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GEEKOM Mini IT13 review – Part 3: Ubuntu 22.04 tested on an Intel Core i9-13900H mini PC

We published the review of the Core i9-13900H powered GEEKOM Mini IT13 mini PC in Windows 11 Pro earlier this week and have now installed Ubuntu 22.04 and tested the machine with the Linux-based operating system in detail with benchmarks, features testing, networking and storage performance tests, power consumption, and thermal performance which we will report in this third and final part of the review. Installing Ubuntu 22.04 on GEEKOM Mini IT13 I shrank the Windows partition by about 500 MB in Disk Management in Windows 11 (Disk 1) in order to install Ubuntu 22.04.3 in dual boot configuration. The installation went smoothly using WiFi 6 to retrieve newer files and I could log in to the Ubuntu 22.04 desktop. But there was a trick, as I had to go to Windows first to select “Advanced Startup” and select Ubuntu on the next boot since the GRUB menu would just […]

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GEEKOM Mini IT13 Review – Part 2: An Intel Core i9-13900H mini PC tested with Windows 11 Pro

Earlier this month, we had a look at GEEKOM Mini IT13 hardware, a mini PC powered by an Intel Core i9-13900H Raptor Lake processor and equipped with 32GB RAM, a 2TB NVMe SSD, 8K capable HDMI and USB-C video outputs, and several high-speed ports such as 2.5GbE and Thunderbolt 4. We’ve now had time to test the powerful mini PC with the preinstalled Windows 11 Pro operating system, in the second part of the GEEKOM Mini IT13 review, we’ll report our experience with the device with features testing, various benchmarks, power consumption number, and thermal performance under load. Software overview and features testing GEEKOM Mini IT13 ships with Windows 11 Pro 22H2 build 22621.23.61 and the System->About window confirms we have a mini PC powered by an Intel Core i9-13900H and equipped with 32GB RAM. HWiNFO64 provides more details about the Intel Core i9-13900H 14-core/20-thread Raptor Lake processor, the motherboard, […]

ArmSoM RK3588 AIModule7 NVIDIA Jetson Nano-compatible SOM
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iKOOLCORE R2 mini PC and router review – Part 1: Specs, unboxing, teardown, and first boot

iKOOLCORE R2 is an Intel Alder-Lake-N mini PC and network appliance (router/firewall/gateway) that comes with four 2.5GbE ports, up to 16GB RAM, NVMe storage, and the usual HDMI and USB ports, and offered with either Processor N95 or Core i3-N305 SoC. It’s the successor of the iKOOLCORE R1 with four gigabit Ethernet ports and Intel Celeron N5095 or Jasper Lake processor, and the company sent us a sample for testing, so we’ll start with listing the specifications, check out the mini PC and accessories with an unboxing, teardown the multilayer mini PC to check out the hardware design and explain how to update the SSD or install a wireless module, and check whether it can still boot to Windows 11 (default, preinstalled OS) after my adventurous teardown… iKOOCORE R2 specifications Alder Lake-N SoC Intel Processor N95 quad-core processor @ up to 3.4 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel UHD […]

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GEEKOM A5 Review – Part 2: Windows 11 Pro tested on an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H Mini PC

After unboxing GEEKOM A5 mini PC, checking out the hardware, and booting the device in the first part of the review, we’ve now had time to further test the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H mini PC with Windows 11 Pro operating system. The boot-up is quite fast and generally speaking the device performs well for the various tasks we ran on the mini PC. So in the second part of the GEEKOM A5 review, we will provide an overview of the system information, test features, perform benchmarks, check heat dissipation under load, and measure the power consumption of the mini PC while running on Windows 11 Pro. Software Overview and Feature Testing Going to System->About in Windows settings, we can confirm that the GEEKOM A5 mini PC is equipped with an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor clocked at 3.20 GHz (base frequency)  and 32GB of RAM, and runs Windows 11 Pro […]

