AAEON Launches UP TWL, UP TWLS, and Powerful 10-Core Intel Core i7 de next-RAP8 SBCs
Two Raspberry Pi-style boards joined by a more powerful device, firmly aimed at those looking to work with edge AI.
Embedded computing specialist AAEON has announced the launch of no fewer than three new single-board computer (SBC) models, all based around Intel processors: the UP TWL and UP TWLS, with Intel Core i3-N355, N250, or N150 processor options, and the high-performance de next-RAP8 that supports up to a Core i7-1365UE.
"UP TWL is a Raspberry Pi-compatible SBC [Single-Board Computer] with Intel Twin Lake [processor], 40-pin GPIO [General-Purpose Input/Output], HDMI, LAN, and USB 3.2 for reliable industrial control and edge computing," the company writes of its new UP family design. "The UP TWLS is built for developers who need powerful, wireless-ready solutions in tight spaces. Featuring the same Twin Lake processor options, the UP TWLS offers efficiency and flexibility in a compact 85×56mm [around 3.35×2.2"] form factor."
Core specifications for the two new UP boards, brought to our attention by Linux Gizmos, are the same: the buyer's choice of an Intel Core i3-N355 eight-core processor boosting up to 3.9GHz and with a 32-Execution Unit (EU) 1.35GHz Intel UHD Graphics GPU in a 15W power envelope, an N250 four-core processor boosting up to 3.8GHz with a 32-EU 1.25GHz Intel UHD Graphics GPU in a 6W power envelope, or the N150 four-core processor boosting up to 3.6GHz with a 24-EU 1GHz Intel UHD Graphics GPU in the same 6W power envelope, plus up to 8GB of LPDDR5 memory.
Where the two boards differ is in connectivity: the UP TWL features gigabit Ethernet but no wireless support; the UP TWLS adds an M.2 2230-footprint E-key slot for an optional wireless card, but in doing so loses the Raspberry Pi-style 40-pin GPIO header of the TWL. Oddly, the UP TWLS also comes with twice the maximum eMMC storage as the UP TWL: 128GB to 64GB. Both models include three USB 3.2 Gen. 2 Type-A ports, an HDMI 1.4b video output, and a Trusted Platform Module 2.0 (TPM 2.0).
The de next-RAP8, brought to our attention by CNX Software, uses a more unusual board layout and the choice of considerably more powerful processors: an Intel Core i3-1315UE six-core eight-thread processor boosting up to 4.5GHz with a 64-EU Intel Iris XE Graphics GPU running at up to 1.2GHz, a Core-i5-1335EUE 10-core 12-thread processor boosting up to 4.5GHz with an 80-EU Intel Iris XE Graphics GPU, or the range-topping Core i7-1365UE 10-core 12-thread processor boosting up to 4.9GHz with a 96-EU Intel Iris XE Graphics GPU running at up to 1.3GHz, all of which have a thermal design profile of 15W.
The boards can be configured with up to 16GB of LPDDR5, the company has confirmed, and come with gigabit Ethernet and faster 2.5-gigabit-Ethernet ports, two USB 3.2 Gen. 2 Type-A ports plus four USB 2.0 ports via a header, SATA III port, a two-lane M.2 2280-footprint M-key socket for Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) storage or an accelerator board, a flat flexible circuit (FFC) connector with another four lanes of PCI Express Gen. 3, and independent HDMI 1.2a and embedded DisplayPort 1.4 (eDP) display outputs.
The UP TWL, UP TWLS, and de next-RAP8 have all been listed on the AAEON website, but at the time of writing pricing had not been publicly disclosed.
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