I've been impressed with the GMtek nucs, they make great little Linux boxes. I have bought 3 of them in two generations and their N100 system really handles Ubuntu well. I am impressed with their build quality. The Windows pro licenses are legit.

Very detailed and professional review. Thank you sir.

Excellent review! Detailed and good practical, comparative testing.

Perfect review, thank you

Excellent review. Thank you. (I bought one)

I bought this Mini PC a couple weeks ago before any of the reviews were out so I really appreciate how in-depth this video is. I hope they do something about being able to actually set the iGPU clock and the power consumption in the BIOS but I'm amazed to find out that the M.2 slot supports NVME! I'd be curious about what speed it runs at, but this makes me much happier with my purchase. I was already going to buy an NVME enclosure and drive and just run it over one of the USB ports but I was curious about the off chance that I could put the NVME drive right on the board and lo and behold it would actually work! Thank you for the video, enjoy the subscription!

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Thank you. I did email the vendor about the iGPU clocks, but they said it's normal behavior. My experience with iGPU clocks are usually if they can get enough power and aren't overheating, they will run at their max boost clock. Or we'd at least see some sign of the clocks jumping to that boost speed, but it never exceeded 1000MHz.

GMKTec released a BIOS update on June 6. The GPU now actually hits 1200 MHz instead of 1000 MHz. I haven't noticed any difference in power draw or temperatures and it gave me a nice performance boost.

@htwingnut

20 күн бұрын

Oh wow, great to know. I'll have to take a look!

@htwingnut

15 күн бұрын

are you ok if I mention your username in a video? I'm going to do an update on the BIOS.

@dualpapayas

15 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut If you want to, sure. Thank you for both of your videos on this mini PC by the way, it gave me the confidence to buy one and I'm really satisfied with it!

Perhaps the issue with that SSD USB adapter is that the USB port used wouldn't deliver enough power consistently to the SSD. I've had issues with NVME SSD USB adapters in this way in the past and usually using a powered hub would solve the issue.

Glad I stayed till the end to see the Ubuntu test. These PCs are worthless to me if I can't wipe W11 and install Linux, so great to know.

Thanks for the great review. Would be nice to know how much faster the NVME SSD is (boot etc) and whether it's worth it to swap.

Thank you for metric measures.

Great video.

Awesome review, thanks a lot !! Did you see any possibility to enable wake-on-lan in the BIOS ? Hopefully it has WOL since it's a must for me for the use case I'm contemplating for this mini PC

@PiMania

17 күн бұрын

WOL settings are in the bios but, i can't confirm they work or not.

Hey thanks for the review. I wonder if I can powered it with a good power bank. I always wanted to make a handheld pc from a mini pc.

Excellent review and great presentation of specs, thank you very much for all your time on this video! I was wondering if anyone has tested using this device for streaming MQA music to a DAC and audio amplifier in terms of digital jitter, pops and clicks in the sound quality maintained by the USB ports?

Follow up video posted here: kzread.info/dash/bejne/f5yqrtKwhairfrA.htmlsi=rY6tS0VOU4OlOaHQ

Great video, the disassembling process was very interesting. Can you tell us what Wi-Fi/BT card comes with the system and if this is a standard M.2 PCIe card or Intel CNVi/CNVio2? Another question about the power supply - this is 12V with a 3A rating, right? Did you try any other USB-C PD power supplies or power banks? Would be interested to know if this can easily powered by different means or requires a specific power supply. Thanks!

@misterabroad123

Ай бұрын

I have one and tested it working with a usb-c charger that's 18w 12V@1.5a but strangely not one that's 12V@1.67a

Good review, I have a mini PC that is 3X as big, but hardly makes a difference. Mine is a Ryzen 5 ,16 GB I get 2X score in Cinebench R 23. I really don't see any value in it being as so small?

I'd love to see this in a cluster.

Thank for the disassembly. I will re-peaste it with ARCTIC MX-4, i hope i will have less spikes with that (right now during a game sometimes the cpu is above 90C, and a the frame rate is dropped for a few sec.

@htwingnut

23 күн бұрын

Good luck, hope it works for you. This isn't the best choice for gaming, but will do OK with older games.

