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AMD’s Ryzen 7040 mobile chips based on the company’s “Phoenix” architecture combine Zen 4 CPU cores with RDNA 3 graphics to deliver an awful lot of bang for the buck in a low-power package. And that’s made them popular choices for handheld gaming PCs and laptops.
After first launching in mobile devices like gaming laptops and handheld gaming PCs earlier this year, they’re starting to find their way into mini PCs as well. Earlier this year Gigabyte introduced BRIX Extreme mini PCs with Ryzen 7040U chips, and ASRock Industrial unveiled new 4×4 BOX 7040 Series mini PCs. Now you can buy the ASRock model.
Newegg is selling a barebones ASRock 4×4 BOX-7640U mini PC with an AMD Ryzen 5 7640U processor for $480. Or you can spend $570 for a higher-performance model with a Ryzen 7 7840U chip, but that version might take longer to ship. As of December 10, 2023, Newegg says it’s on back order.
Both versions of ASRock’s little computer measure 118 x 110 x 48mm (4.6″ x 4.3″ x 1.9″) and feature support for up to 64GB of dual-channel DDR5-5600 memory, support for an M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4 SSD and/or a 2.5 inch SATA hard drive or SSD, support for WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, and support for up to four displays thanks to a set of ports that includes:
- 2 x HDMI 1.4b
- 2 x USB4 (w/DisplayPort 1.4a Alt Mode)
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A
- 2 x USB 2.0 Type-A
- 1 x 2.5 GbE Ethernet (RTL8125BG)
- 1 x Gigabit Ethernet (RTL8111EPV)
- 1 x 3.5mm audio
The 4×4 BOX-7840U features an AMD Ryzen 7 7840U chip with 8 CPU cores, 16 threads, and 12-core graphics, while the 4×4 BOX-7640U has a Ryzen 5 7640U chip with a 6-core, 12-thread CPU and 8-core graphics.
The company has also introduced two 4X4 motherboards for folks who’d rather supply their own chassis, the 4×4-7640U and 4×4-7840U.
This article was first published September 4, 2023 and most recently updated December 10, 2023.Â
I have combed over the pictures both here, and on their site to find this sata 3.0 port. Has anyone seen it? Is it a ribbon-attached daughter board thing?
You’re right, in past ASRock 4×4 boards, they’ve used a standard SATA connector on the motherboard.
I wonder if they’ve switched to a pin header or something else to save space on the board?
I wonder what that smaller header is above the USB-C port on the lower right side. It has smaller spacing than a standard pin header.
Yeah, you’ll need some kind of ribbon cable adapter that hopefully the thing ships with but I didn’t see any evidence of that on the newegg listing, only that you plug the ribbon cable into the connector just below the USB 3.0 ports on the right in image 2/7.
HDMI 1.4b wouldn’t even be able to work with my monitor’s native refresh rate, I’d be stuck at 60hz. So I’d be stuck plugging my monitor into the USB4 on the front of the PC. Weird.
Do many people have a strong preference to have all of their USB4 or Thunderbolt connectors on the front of the PC? I personally can’t think of a reason I would want them on the front, but maybe I’m alone in this.
Thank you for that information (About ALT MODE):
2 x USB4 (w/DisplayPort 1.4a Alt Mode).
2 x Port LAN is great news
I hope that in the future 1.4a Alt Mode will get a higher standard.