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expired Posted by Suryasis • Dec 13, 2023
expired Posted by Suryasis • Dec 13, 2023

Minisforum AR900i Mobile On Desktop Mini-ITX SBC (Barebone): Core i9-13900HX, 2xDDR5, 4X M.2 2280, 1x PCIe X16 Gen5, 2.5G Lan @ $519

$519

$589

11% off
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Minisforum [minisforum.com]is offering AR900i MoDT (Mobile On Desktop) Mini ITX Motherboard with Core i9-13900HX 24C/32T CPU @ $559 - $40 Off via 900save$40 = $519 with free shipping.

Spec:
  • Mini-ITX Form Factor (170x170x1.6mm)
  • Core i9-13900HX (8P+16T)/32T 2.2 GHz (5.4 GHz Turbo, 32MB L2 Cache, 36MB L3 Cache)
  • Intel® HM770 Chipset Motherboatd
  • Intel UHD Graphics Xe (32 EU)
  • 2x DDR5 SODIMM Slots (96GB Max)
  • Intel AX 210 Wi=Fi 6E 2x2 + Bluetooth 5.3 + 2.5G Ethernet
  • Ports:
    • 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C 10 Gbps (DisplayPort Alt Mode)
    • 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A
    • 2x USB 2.0 Type-A
    • 1x HDMI 2.0 (4K@60Hz)
    • 1x DisplayPort 1.4 (8K@80Hz)
    • 1x RJ-45 (2.5G Ethernet)
  • Expansions:
    • 4x M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4x4 NVMe Slots (2 on front, 2 on back)
    • 1x M.2 2230 Key E Slot (For NIC)
    • 1x PCIe 5.0 X16 Slot
  • I/O Headers
    • 1x 4-pin CPU Fan header
    • 2x 4-pin System Fan header
    • 1x 4-pin SSD Fan header
    • 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 header
    • 1x Front Panel Audio header
    • 1x System Panel header
  • Cooler & Heatsink:
    • CPU Heatsink Included (one 120mm Fan required)
    • Ram & SSD heatsink with Cooler included with Fan
Community Notes
About the Poster
Deal Details
Community Notes
About the Poster
Minisforum [minisforum.com]is offering AR900i MoDT (Mobile On Desktop) Mini ITX Motherboard with Core i9-13900HX 24C/32T CPU @ $559 - $40 Off via 900save$40 = $519 with free shipping.

Spec:
  • Mini-ITX Form Factor (170x170x1.6mm)
  • Core i9-13900HX (8P+16T)/32T 2.2 GHz (5.4 GHz Turbo, 32MB L2 Cache, 36MB L3 Cache)
  • Intel® HM770 Chipset Motherboatd
  • Intel UHD Graphics Xe (32 EU)
  • 2x DDR5 SODIMM Slots (96GB Max)
  • Intel AX 210 Wi=Fi 6E 2x2 + Bluetooth 5.3 + 2.5G Ethernet
  • Ports:
    • 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C 10 Gbps (DisplayPort Alt Mode)
    • 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A
    • 2x USB 2.0 Type-A
    • 1x HDMI 2.0 (4K@60Hz)
    • 1x DisplayPort 1.4 (8K@80Hz)
    • 1x RJ-45 (2.5G Ethernet)
  • Expansions:
    • 4x M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4x4 NVMe Slots (2 on front, 2 on back)
    • 1x M.2 2230 Key E Slot (For NIC)
    • 1x PCIe 5.0 X16 Slot
  • I/O Headers
    • 1x 4-pin CPU Fan header
    • 2x 4-pin System Fan header
    • 1x 4-pin SSD Fan header
    • 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 header
    • 1x Front Panel Audio header
    • 1x System Panel header
  • Cooler & Heatsink:
    • CPU Heatsink Included (one 120mm Fan required)
    • Ram & SSD heatsink with Cooler included with Fan

Community Voting

Deal Score
+7
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38 Comments

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Dec 13, 2023
769 Posts
Joined Oct 2014
Dec 13, 2023
jlong129
Dec 13, 2023
769 Posts

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank jlong129

Be prepared to wait a month for this to be delivered. I ordered from them November 23rd and all I have is a DHL tracking number that indicates DHL is waiting on the item. I contacted Minisforum and they said it would be leaving within a week. This message was received last week and it still didn't ship.

