This ARM-based mini PC sports a full x16 PCIe slot for discrete GPUs - Minisforum says "desktop ARM" starts now, but can it live up to the hype?

• Minisforum MS-R1 includes a full PCIe x16 slot supporting discrete GPUs or additional storage
• Compact 1.7-liter design maintains 28W TDP for quiet, efficient operation
• Up to 64GB LPDDR5 ECC RAM ensures reliable multitasking performance

Minisforum has launched the MS-R1, its first ARM-based mini PC, featuring a 12-core Cixin P1 SoC with eight Cortex-A720 and four Cortex-A520 cores, capable of boosting up to 2.6GHz.

This device uses an integrated Immortalis-G720 MC10 GPU and supports up to 64GB of LPDDR5 RAM with ECC running at 5500MT/s.

Storage starts at 1TB NVMe SSD and can be expanded to 8TB via PCIe 4.0 M.2 or U.2 options.

A Compact ARM Machine with Big Promises

The MS-R1 includes a full PCIe x16 slot with a physical x16 interface but bandwidth x8, allowing for discrete GPUs, high-speed NICs, or additional storage modules.

The MS-R1 offers a range of connectivity options, including Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, dual 10GbE ports, and an HDMI port.

It also comes with a USB-C port with DisplayPort support, and multiple USB-A and regular USB-C ports.

Its compact 1.7-liter form factor and 28W maximum TDP make it suitable for mobile workstations or tight office setups where space is limited.

Audio input and output include a 3.5mm combo jack and HDMI, and internal features include a 40-pin GPIO and multiple UART pins.

This business PC supports UEFI boot, enabling installation of mainstream Linux distributions and virtualization setups directly from a USB drive.

This feature allows users to run Linux and other operating systems without complex board-level configurations, although there is no mention of Windows on ARM support.

For AI performance, the MS-R1 uses the CIX CP8180 processor, delivering up to 45 TOPS of compute, including 28.8 TOPS from the NPU for AI inference and edge workloads.

Users can leverage the PCIe x16 slot for external GPU acceleration or additional storage, enabling AI experimentation or data-intensive workstation workloads in a compact form.

The MS-R1 is available globally through Minisforum’s online store now, and offers a combination of compact size, expandable storage, and ARM-based AI capabilities.

The base unit of the MS-R1, with 32GB RAM and no storage, starts at $503. However, the top model with 64GB RAM and a 1TB SSD costs $695.90.

Via Tom's Hardware

Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.