ASRock has been at the forefront of the small form-factor (SFF) PC revolution right from the Sandy Bridge days. Starting with the Core HT series in the early 2010s, the company moved on to the Beebox (NUC clones) , and recently settled on the DeskMini lineup (based on mini-STX boards). At the 2022 CES, the company is introducing a new SFF PC - the DeskMeet. It is meant to be a step up from the DeskMini - allowing for a custom motherboard, more RAM slots, and space for discrete GPUs.
ASRock is delivering all this in a chassis with a 8L volume with two configurations - one based on the Intel B660 platform, and another based on the AMD X300 chipset (AM4 socket). The key specifications of the two systems are summarized in the table below.
| ASRock DeskMeet SFF PCs - 2022 Lineup | ||
| DeskMeet B660 | DeskMeet X300 | |
| CPU | Intel 12th Gen Core Processors | AMD AM4 Socket Ryzen Desktop APUs / CPUs (Ryzen 2000/3000/4000/5000) (up to 65W) |
| Cooler | Stock coolers / up to 54mm in height | |
| Chipset | Intel B660 | AMD X300 |
| Memory | Dual-Channel DDR4 4x DDR4 DIMM Slots (up to 128GB) non-ECC, un-buffered |
Dual-Channel DDR4 4x DDR4 DIMM Slots (up to 128GB) ECC / non-ECC, un-buffered |
| Discrete GPU Support | Up to 200mm in length | |
| Networking | 1x RJ-45 Gigabit LAN (Intel I219V) M.2 2230 Slot for Wi-Fi + BT Module |
1x RJ-45 Gigabit LAN (Realtek RTL8111H) M.2 2230 Slot for Wi-Fi + BT Module |
| Storage | 3x SATA III 6Gbps 1x Hyper M.2 2280 (PCIe Gen 4 x4 / SATA III 6Gbps) 1x Hyper M.2 2280 (PCIe Gen 4 x4) |
2x SATA III 6Gbps 1x Ultra M.2 2280 (PCIe Gen 3 x4) |
| Expansion Slots | 1x PCIe 4.0 x16 | 1x PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| Audio Codec | Realtek ALC897 | |
| Front I/O | 1x Headset 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 2x USB 2.0 Type-A |
|
| Rear I/O | 1x DP 1.4a 1x HDMI 2.0a 1x D-Sub 2x USB 2.0 Type-A 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 1x RJ-45< HD Audio Jack (Line In / Speaker / Microphone)/td> |
1x DP 1.4a 1x HDMI 2.0a 1x D-Sub 2x USB 2.0 Type-A 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 1x RJ-45< HD Audio Jack (Line Out)/td> |
| Power Supply | 500W (80+ Bronze / 550W Peak) | |
| Dimensions | 168mm x 219.3mm x 218.3mm | |
While the absence of high-end I/O ports like Thunderbolt 4 and USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 or high-end wired networking is a tad disappointing, ASRock is making up for that by supporting PCIe expansion cards and quad-DIMM configurations for up to 128GB of RAM. ASRock calls these boards -ITX, but they are not truly mini-ITX in size.
The space inside the chassis allows for multiple configurations - with or without a discrete GPU, ability to mount multiple 3.5" drives etc. The DeskMeet aims to provide as many features and flexibilities as possible within the constraints dictated by the chipsets.
In other ASRock SFF PC news, the company has also released a new mini-STX platform using the Intel B660 chipset for Alder Lake. The DeskMini B660 retains the chassis design of the previous generations.
Thanks to the use of the B660 chipset, the front Type-C port is now USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps). The rear Type-C port supports 10 Gbps data transfer alone with DP 1.4a, and 60W PD. The other interesting aspect is the availability of a PCIe 5.0 M.2 2280 SSD slot, in addition to a PCIe 4.0 M.2 2280 one. A M.2 2230 slot for Wi-Fi, and a gigabit Ethernet slot are the regular features retained from the previous DeskMini units.
After a couple of years of staid SFF PCs with rather unimpressive updates, ASRock is promising interesting offerings in 2022. No specific launch prices or retail availability timelines were provided for the new systems.
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