Unveiling the Power: Elkhart Lake Unit Review

Unveiling the Power: Elkhart Lake Unit Review

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Overview of the Elkhart Lake Unit
3. Front Panel Features
4. Back Panel Features
5. Chassis Design and Cooling
6. Internal Components
7. Performance Comparison with Other CPUs
8. Power Consumption
9. Operating System Options
10. Conclusion

Introduction

In this article, we will take a closer look at the new Elkhart Lake unit, which has been generating a lot of excitement among tech enthusiasts. We will explore its features, performance, power consumption, and various use cases.

Overview of the Elkhart Lake Unit

The Elkhart Lake unit is a small yet powerful system that boasts six two and a half gig Ethernet ports and a low-power processor. It is a new addition to the series of small AliExpress units, such as the J series Celeron. In this article, we aim to determine whether this unit lives up to the hype and if it is truly worth considering.

Front Panel Features

The front panel of the Elkhart Lake unit offers some interesting and unique features. It includes four USB ports (two USB 2.0 and two USB 3.0), an HDMI port for video output, and a Serial console port for convenient networking management. Additionally, there are buttons for power and reset, although the placement of the power button is worth a chuckle.

Back Panel Features

On the back panel of the unit, we find the highlight of the device – the six two and a half gig Ethernet ports. These ports utilize Intel i226v technology, making them compatible with the latest generation of NICs. However, it's important to note that the compatibility between i225 and i226 is different, and some operating systems may not work out of the box with i226.

Chassis Design and Cooling

The Elkhart Lake unit features a relatively larger chassis compared to its predecessors. This larger size allows for better cooling, ensuring optimal performance even under heavy load. The unit is fanless, making it a silent and efficient choice. However, it's worth mentioning that some users have experienced issues with thermal interface material between the CPU and chassis in previous generations, but our unit had a solid interface.

Internal Components

Upon opening the unit, we discovered some significant changes in the internal components. The unit provides two SO-DIMM slots, allowing for up to two ESO-DIMMs. It also includes an mSATA SSD slot, followed by an mPCIe slot and a SIM card slot for modem expansion. It's important to note that this unit uses SATA SSDs rather than NVMe SSDs, which may be considered a regression in terms of storage technology.

Performance Comparison with Other CPUs

When comparing the performance of the Elkhart Lake unit with other CPUs, specifically the Intel Celeron J6413 and the Intel n5105, we found them to be very close in terms of raw CPU performance. Benchmark tests showed that the n5105 had a slight edge in some workloads, including single-threaded performance, but the J6413 delivered impressive results overall. However, considering the availability of additional features like VT-d and SRI V, the n5105 remains the preferred choice.

Power Consumption

The Elkhart Lake unit boasts relatively low power consumption, especially when idle. With a light-on power supply, the unit consumes around 12 watts. Plugging in an Ethernet cable for network connections adds an Incremental half watt, and each additional NIC port consumes approximately half a watt. These power consumption levels make the unit energy-efficient and cost-effective for various applications.

Operating System Options

The Elkhart Lake unit offers multiple options for operating systems. It comes pre-installed with OPNsense 22.7, making it an ideal choice for firewall and router configurations. Other options include pfSense, OpenWrt, Ubuntu desktop 22.04, and Proxmox VE 7.3. It's important to note that while the unit works flawlessly with OPNsense and pfSense, Proxmox VE may not support NIC passthrough and SR-IOV due to limitations in the current BIOS settings.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Elkhart Lake unit presents a powerful and versatile solution for various networking needs. Despite a few minor drawbacks, such as the lack of certain features and limitations in virtualized environments, the unit performs exceptionally well in basic firewall and router setups. With its solid build quality, impressive performance, and affordable price range, the Elkhart Lake unit is certainly a worthwhile addition to consider for networking enthusiasts.

Highlights:

• Powerful and compact Elkhart Lake unit with six two and a half gig Ethernet ports
• Unique front panel features, including USB ports, HDMI port, and Serial console port
• Back panel highlights with Intel i226v NICs and innovative chassis design for optimal cooling
• Performance comparison with other CPUs shows competitiveness with the Intel n5105
• Energy-efficient power consumption ranging from 12 to 22 watts
• Multiple operating system options, including OPNsense, pfSense, and Proxmox VE
• Versatile use cases, particularly suitable for basic firewall and router configurations

FAQ:

Q: Can I use this unit for virtualized environments? A: While the Elkhart Lake unit supports virtualization, certain limitations exist, such as the inability to enable NIC passthrough and SR-IOV in Proxmox VE. For virtualized environments, the Intel n5105 unit may be a more suitable choice.

Q: Is it possible to upgrade the storage capacity of the Elkhart Lake unit? A: Yes, it is possible to upgrade the storage capacity by adding a 2.5-inch SSD. However, this may restrict airflow and increase heat generation in the fanless system.

Q: What are the alternatives to the Elkhart Lake unit? A: The Intel n5105 unit is a recommended alternative to the Elkhart Lake unit, offering similar performance with additional features like VT-d and SRI V.