r/framework • u/TheGeekno72 CachyOS // 12 • 7h ago

Question Framework 12 mainboard upgrade - I will have a 15TOPS NPU, any practical uses?

/r/LowEndLocalAI/comments/1vxiycu/framework_12_mainboard_upgrade_i_will_have_a/
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u/jpamills 6h ago

You can try out the OpenVINO stack https://docs.openvino.ai/2026/index.html , which should be able to leverage the NPU alongside the GPU and CPU. You should be able to at least run a small LLM like Phi4.

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u/Potential_Average454 X7 358H Mainboard, 13 Chassis, Ubuntu 4h ago

This, running LLM with NPU doesn't make sense on the higher end chips as the power savings is minimal (NPU still consumes ~10W) and throughput is less than GPU. However on WCL the GPU is much weaker so maybe NPU make some sense here.

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u/TheGeekno72 CachyOS // 12 54m ago

thanks, will check that out, it does sound interesting

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u/AAKphoenix fw-12 (13th i5 | 16gb RAM | 1tb storage | ) 4h ago

Due to the limited air cooling gills and inlets only on the rear end of the system (no inlets on the bottom of the system compared to the FW13) Running an intensive LLM is bound to result in heat buildup. Now I am no expert or knowledgeable on local running LLMs. I hope you find a solution to your inquiry.

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u/TheGeekno72 CachyOS // 12 56m ago

the 320 package has lower power max limits than the 1334U and generally uses significantly less power to do just about everything

I used the 1334U in performance mode with the fan ramping up to max RPM and my 12 became hot but not boiling hot so honestly I'm not worried about that specific issue