momomo_us, the prolific leaker usually revealing the latest GPUs and CPUs ahead of time, tweeted an image of the Asrock Side Panel Kit. It’s a 13.3-inch, 16:9, 60Hz IPS panel (300 nits) that can attach to the transparent glass side panel of most ATX, mATX, and Mini-ITX chassis using the included brackets. Asrock gives a few use-case suggestions for its kit: a large screen for monitoring your PC hardware, a display dedicated to streaming or messages, or just a second monitor for watching videos. If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, be warned that there is a catch; the screen uses an embedded DisplayPort (eDP) connector. The advantage is that it can carry both power and the digital display signal, but the connector isn’t available on standard desktop motherboards or graphics cards, and there aren’t any display output adaptors available.
It means that the only official way to make the screen work is to pair it with one of the following Asrock motherboards, which feature the eDP connector: Z790 LiveMixer, Z790 Pro RS/D4, Z790M-ITX WiFi, Z790 Steel Legend WiFi, Z790 PG Lightning, Z790 Pro RS, or the Z790 PG Lightning/D4. You can also find it on the H610M-ITX/eDP and B650E PG-ITX WiFi. Assuming you have a compatible mobo, the screen does seem like an acquired taste. It won’t be much good for anyone who keeps their PCs on the floor rather than next to them on their desk, and even then, you might want to angle the case to prevent constantly turning your head. Moreover, anybody who likes to show off their expensive, RGB-packed hardware will be disappointed. We don’t know the price yet, either. If you do want some form of (admittedly limited) integrated display inside your PC, maybe consider an AIO cooler with an LCD panel on the CPU block like this one from Corsair.
