the newer processors; when paired with older Sandy Bridge CPUs, the speed will be the same as Z68 and the number of monitors supported at a time will still be two.
