Cheap, low-profile x710-da4 on AliExpress - experiences?

[DagB]

There are a few options for cheap-ish x710-da4 quad SFP+ low-profile cards on Ali Express. They all look the same.
Here is one. The x710 appears appealing as it allows for the CPU to enter the lower power modes. (ASPM)

Anyone tried one of these cheap cards in one of the Lenovo tinymicrominis? Or recognize the design? Curious about:

• physical length - is it 150mm or less?
• firmware - can I flash the regular intel firmware?
• experiences with this particular card/design - good or bad
• is a fan a necessity/strongly recommended for the DA4?

And also: is DAC generally lower power than regular single mode optics?

 

[joeribl]

Unfortunately I cannot see the item in AliExpress as it is not available in my country. I recently bought a 2port Huawei version from AliExpress. Seems new. It's I think Intel Ref Design but missing the metal brace. Haven't had time to play with it yet.

 

[DagB]

Added a picture of the card in question

 

[WhiteNoise]

Right now, many items on AliExpress are unavailable to US customers due to tariffs kicking in. You can but a used x710-da4 on ebay from a US seller.

 

[joeribl]

Added a picture of the card in question

Looks like more or less like reference design. So I doubt it will be less then 150mm.

 

[DagB]

Right now, many items on AliExpress are unavailable to US customers due to tariffs kicking in. You can but a used x710-da4 on ebay from a US seller.

As luck would have it, I am not a US customer.

 

[DagB]

Looks like more or less like reference design. So I doubt it will be less then 150mm.

Thank you. Looked it up, I have to agree it very much looks like the ref. design. 169mm.