Intel’s Meteor Lake processors have found a place in laptops, NUCs, and now, through a new development, on particular socketed motherboards.
The processors, designed for energy efficiency rather than peak performance, diverge from Intel’s high-performing desktop-specific Raptor Lake Refresh CPUs.
Recent details reveal the existence of an iBase motherboard equipped with an LGA 1851 socket, designed to support Meteor Lake PS, an unusual variant within the Meteor Lake lineup.
The forthcoming motherboard bears an ‘upcoming’ status, though available specifications suggest its imminent introduction rather than conceptual status.
The role of Meteor Lake PS appears to be tailored towards embedded, industrial, and IoT (Internet of Things) platforms, differing from consumer counterparts.
Intel’s delineation distinguishes PS chips as IoT processors. These variants derive from mobile CPU designs, which natively combine both CPU and chipset, thereby omitting the need for a separate motherboard chipset.
You’ll notice that the specifications of such motherboards, including iBase’s MI1002 model, depart from traditional consumer designs, offering features like multiple Ethernet ports, communication (COM) ports, and absence of the standard 16-lane PCIe slots, which are typically reserved for gaming graphics cards.
Despite initial expectations, you should not anticipate the introduction of Meteor Lake-S, originally projected to lead Intel’s desktop CPU offerings and pioneer the LGA 1851 socket.
Instead, Intel continues with the Raptor Lake-S for 13th and 14th Gen CPUs.
The eventual application of Meteor Lake will be through the mobile Core Ultra line within the unique confines of specialized motherboards like iBase’s MI1002.
Furthermore, despite prior statements alluding to Meteor Lake’s application in desktops, clarity emerged as Intel specified their use in desktop environments excluding traditional socketed systems.
Thus, only in customized scenarios could you possibly construct a Meteor Lake-powered desktop, using motherboards like the MI1002 fitted with a Meteor Lake PS chip within mini-ITX cases.
This represents a non-standard approach to harnessing Meteor Lake on socketed desktop platforms.
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