Minisforum Unveils Mini-ITX Motherboard with MXM Slot for… SSDs

Minisforum continues to diversify its business beyond compact PCs and this week it introduced a alternatively different Mini-ITX motherboard pinch an MXM slot. Typically utilized for graphics cards, Minisforum's Eyertec AD650i motherboard alternatively comes pinch an MXM adapter to location up to 3 M.2 SSDs. All together, nan Mini-ITX committee is capable to thrust 4 M.2 SSDs, arsenic good arsenic a mates of SATA SSDs for bully measure.

[making nan level suitable for an HTPC, NAS, aliases a mini desktop that needs 3 M.2 drives.]

The Minisforum AD650i Mini-ITX motherboard itself is based connected Intel's laptop-grade Core i7-12650H processor (6P + 4E CPU cores, up to 4.70 GHz, 24 MB cache, UHD Graphics pinch 64 EUs, 45W PBP) that tin beryllium paired pinch up to 64 GB of DDR4 representation utilizing 2 SO-DIMMs, an M.2 NVMe/PCIe SSD, and 2 SATA 3.0 drives. Meanwhile, nan MXM bearer committee tin adhd 3 much M.2 SSDs (albeit pinch a PCIe interface) that tin beryllium group to activity successful RAID0, RAID1 and RAID5 modes.

Since Minisforum supplies nan MXM adapter for 3 M.2 drives pinch nan Eyertec AD650i motherboard, it intelligibly positions nan portion for NAS and akin devices that request to characteristic a batch of retention devices. Though arsenic location are not a batch of high-capacity M.2-2280 SSDs astir that tin rival difficult drives successful position of per-TB cost, nan level will apt onshore successful thing of a niche information of nan NAS segment.

Those who would for illustration to usage nan Eyertec AD650i for a PC, nan MXM slot is not constricted to SSDs and tin technically beryllium utilized to instal a graphics card. But arsenic MXM graphics cards person fallen retired of favour (in spot of soldered-down solutions), uncovering 1 worthy installing is simply a full different matter.

Rounding retired nan remainder of nan I/O options for nan AD650i, nan committee comes pinch a USB4-capable USB-C port, 4 USB 3.0 Type-A ports, a Wi-Fi 6E + Bluetooth adapter, a 2.5 GbE port, and 2 HDMI show outputs.

Minisforum's Eyertec AD650i is now disposable from nan institution for ¥2,599 ($313 without VAT), which is not a peculiarly debased price. Though, fixed nan truth that we are dealing pinch a unsocial product, this is not thing unexpected, but a value that precocious underscores nan truth that this is apt to beryllium a niche product.