Intel Downfall (Gather Data Sampling) vulnerability impacts AVX2/AVX-512 workloads

Intel Downfall

After vulnerabilities like Spectre and Meltdown were discovered in 2018, Intel processors have more vulnerabilities with the Downfall attacks that target the Gather instruction part of AVX2/AVX-512 and impact 6th generation Skylake up to 11th generation Tiger Lake processors introduced as far back as 2014. It does not affect more recent processors, and as somebody who has just purchased a laptop based on a 13th Raptor Lake processor, I guess I can breathe a sigh of relief until the next vulnerability is discovered, but people using hardware with older Intel processors will have to update the OS and suffer from a performance impact, at least for tasks leveraging AVX2 or AVX-512. The website about the Downfall vulnerability explains: Downfall attacks targets a critical weakness found in billions of modern processors used in personal and cloud computers. This vulnerability, identified as CVE-2022-40982, enables a user to access and steal data from […]

Youyeetoo X1 – A Compact Intel Jasper Lake SBC going for $110 and up

Youyeetoo X1 SBC

Youyeetoo X1 is a compact Intel Celeron N5105 Jasper Lake SBC with up to 16GB RAM, optional eMMC flash of up to 256GB capacity, support for an M.2 NVMe or SATA SSD,  up to three video outputs, Gigabit Ethernet, and optional WiFi and Bluetooth or 4G LTE connectivity. In some ways, it reminds me of the Zimaboard, but the X1 SBC comes with an 11th Gen Jasper Lake processor instead of a 7th Gen Apollo Lake processor, it’s cooled with a fan and heatsink instead of being fanless and does offer more I/Os. Youteetoo X1 specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N5105 quad-core Jasper Lake processor @ 2.0 GHz / 2.9GHz (Turbo), with Intel UHD Graphics @ up  to 800MHz; TDP: 10W System Memory – 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB LPDDR4 Storage Optional eMMC flash with 64GB, 128GB, or 256GB capacity M.2 Key-M socket for M.2 2280 NVMe or SATA SSD SATA […]

ARBOR ELIT-1060 compact, fanless Celeron N6210 terminal supports up to three 4K displays

Compact Intel Celeron N6210 fanless display terminal

ARBOR’s ELIT-1060 triple display terminal is a rugged fanless mini PC powered by an Intel Celeron N6210 dual-core Elkhart Lake processor with two HDMI 2.0 ports and one DisplayPort connector each supporting up to 4Kp60 resolution. The system comes with a 4GB DDR4 SO-DIMM, 32GB eMMC flash, two 2.5GbE Ethernet ports, an M.2 socket for wireless expansion, several USB 3.0/2.0 ports, and one RS232/422/485 serial port. While the company markets it for “high-intensity digital signage applications”, I could also see it being used in various other applications thanks to its networking capabilities and expansion ports. ARBOR ELIT-1060 specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N6210 dual-core Elkhart Lake processor up to 2.6 GHz with Intel UHD graphics System Memory – 4GB DDR4 SO-DIMM memory expandable to up to 32GB RAM Storage 32GB eMMC flash M.2 M-key socket (2260/2280, PCIe Gen.3 x2/SATA interface) for an NVMe or SATA SSD Video Output 2x HDMI […]

MeLE Overclock3C mini PC boosts Celeron N5095 performance with a 18W TDP

MeLE Overclock3C

MeLE Overclock3C is an ultrathin mini PC based on an Intel Celeron N5095 Jasper Lake processor, but instead of using the default 15W TDP, the company is pushing the processor harder than usual with the TDP set to 18W which should provide more performance in theory, as long as cooling is working well. The rest of the specifications are pretty standard with up to 16GB DDR4 SO-DIMM memory, up to 512GB storage,  two HDMI 2.0 ports, a 3.5mm audio jack, Gigabit Ethernet, WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2, as well as four USB 3.2 ports. MeLE Overclock3C specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N5095 quad-core Jasper Lake processor @ 2.0GHz /  2.9GHz (Turbo) with 4MB cache, 16EU Intel UHD Graphics; TDP: 18W (up TDP) Memory / Storage options 4GB single-channel DDR4 upgradeable up to 32GB, 128GB eMMC flash, M.2 NVMe socket 8GB single-channel DDR4 upgradeable up to 32GB, 256GB eMMC flash, M.2 […]

