A New Motherboard for Specialized Systems
Following the path set by products like the recent ASRock Beebox, today we have the new Asus N3150M-E motherboard, which also uses one of Intel's Braswell SoCs. The combination of a new platform and the presence of classic ports like LPT and PS/2 positions the Asus N3150M-E as a good option for upgrading systems with specific functions.
The benefits of a compact, low-power system are numerous; however, nothing prevents transferring some of those benefits to traditional formats like mATX boards. You might wonder what applications a platform originally designed for mobile systems could have on the desktop. Unlike direct solutions like the ASRock Beebox, low-power hardware in an mATX or Mini-ITX format becomes an excellent candidate for roles such as a micro-server, BitTorrent box, or even a commercial terminal that must be connected to accessories like fiscal printers, which still use classic interfaces. Many manufacturers decided to set aside PS/2 and LPT ports, without even offering an option to add them internally.
Specifications and Connectivity
Fortunately, the new Asus N3150M-E breaks that pattern, and at the same time delivers specifications that are on par with other competitors. Its integrated processor is actually an Intel Celeron N3150 SoC, a 14nm Braswell/Airmont chip with four physical cores (doubling those of the N3000), a base frequency of 1.6 GHz, and a Turbo mode of 2.08 GHz. It supports up to 8 GB of DDR3 memory across two slots.
- 2x SATA
- 4x USB 2.0
- 4x USB 3.0
- 2x PS/2 (mouse and keyboard)
- 1x LPT
- 1x COM (internal connection)
- Gigabit Ethernet
- VGA (integrated video)
- 3.5mm audio output
The PCB reveals a PCI Express 2.0 16X slot, although the SoC's limitations mean it must run at 1X. It's not ideal, but if someone decides to connect a dedicated graphics card to free up the integrated video and the memory it consumes, they can do so.
Cooling and Pricing
The cooling system on the Asus N3150M-E SoC is completely passive, so noise reduction is a given. Regarding its official price, the only available source mentions 85 euros. If you need to adjust the budget a bit more, Asus also offers the N3050M-E variant at 75 euros, which replaces the SoC with a dual-core Celeron N3050.
For more information, visit the official Asus product page.