If it comes from Amazon, then it comes quick. Straight from Minisforum in Hong Kong? Be prepared to wait!
4
1
Dec 13, 2023
351 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
Dec 13, 2023
monster888
Dec 13, 2023
351 Posts

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank monster888

This BS company barely release bios updates.

Would love to see those who downvoted to show proof of periodic bios updates
Last edited by monster888 December 13, 2023 at 08:33 AM.
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Suryasis
Dec 13, 2023
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Quote from monster888 :
This BS company barely release bios updates.

Would love to see those who downvoted to show proof of periodic bios updates
For a pretty new launch UM780XTX.
https://youtu.be/-dJVmuTbgs0?t=1742

That video showed update from the Bios version 1.0 to 1.03 and now in Minisforum Support, the latest Bios version is 1.04
https://www.minisforum.com/suppor...ownload/95

So, looks like they have released 2 Updates within couple of months.

Same goes for a bit older version called HX99G, released long time back. Looks like they also have a BIOS update for that as well.
https://www.minisforum.com/suppor...ownload/35

So, let me know how did you conclude your assumption of not getting Bios update. I know because I use the HX99G for some times now.
Last edited by Suryasis December 13, 2023 at 09:33 AM.
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Dec 14, 2023
35 Posts
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Dec 14, 2023
NeatVest456
Dec 14, 2023
35 Posts
What is the benefit for purchase this instead of buying parts. A mobile processor with a mother board? There are bundle with a desktop processor, motherboard and RAM for similar price.
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Quote from NeatVest456 :
What is the benefit for purchase this instead of buying parts. A mobile processor with a mother board? There are bundle with a desktop processor, motherboard and RAM for similar price.
These MoDT platforms are pretty new to me as well and I only posted only one apart from this, the AMD based BD770i with Ryzen 7 7745HX. You can check that thread for better understanding as there were plenty of discussion about this. But after my initial research, there are some advantages to go with these.
  • You can create a very small form factor PC as CPU, CPu Cooler, SSD cooler all are integrated in it.
  • Processor equivalent to i7-13900HX is desktop i7-13900K and that costs around $530-$550 alone. A decent motherboard will cost you another $150. Then you need to add CPU Cooler and a pretty beefier one as desktop versions consume lots of power. If you combine those, you can see that the price actually goes higher than this integrated CPU motherboard.
  • The motherboard on this board is pretty advanced with 4x M.2 slot and integrated Ram + SSD cooling and the heatsing included. All you need to do is add a 120mm Fan on top of that and you're good to go.
1
Dec 14, 2023
368 Posts
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Dec 14, 2023
I_like_feet
Dec 14, 2023
368 Posts
Quote from monster888 :
This BS company barely release bios updates.

Would love to see those who downvoted to show proof of periodic bios updates
I can speak for their mini pc's, bios is super limited and empty, crazy fan noise on most of their units, and i've seen a trend of complaints on amazon about units failing randomly.
4
Dec 14, 2023
1 Posts
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Dec 14, 2023
kkiy
Dec 14, 2023
1 Posts
It looks great, and I'm somewhat interested!
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Dec 14, 2023
1,322 Posts
Joined Mar 2007
Dec 14, 2023
Intelslacker
Dec 14, 2023
1,322 Posts
Quote from Suryasis :
For a pretty new launch UM780XTX.
https://youtu.be/-dJVmuTbgs0?t=1742

That video showed update from the Bios version 1.0 to 1.03 and now in Minisforum Support, the latest Bios version is 1.04
https://www.minisforum.com/suppor...ownload/95

So, looks like they have released 2 Updates within couple of months.

Same goes for a bit older version called HX99G, released long time back. Looks like they also have a BIOS update for that as well.
https://www.minisforum.com/suppor...ownload/35

So, let me know how did you conclude your assumption of not getting Bios update. I know because I use the HX99G for some times now.

