Portwell announced a Type 6 COM Express module that supports “Sandy Bridge” Core i5 and i7 processors and ECC (error-correcting code) memory. The PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC offers up to 16GB of RAM, two 6Gb/sec. SATA ports and two 3Gb/sec. SATA ports, multiple PCI Express lanes, plus both eight USB 2.0 ports and two USB 3.0 ports, according to the company.

Portwell says the PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC is "ideal for gaming machines, high-end communications applications, test equipment, streaming video terminals, and medical imaging devices." The company said precisely the same thing about the similarly named PCOM-B217VG it released last March, but the extra letters on the new module's name stand for a variety of improvements.

For starters, the earlier module supported two different Sandy Bridge Core processors in rPGA-989 packages. The PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC supports four, all in BGA packages and all with ECC support.

The supported CPUs are:

• Core i7-2715QE, with quad cores, 2.1GHz clock speed, 3GHz turbo frequency, and 45-Watt TDP
• Core i7-2655LE, with dual cores, 2.2GHz clock speed, 2./9GHz turbo frequency, and 25-Watt TDP
• Core i7-2610UE, with dual cores, 1.5GHz clock speed, 2.4GHz turbo frequency, and 17-Watt TDP
• Core i5-2515E, with dual cores, 2.5GHz clock speed, 3.1GHz turbo frequency, and 35-Watt TDP

The PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC pairs these processors with Intel's QM67 Express chipset and up to 16GB of DDR3 ECC memory, the latter installed in two 240-pin SODIMM slots. The module offers four SATA ports, according to Portwell: two 6Gb/sec. and two 3Gb/sec.

The 4.92 x 3.75 inch PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC is a Type 6 COM Express module, meaning that its two 220-pin connectors have dropped Type 2's support for PCI and IDE, but add DDI (digital display interfaces) and expanded support for PCI Express. According to Portwell, the module includes seven PCI Express x1 lanes, four of which may be configured as one x4 lane, plus one PCI Express x16 lane (configurable as two x8 or two x4 and one x8).

Portwells's PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC
(Click to enlarge)

Providing support for DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI video output, the PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC further includes a gigabit Ethernet controller, eight USB ports, and two USB 3.0 ports, according to the company. As with other such modules, getting this functionality to and from the outside word requires a separate COM Express baseboard, though Portwell did not suggest any particular one.

Specifications listed by Portwell for the PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC include:

• Processor:
  • Core i7-2715QE, with quad cores, 2.1GHz clock speed, 3GHz turbo frequency, and 45-Watt TDP
  • Core i7-2655LE, with dual cores, 2.2GHz clock speed, 2./9GHz turbo frequency, and 25-Watt TDP
  • Core i7-2610UE, with dual cores, 1.5GHz clock speed, 2.4GHz turbo frequency, and 17-Watt TDP
  • Core i5-2515E, with dual cores, 2.5GHz clock speed, 3.1GHz turbo frequency, and 35-Watt TDP
• Chipset — Intel QM67
• Memory — up to 16GB of DDR3 ECC memory via 2 x SODIMM slots
• Display — supports CRT and 1 x 18bit/24bit LVDS display interfaces; PCIe x16 for graphics; HDMI, DVI, and DisplayPort support
• Storage — 4 x SATA ports (2 x 6Gbps, 2 x 3Gbps)
• Expansion:
  • 7 x PCIe lanes (4 x1 lanes configurable to 1 x4 lane)
  • 1 x PCIe x16 lane, configurable to 2 x8 or 2 x4 and 1 x8
• Networking — 1 x gigabit Ethernet port
• Other I/O:
  • 8 x USB ports
  • 2 x USB 3.0 ports
  • LPC interface
  • SMBus/I2C interface
  • HD audio interface
• Operating temperature — 32 to 140 deg. F (0 to 60 deg. C)
• Dimensions — 4.92 x 3.75 (125 x 95mm); COM Express form-factor

Further information

Portwell did not cite pricing, availability, or operating system support for the PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC. More information may be found on the PCOM-B217VG-VI-ECC product page.

This article was originally published on LinuxDevices.com and has been donated to the open source community by QuinStreet Inc. Please visit LinuxToday.com for up-to-date news and articles about Linux and open source.