ASRock Industrial, which used to be a business unit of ASRock, has announced two new 4x4 motherboards powered by AMD's 4nm Ryzen 7040U Series (Phoenix) processors wielding Zen 4 CPU and RDNA 3 GPU cores. The motherboards are available as standalone products and as part of ASRock Industrial's fanned embedded mini-PCs.
The 4X4-7840U and 4X4-7640U share nearly identical specifications. As you can quickly tell by the model name, the primary difference is the processor that drives with each motherboard. The 4X4-7840U features the Ryzen 7 7840U, the flagship Phoenix SKU with an octa-core, 16-thread configuration, and base and clock speeds of 3.3 GHz and 5.1 GHz. On the other hand, the 4X4-7640U is just a notch below the 4X4-7840U, incorporating the second-fastest chip in AMD's Phoenix lineup. The Ryzen 5 7640U latches onto a hexa-core, 12-thread design with a respectable base and boost clock speeds up to 3.5 GHz and 3.9 GHz, respectively.
AMD's Phoenix chips also feature the Ryzen AI Engine, based on the XDNA architecture. The built-in AI engine helps accelerate AI workloads and Windows-based features in Windows Studio Effects, such as eye contact, automatic framing, and background effects like background blur.
The Ryzen 7040U series typically comes with a default TDP of 28W. However, the chipmaker offers vendors the liberty to clock them between 15W and 30W. The U-series targets ultrathin devices, so they aren't picky about power delivery or cooling. As a result, the 4X4-7840U and 4X4-7640U motherboards feature a laptop-style cooler for the processor and only count on a standard 12V~19V DC-In connection to draw all the necessary power required.
Arriving in a 4x4 (4.09 x 4.02 x 1.4 inches or 10.4 x 10.2 x 3.6 cm) form factor, there isn't a lot of space on the motherboards. Nevertheless, they offer appealing features. Two DDR5 SO-DIMM memory slots support DDR5-5600 memory with a total capacity of 64GB (32GB per memory module). Storage comes in one SATA III port and a standard PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 interface to house M.2 SSDs up to 80mm long.
Phoenix processors come with RDNA 3 GPU cores, and ASRock's pair of 4x4 motherboards put them to good use. The motherboard offers two HDMI 1.4b ports and DisplayPort 1.4a connectivity through the two USB 4 Type-C ports. In total, the motherboard can support up to four 4K displays simultaneously.
One of the more attractive qualities is the dual Ethernet ports. The Realtek RTL8125BG controller powers the 2.5 Gigabit port, whereas the Realtek RTL8111EPV is responsible for the standard Gigabit port with DASH functionality. The motherboard doesn't have wireless connectivity by default but does have an M.2 Key-E 2230 port for a wireless card. There's only one 3.5mm audio jack based on the Realtek ALC256 audio codec. The USB port count comes down to four. The motherboard has two USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports and two USB 4 Type-C ports.
Given the 4X4-7840U and 4X4-7640U designs, finding a case for the motherboards is not easy. That's why ASRock Industrial sells the "fanned BOX" versions with an enclosure like your typical mini-PC. The 4X4 BOX-7840U and 4X4 BOX-7640U utilize the 4X4-7840U and 4X4-7640U motherboards, respectively.
The black enclosure measures 4.63 x 4.33 x 1.88 inches (117.5 x 110.0 x 47.85 mm) and weighs 2.2 lbs (1 kg), so it doesn't add much size or weight to the motherboards. The case supports VESA mounting, so you can install the 4X4 BOX-7840U and 4X4 BOX-7640U on a rack or behind your monitor. The "fanned BOX" version includes a 19V/120W power adapter and a VEGA mount bracket.
ASRock Industrial didn't share the pricing for the 4X4-7840U and 4X4-7640U motherboards or the 4X4 BOX-7840U and 4X4 BOX-7640U mini-PCs. Interested buyers will have to contact the company directly for a quote.