@Twiszted

23 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut Thanks, i have a gaming pc, but i love to play with these budget SoCs :D

@htwingnut

23 күн бұрын

@@Twiszted Same! I always find it interesting how these compact devices can actually manage gaming, even if older titles.

Runs really hot

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Yes. I might spend a little more time with the fan profile and see if I can get it to improve thermals. Although setting TDP to 8W drops temps considerably, at the expense of a slightly slower clock speed.

@PiManiac

18 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut Fan profile is the way. I Stopped mine throttling in 1080p PS2 Emulation changing this. (basically run it flat out after 60c, its quiet enough for me) Worth mentioning that whilst, it gets hot, it cools down pretty fast also.

@htwingnut

18 күн бұрын

@@PiManiac Thanks, yeah I've done a little bit of playing with the fan profile. 100% speed is a bit loud, but not too awful.

The steps needed to access and replace the CMOS clock battery aren't great. However, I've seen plenty of builds that are far worse. Overall, I'd prefer a wider design (width of a 60% keyboard) with less height. Maybe I'm influenced by a love of cyberdeck designs.

Excellent breakdown, as ever. I would love to know what the speeds of the 2280 M.2 SSD were. This is a very viable alternative to the N100. Shame about those MicroSD card speeds.

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Thanks. It is PCIe 2x Speed (~ 1800 MB/sec) see follow up video here: kzread.info/dash/bejne/f5yqrtKwhairfrA.htmlsi=e8HP_6t3q8diDjvg&t=544

@srvuk

Ай бұрын

@@htwingnut That is good.

i write this note with the same model of mini computers, i have the same problem whit one of my external m2 readers, (from multiple i've got) it's the power delivery in the USB port, from m2 128, 256, 512 and 1T, no problem with any, exep the 4t one… it is not the adapter i swap them with. it just the power. (usb digital tester) shows the 4t nearly needs a full amp to work. iv got 3 computers connected to my LG 55 screen, switch between them but use the mini most of the time…for the past years

will you recommend this one over the other ones tested value wise? for the same price im between this and firebat am02(n100 ddr4) so probably not as fast as this one but looks better ventilated and have way more ports. also wonder why the single core perf is lower.

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Depends on what you need. The Firebat has 2.5GbE port which is nice also supports 80mm M.2 SSD's. Unless you need/want an ultra compact form factor, I'd personally opt for the bigger version.

I would have liked to have seen a benchmark/crystaldiskmark numbers on the NVMe drive. I think a lot of people buying this unit would grab the 256gb model and upgrade to a 1tb or 2tb NVMe if the drive read/write speeds are good.

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Sure. I can do that. My guess is it's a PCIe 3.0 x1 lane so max 1000MB/sec but reality abouit 700-800 MB/sec. I'll give it a try.

Wow, even overclocking the n100 doesnt push it over 75c tops. Its funny how its a little slower but is close or matching performance. I bet the running of some games could be better though, obviously.

Is the power supply reducing the USB C voltage to 5 V? Can I use a USB C power-bank for portability?

how does the thermal paste you use compare to arctic mx4 ?

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

I'd say comparable. There's not a lot of differences between thermal pastes these days. Although I'd be sure that the one you use doesn't require a certain amount of pressure to work properly on a mount like this PC (it's like a laptop CPU). But those are usually the exception not the norm. I look for the pastes that tend to not dry out quickly too, and this SYY paste I used seem to do well over time. I used to use IC diamond because it would last forever, although would scratch the die when you cleaned it up because of the diamond dust in it. But it seems it's no longer made.

the usbc adapter can damage your other devices if you use it on them

Super small 😮

Is this capable of streaming 4K HDR content from netfilx and the like?

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Absolutely. No issues.

@laughinggravy8680

Ай бұрын

@@htwingnut Thanks👍

wonder if that NVME USB adapter is using just a tad too much power for that mini's USB port 🤔

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Could be. It only affected the Samsung SSD though. Just thought it was an oddity.

@mofoq

Ай бұрын

@@htwingnut I know they had power isolators for USB2, not sure about 3; perhaps a good USB3 powered hub might be a way to test the power theory 🤔

If you IPTV stream give it a miss as the quality is low.