Intel kills its NUC business

Intel kills NUC business

Intel has just decided to shut down its Next Unit of Compute (NUC) business selling mini PC, PC, boards, and modules directly to customers, as the company told partners they will stop direct investment into that part of their business. We first wrote about Intel NUC in 2014, but the company’s first NUC was launched in 2013, and I can only imagine Intel decided to kill the NUC business in order to focus on its core business which is to sell processors. They won’t directly compete against their customers anymore, although it’s unclear if this was part of the decision… I have mostly read praises about the NUC family over the years, but I’ve had a mixed experience myself. One family member asked for a reliable mini PC, so I recommended a Core-i5 NUC and while it mostly worked fine, we had to purchase a separate USB WiFI dongle as […]

GEEKOM MiniAir 11 mini PC with Celeron N5095 CPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD sells for $124 (Sponsored)

GEEKOM MiniAir11 mini PC promotion

GEEKOM has a very interesting Summer promotion for its MiniAir 11 mini PC powered by an Intel Celeron N5095 Jasper Lake processor with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SATA SSD which they sell for just $124 with the coupon code summer5air. The mini PC offers HDMI 1.4 and mini DisplayPort video outputs, Gigabit Ethernet, WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2 connectivity, three USB 3.2 ports, and two USB-C ports for data only, as well as the less common full-sized SD card reader. GEEKOM MiniAir 11 specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N5095 quad-core Jasper Lake  processor @ 2.0GHz /  2.9GHz (Turbo) with 4MB cache, 16EU Intel UHD Graphics; 15W TDP System Memory – Dual-channel 8GB DDR4 upgradeable up to 32GB Storage – 256GB M.2 2280 SATA SSD upgradeable to 1TB NVMe or SATA SSD, full-size SD card reader (USB 2.0) Video Output – 1x HDMI 1.4 port, 1x mini DisplayPort Audio […]

$77 Intel Celeron N3350 mini PC ships with 4GB RAM, 64GB storage

cheap Intel mini PC 2023

Over around five years ago, it was relatively easy to find entry-level Intel mini PCs or PC sticks for less than $100, but in recent years, it’s been more of a challenge to purchase cheap Intel mini PCs unless when going the second-hand route. But there’s now a “DeskMini” mini PC selling for $77 (with a $12 coupon) on Amazon with the system being powered by an Intel Celeron N3350 Apollo Lake processor and coming with 4GB RAM and a 64GB eMMC flash preloaded with Windows 10. DeskMini specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N3350 dual-core processor @ 1.1 GHz / 2.4 GHz with 12 EU Intel HD Graphics 500 @ 200 MHz / 650 MHz; 6W TDP System Memory – 4GB DDR4 Storage 64GB eMMC flash M.2 2242 socket for SATA SSD Full-size SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4 port up to 4Kp30, VGA port; dual independent display […]

Helix 511 fanless industrial embedded computer features Intel Celeron 7305 up to Core i7-12800HL CPU

Onlogic HX511

OnLogic Helix 511 edge computer features an Intel Alder Lake processor from Celeron 7305 up to a Core i7-12800HL CPU with up to 64GB DDR5, M.2 SATA or NVMe storage and designed for use in manufacturing, automation, energy management, and other edge and IoT applications. The fanless industrial embedded computer also comes with two 2.5GbE ports, support up to four independent displays via DisplayPort and Thunderbolt 4 connectors, is equipped with six USB 3.2 ports, as well as optional digital I/O or serial ports for expansion. Helix 511 specifications: Alder Lake SoC Intel Celeron 7305 penta-core processor @ 3.10GHz / 4.20GHz (Turbo) with 48EU Intel UHD graphics – PBP: 15W, up to 55W MTP Intel Core i3-12300HL octa-core/12-thread processor @ 2.00GHz  / 3.30GHz / 4.40GHz (Turbo) with Intel UHD graphics – PBP: 45W, up to 65W MTP Intel Core i5-12600HL 12-core/16-thread processor @ 2.70GHz / 3.30GHz / 4.50GHz (Turbo) with […]