For my TH50 - they never released a single BIOS update. I had to RMA my machine cuz the video igpu kept flickering at 240hz refresh rate. Ever since RMA its been stable though.
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Suryasis
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Quote from Intelslacker :
For my TH50 - they never released a single BIOS update. I had to RMA my machine cuz the video igpu kept flickering at 240hz refresh rate. Ever since RMA its been stable though.
How was the RMA process, if you don't mind me asking?
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Dec 14, 2023
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Dec 14, 2023
Intelslacker
Dec 14, 2023
1,322 Posts
Quote from Suryasis :
How was the RMA process, if you don't mind me asking?
Honestly it was a shit show that took a full ~5 weeks from start to end.

First, they made me pay for the shipping to some warehouse address in San Bernardino, CA. I sent them the FedEx tracking number showing it was on its way (2nd day shipping).

Took them a full 10 days to "confirm the PC was received" after delivery date from FedEx. Then took them about 2 more weeks to even ship a replacement to me. They told me they did not have a 256GB SSD model in stock and wanted me to "pay to upgrade to 512GB ssd which they did have in stock" - I complained about this; they finally shipped me the 512GB ssd model using ground shipping.
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Suryasis
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Quote from Intelslacker :
Honestly it was a shit show that took a full ~5 weeks from start to end.

First, they made me pay for the shipping to some warehouse address in San Bernardino, CA. I sent them the FedEx tracking number showing it was on its way (2nd day shipping).

Took them a full 10 days to "confirm the PC was received" after delivery date from FedEx. Then took them about 2 more weeks to even ship a replacement to me. They told me they did not have a 256GB SSD model in stock and wanted me to "pay to upgrade to 512GB ssd which they did have in stock" - I complained about this; they finally shipped me the 512GB ssd model using ground shipping.
This is going to be a problem with these small PC manufacturers due to their small footprint in USA, whether Minisofurm, Bee-Link or AceMagiccian, some of the popular brands for Mini PC.
Regarding the BIOS update, the thing is unless there is a reported problem or anything broken, BIOS update is not required for these mini PCs much because unlike Desktop hardware where you have several components from several brands, causing compatibility issues (Like Motherboard voltage and power, Ram timing and requency controls, compatibility with Lan and Wi-Fi cards, new CPu support addition), these are based on Laptop components where everything is standardised with very limited hardware support.

They do release much frequent BIOS updates for their newer and Costlier models, with more features like dedicated GPU, OCuLink Port and I have given example of that .

I am using the HX99G with Ryzen 9 6900HX + RTX 6650M for over 8 months and performance and cooling wise, I never had any problem. Even the BIOS with which it shipped, was pretty stable but they are pretty limited. I got one update in the middle of this year. Not sure what it did exactly but my guess is that it increases the CPU max Power and optimized the fan curves because after that, my CPU benchmark scores were slightly higher.
1
5
Dec 14, 2023
35 Posts
Joined Feb 2023
Dec 14, 2023
NeatVest456
Dec 14, 2023
35 Posts
This or the 7745HX at 120$ cheaper?
Dec 14, 2023
63 Posts
Joined Nov 2008
Dec 14, 2023
Omegazero
Dec 14, 2023
63 Posts
Quote from NeatVest456 :
This or the 7745HX at 120$ cheaper?
Intel Core i9-13900HX vs AMD Ryzen 7 7745HX [cpubenchmark.net] by PassMark Software [cpubenchmark.net]

CPU Mark
13900hx: 44874 vs 7745hx: 32923
2
Dec 15, 2023
50 Posts
Joined Apr 2015
Dec 15, 2023
LateDependent
Dec 15, 2023
50 Posts
The website doesn't mention keyboard/mouse/pad box for this AR900i?
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Original Poster
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Dec 15, 2023
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Suryasis
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Quote from LateDependent :
The website doesn't mention keyboard/mouse/pad box for this AR900i?
I think you're orrect. I doublecheccked and found out that is for some specific Mini PCs and not for this one. Editited my post.
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