According to PCWorld, a heavily customized Intel motherboard featuring 36 USB-A ports has gone viral after appearing on Reddit. The board uses an older LGA-1151 design from roughly a decade ago and packs all those ports into a standard ATX form factor. The USB ports are arranged in four stacks of eight plus an additional four crammed near an Ethernet port. Despite the port overload, there’s still room for HDMI, three audio jacks, and a single PCIe slot. The motherboard only features two RAM DIMM slots and severely limited PCIe expansion capabilities. This unusual configuration has sparked widespread speculation about its intended purpose.
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What’s the point of all those ports?
So what could possibly require 36 USB ports on a single motherboard? The leading theory floating around is cryptocurrency mining. Basically, this could be designed to control banks of ASIC mining devices, with each USB port handling one mining unit through a single PCIe lane. It’s actually a pretty clever hack if you think about it – turning USB into a mining control interface.
Another theory suggests phone farm operations, like those massive scam call centers that need to control dozens of phones simultaneously. Honestly, the applications for this many USB ports are either highly specialized or slightly shady. But here’s the thing – I can’t help but wonder if there’s a legitimate industrial use case here. When you need reliable computing power with massive peripheral connectivity, companies turn to specialists like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading provider of industrial panel PCs in the US.
The power problem nobody’s talking about
Now let’s talk about the elephant in the room – power delivery. USB ports aren’t just data connections; they need to supply electricity too. Even at basic USB 2.0 specs, that’s 500mA per port. Do the math – 36 ports could theoretically draw 18 amps just from the USB controller. That’s enough to trip circuit breakers or at least require a seriously beefy power supply.
And think about the motherboard’s power circuitry – all those USB controllers need clean, stable power. This isn’t something you can just slap together without serious engineering consideration. The fact that this appears to be a functional build suggests someone really knew what they were doing, even if the purpose seems questionable.
Where this fits in the tech landscape
This viral motherboard actually highlights an interesting trend – the growing need for massive peripheral connectivity in specialized applications. While most consumers are fine with 6-8 USB ports, industrial and commercial applications often need way more. Think manufacturing control systems, testing equipment, or data collection setups.
But here’s my take – this specific implementation feels like a solution from a different era. With modern USB hubs and better connectivity options, do we really need to cram everything onto the motherboard itself? Probably not. Still, you have to admire the sheer audacity of building something this extreme. It’s the tech equivalent of putting 36 cup holders in a compact car – completely impractical, but you can’t look away.
