iMX6 Baseboard "mini 2" PCIe connector. Is this Legacy?

[miner_tom]

Hi,

I am going through the Placement Video for the Advanced layout course and I was thinking of why one would put two PCIe connectors on a small board. I have been doing research and I find that most PCIe based WiFi cards advertised will, of course, require PCIe lanes from the main processor. That would be the "mini 1" connector on the schematic.

The "mini 2" connector has no PCIe lanes but has USB and a digital audio connection and it is labeled for "wireless modems like GSM or 3G". Is "mini 2" for legacy cell phone connections and older modems?

Thank You
Tom

[robertferanec]

Most of wireless modems use USB and they do not require PCIE. It's not legacy - it is just that they do not need PCIE.

By placing 2x PCIE mini connectors on the baseboard, you can have several combinations of wireless which are useful in some applications (e.g. you can have two wireless modems from different providers to get better connection coverage, or you can have Wireless + WiFi network to build an access point, etc.)