Minisforum AR900i Motherboard Features Intel’s 24-Core i9-13900HX In A Mini-ITX Design, $559 US Price
Minisforum has just announced its next MoTD (Mobile on Desktop) motherboard, the AR900i, which features Intel’s Core i9-13900HX preinstalled on a Mini-ITX board.
These focus on mobile CPUs from AMD & Intel and package them on a Mini-ITX motherboard with high-end capabilities. Minisforum has already released similar product line-up with AMD RYZEN HX processors, but never before did it try its hand on Intel’s mobile range of CPUs.
STARTING WITH A BANG
The specs look good. Really good! The AR900i motherboard is powered by a HM770 chipset and (currently) can support up the imposing Intel Core i9-13900HX CPU which features 24 cores, 32 threads, 36 MB of cache, and up to 5.4 GHz clock speeds. This CPU has a base TDP of 55W and a maximum turbo power rating of up to 157W while retaining a minimum assured power of 45W. Minisforum also intends to offer a Core i7-13650HX (14 core / 20 thread) variant with its AR650i motherboard in the near future.
Memory wise it comes with two DDR5 SO-DIMM slots that support up to 96 GB capacities and 5600 MT/s speeds. There are up to four PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 slots for SSDs which are great for storage enthusiasts. In terms of I/O, you are getting HDMI 2.0, DP 1.4, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port, 2 USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, 2 USB 2.0 ports, a 2.5 GbE Ethernet LAN port, a USB 3.2 Gen1 front-panel header, and an HD audio jack. The motherboard also comes with a WIFI 6E and BT 5.2 solution.
Cooling wise, the passive stock cooler is rated to offer up to 100 Watts of thermal dissipation capabilities and can be equipped with an optional 120mm fan to face continuous CPU focus loads. M.2 slots are also covered by an actively cooled heatsink which provides adequate thermal balance to the storage devices underneath it. Only the front two M.2 slots get access to this cooling while the other two slots are located on the back of the motherboard.
In terms of pricing, the Minisforum AR900i is priced at $559 US / EURO and is expected to hit ship later this month.
