The folks behind the iKOOLCORE line of mini PCs have been selling a line of palm-sized computers designed for networking applications (such as firewalls, servers, or gateways) since early 2023. Now the company has introduced something a little larger… but also more versatile.
The new iKOOLCORE R2 Max is a 157 x 118 x 40mm 6.18″ x 4.65″ x 1.57″ computer with the same Intel N100 and Intel Core i3-N305 Alder Lake-N processor options as the smaller iKOOLCORE R2 that Ian reviewed late last year. But the newer, larger model brings support for faster wired network connections, additional storage options, and a few other improvements.
For one thing, the smaller models have four 2.5 GbE Ethernet ports, but the new iKOOLCORE R2 Max has:
- 2 x 10 GbE LAN ports (Marvell AQC113B1-C, PCIe 3.0 x2)
- 2 x 2.5 GbE LAN ports (Intel i226-V, PCIe 3.0 x1)
Another difference? A larger case means there’s more room inside for storage. Whereas smaller iKOOLCORE R1 and R2 computers only have room for a single M.2 2242 SSD, the R2 Max supports two M.2 2242/2280 SSDs.
That said, Intel’s Alder Lake-N processors only supports up to 9 lanes of PCIe 3.0, and in this computer six of them are allocated for wired network connections. So SSD speeds are limited to PCIe 2.0 x1.
Other features include a a copper heatsink and metal case cover that also aids in passive cooling, as well as optional support for dual fans for active cooling, and a set of ports that includes:
- 1 x HDMI 2.0
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C w/DisplayPort Alt Mode
- 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A
- 1 x microSD card reader
- 1 x DC power input
The system can be powered either with a 120-19V DC power supply or a 20V/3.25A or higher USB-PD power adapter.
The computer has a single SODIMM slot with support for DDR5-4800 memory. Although Intel says Alder Lake-N chips only officially support up to 16GB of non-ECC RAM, I’ve seen plenty of reports of people getting systems with these chips to work with 32GB, and according to the iKOOLCORE Wiki the R2 Max should support up to 48GB of memory.
While you could theoretically install Windows on the iKOOLCORE R2 Max, the company notes that the system should support a wide range of operating systems including OpenWrt, pfSense, OPNsense, Proxmox, and others that are built specifically for networking applications.
Prices start at $299 for a barebones model with an Intel N100 quad-core processor or $399 for a version with a Core i3-N305 chip. Both versions can also be configured with up to 32GB of RAM and 2TB of storage, or you can bring your own.