Just saw this pop up and it looks to be an interesting option from Minisforum. The are rolling out their new MS-S1 Max mini PC. It comes with AMD Strix Halo HX processors. This means you get up to 16 Zen 5 CPU cores and integrated RDNA 3.5 graphics that honestly look good enough to replace a mid range discrete GPU. The real kicker for me is the PCIe x16 slot. That is something you almost never see in a mini PC and it opens the door to running a proper desktop GPU or other expansion cards. For folks like us who usually have to accept whatever is soldered in, this feels like a breath of fresh air.
You also get USB4 v2 ports at up to 80 Gbps, let me repeat that, USB4 v2!. Also, DDR5 support we know up to 128 GB, and multiple NVMe slots. So, the overall horsepower I woudl say fits more into a workstation class PC. If the pricing lands right, this could be a sweet spot for people who want serious performance in a compact box. And, you don't have to go the route of a full ATX tower route.
From my perspective, this could be an interesting option for home labs. More cores, faster memory, better storage options, and even GPU expandability. It means you can throw Proxmox or ESXi on it and have a cluster node that does not take up much space. The only unknown right now is the networking. Minisforum has used both Realtek and Intel NICs in the past, and as we all know that makes a big difference for ESXi compatibility. Until we get confirmation, it is hard to say if this box will be plug and play for VMware users or if it will need workarounds. But since the home lab community has definitely cooled towards VMware this may not be a concern for most.
One thing also to note is this CPU is a high wattage CPU that will definitely not be that power efficient for those thinking about running a home lab 24x7x365. You can definitely find more efficient mini PCs out there.
Curious what you all think about the Minisforum MS-S1 Max? This seems to be an interesting option that is coming. However, I am not sure outside of the newer hardware if this is totally different than the MS-A2 or MS-01. What is your take?