Did you check for any spyware/malware/tojans in the windows install? Yes, I know Windows 11 is essentially spyware too.

@PiMania

17 күн бұрын

Scanned but I found none.

awesome review. you even included nvme test. Great! one thing, if you can talk slower, that's even better!

@htwingnut

9 күн бұрын

Thanks for the feedback. LOL, I always feel like I need to talk faster.

what is that tool at 25:33? i cant unscrew that four screw

@htwingnut

20 күн бұрын

Just a standard phillips head.

@Twiszted

20 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut hmm, i cant do that :D when i put it in the hole nothing happens

@htwingnut

20 күн бұрын

@@Twiszted Oh, sorry. Those posts are like hex nuts. I just found the adapter from my iFixit kit that worked with it. Let me see if I can find out exactly what tool it requires.

@htwingnut

20 күн бұрын

@@Twiszted It's a 4.0mm Hex Socket tool: imgur.com/a/pskitly

@Twiszted

20 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut thanks!!

Where the ram located?

@htwingnut

23 күн бұрын

@ 27:55. The big black chip next to the CPU. It is soldered on the PCB. Samsung LPDDR5: K3LK2K20BM-BGCN. Here is an image: i.imgur.com/V41H5GU.jpeg. I also mention it at 30:26 after the fact as it dawned on me that was the RAM chip.

Looks like that ssd slot is a combo pcie slot meaning it will take both nvme and SATA ssd ... You still may need to select that option in bios though also! Ordered the pc will try an nvme in it tomorrow!

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

No need to select in BIOS. I show installing an NVMe drive at 32:30 in video.

@mindbender50

Ай бұрын

Thanks just got yourself a new sub 😊

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

@@mindbender50 😳Thanks! Have fun with yours!

Dave x Microsoft employe?

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

Are you asking if I am Dave, ex Microsoft employee? No. Unfortunately.

Can this run league of legends?

@htwingnut

21 күн бұрын

I don't play LoL, but I will try to fire it up on there and see how it goes.

@rainbowbudz4017

21 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut much thanks bud!!

@htwingnut

20 күн бұрын

@@rainbowbudz4017 I have no idea how to play, and only had a few minutes to try. But I did a quick video here starting the tutorial. Default settings at 1080p then 720p at the end. looks like it manages 90-100 FPS at 1080p. Of course I'm not sure how it manages the game in intense battles: kzread.info/dash/bejne/a2qJ1Mlqc5PZnbg.html

@rainbowbudz4017

20 күн бұрын

@@htwingnut thank you so much! Will definitely be getting it!!!

"Nuhk" box? Blahahahaha

A non standard Windows distro from China. No thanks. Who knows what info could be being phoned home ?

@htwingnut

Ай бұрын

It's not non-standard. You can always install your own Windows 11 from Microsoft directly and it should detect the hardware and use the key associated with it just fine. I just think however they received the key might be questionable.

@bittertruthnavin

Ай бұрын

You and your stupid conspiracy theory! Geez!

@TheCrystalJules

Ай бұрын

Not that I actually think my PC phones home but because I'd heard this many times about these Shenzhen Mini PCs I went through the trouble twice, first reinstalling a clean Windows 11 and then realizing I hate everything they added in 11 and did a clean install of Windows 10 😂 I suppose in the event of a world war I would be concerned about my computer being able to be remotely bricked if it's got some sort of remote connection, but in peacetime I don't really care if the CCP can watch me play another hundred hours of Morrowind on my Mini PC.

@regwatson2017

Ай бұрын

@@TheCrystalJules No it doesn't matter if they watch you playing Morrowind but it might if it is phoning home your email address and passwords and your banking login details !!! Trust nothing when you are transacting online.

@TheCrystalJules

Ай бұрын

@@regwatson2017 I thankfully have other, more secure devices I use for those services. My mini PC is for low-stakes computing when I need an x86 processor.

it's time for raspberry and other crappie sbc engineer should be looking another real future job.

@adrianyorke

Ай бұрын

sbc and mini-pc are different use cases. Although I do agree that devices like this are killing the "mini linux server" use case for sbc market. By the time you add PSU, case, cooling & storage - this device comes out cheaper than leading sbc models and it's considerably more powerful.