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GEEKOM A5 AMD Ryzen 7 5800H mini PC review – Part 1: Unboxing, teardown, and first boot

GEEKOM A5 is a Windows 11 Pro mini PC based on an eight-core, sixteen-thread AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor with up to 64GB RAM, NVMe/SATA SSD support up to 2TB, and interfaces such as dual HDMI 2.0,  five USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps ports, 2.5GbE, as well as support a WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless module. The company has sent us a review sample of the GEEKOM A5 mini PC with 32GB RAM and a 512GB SSD. Today, we will look at the Mini PC’s specifications, go through an unboxing, followed by a teardown, and quickly check out if it works properly with a first boot to Windows 11 Pro. In the next part of the GEEKOM A5 review, we will test performance and features with Windows 11 Pro, followed by an evaluation of the mini PC with Ubuntu 22.04 in the final and third part of the […]

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Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite – A 4.3 GHz 12-core Arm AI processor for next gen PCs and laptops

Qualcomm has now provided Arm chips for mobile PCs (aka laptops) for several years, but apart from a 20-hour battery life, the performance and price of Snapdragon laptops have often been disappointing. The Snapdragon X Elite aims to change that at least on the performance front. The new Qualcomm 12-core 64-bit Arm processor is clocked at up to 3.8 GHz boosting to up to 4.3 GHz, and is said to deliver up to twice the CPU performance against the competition (Intel/AMD/Apple) or provides the same level of performance at a third of the power consumption. The SoC will also be able to run on-device generative AI with over 13B parameters thanks to 75 TOPS of AI performance and support the latest wireless connectivity technologies such as 5G and WiFi 7 through external chips from the company. Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite specifications: CPU – 12-core 64-bit Armv8 Oryon processor clocked at […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs and SoMs in 2025
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Chuwi HeroBox 2023 low-cost mini PC features Processor N100, supports M.2 NVMe SSD and 2.5-inch SATA storage

Chuwi HeroBox 2023 is yet another Intel Processor N100 mini PC equipped with 8GB LPDDR5 memory and a 256GB M.2 NVMe SSD, but it may offer some extra features compared to competitors with space for a 2.5-inch SATA drive, five USB ports, and HDMI and VGA video output ports for $159 plus shipping. Chuwi HeroBox 2023 N100 specifications: SoC – Intel Processor N100 Alder Lake-N quad-core/quad-thread processor @ up to 3.4 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel HD graphics @ up to 750 MHz; TDP: 6W System Memory – 8GB LPDDR5 soldered-on board Storage 256 GB M.2 2280 PCIe SSD (replaceable) 2.5-inch SATA bay for HDD or SSD MicroSD card socket Video Output – 1x HDMI 2.0 port up to 4Kp60, VGA output Audio – 3.5mm audio jack, digital audio output via HDMI Networking Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 port Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless module USB – 2x USB […]

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Blackview MP80 review – Part 2: An Intel Processor N95 mini PC tested with Windows 11

In the first part of our Blackview MP80 Mini PC review we’ve looked at the specifications of the Intel Alder Lake-N Processor N95 pocket-sized mini PC, gone through an unboxing, a (limited) teardown, and given it a quick try in Windows 11. We’ve now had time to test the mini PC with Windows 11 more thoroughly and the MP80 mini PC works quite well and smoothly for its size. So in the second part of the review, we’ll report our experience, run some benchmarks, test hardware features, and so on. Software overview and Blackview MP80’s features testing The System->About section in Windows settings confirms the Blackview MP80 mini PC is powered by an Intel Processor N95 Alder Lake-N CPU with 16 GB RAM, and comes with Windows 11 Pro version 22H2 OS build 22621.1702. HWiNFO64 provides more details about the Intel Processor N95 Alder Lake-N quad-core/quad-thread processor, the motherboard (Shenzhen […]

Boardcon EM3562 Rockchip RK3562 SBC with 8 analog camera inputs