Update: This very popular deal is still available.
GMKtec-US via Amazon has for
Prime Members: GMKtec NucBox G3 Plus Mini PC on sale for $139.99 - $10 (clip the coupon on the item page) =
$129.99.
Shipping is free.
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gmktec has
GMKtec NucBox G3 Plus Mini PC on sale for
$129.99.
Shipping is free.
Thanks to community member
wordage for finding this deal.
Specs: - Intel Twin Lake N150 4-cores, 4-threads (3.6GHz) Processor
- 8GB DDR4 3200 MHz Memory (32GB max)
- 256GB PCIe 3.0 M.2 2280 NVMe Solid State Drive
- 2TB max M.2 2242 SATA (Not Included)
- Intel UHD 1000MHz Graphics
- WiFi 6 802.11ax +Bluetooth 5.2
- Windows 11 Pro
- Ports:
- 4x USB 3.2 up to 5Gbps/S
- 2x HDMI 2.0 (4K@60Hz)
- 1x 3.5mm Audio Jack
Top Comments
Anyway, if your goal is retro gaming, a Raspberry Pi is smaller and more energy-efficient for these types of tasks, but honestly, once you add in a case, a good power supply (RPi's are picky with respect to power...), and storage, it is probably at the same price or even more than this $130 machine. But if you are interested in more modern gaming or more powerful emulation, this system would be better and give you more flexibility for future upgrades.
Just saying buyers might want to read up.
284 Comments
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Seems worth the upgrade. Some reviews has me worried tho.
Seems worth the upgrade. Some reviews has me worried tho.
Edit: So Sorry! This IS a G3. Apologies.
I use it as a utility/test pc, its an appliance.
Its basically a chromebook in performance, the problem with N100 type cpus is the ecores are cache starved, its slow. That's not even really accurate because chromebooks now come with 2 performance cores + the 4ecores and so feel much snappier. A pcore is about the size of 4 ecores, its significant.
Put it this way, windows update slams it hard, a real desktop shrugs that off.
It does things like playback video fine because of hardware acceleration, but if you depend on the cpu its a slug.
GMKtec Mini PC NucBox G5, Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake N97 (up to 3.6GHz), 12GB RAM 256GB M.2 SSD, Home, Business, Office Mini Computer with Windows 11 Pro, 4K UHD Dual HDIMI, RJ45 Ethernet $137.99
or
GMKtec Mini PC N150, G3 Plus Intel Twin Lake N150 (3.4GHz) Preinstalled Windows 11 Pro, 8GB DDR4 RAM 256GB PCIe M.2 SSD, Desktop Computer 4K Dual HDMI/USB3.2/WiFi 6/BT5.2/2.5G RJ45 $129.99
The only reason to go to a 500 dollar tier is if you want things like gaming or image editing out of it. I wouldn't do either on these. But for basic/mundane computer tasks, these are incredibly capable and I wouldn't let people upsell you out of them.
https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/com...re_i5_4460 [cpu-monkey.com]
The N150 is supposedly a beefed up N100 that performs about 10% faster than its predecessor. There are tons of benchmark comparisons for the N100 as it has been around for much longer. So if you compare the N100 vs. the Intel Core i5-4460 using the same cpu-monkey suite, it is a completely different story. In fact, the N100 surpasses the Intel Core i5-4460 in most of the tests. And it does it with a 6W TDP vs. an 84W TDP, i.e., a 14x difference. And again, the N150 is supposedly about 10% faster than the N100 so the true difference would be greater. See:
https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/com...re_i5_446
The N150 is not a powerhouse by any means, but for basic web surfing, office apps, YouTube, etc., it is perfectly functional! I still actively use two Dell Inspirons from the last few years with Intel Core i7-7500U and Intel Core i3-8145U processors, and both benchmark much lower than an N100, which is 10% slower than the N150 in this GMKtec machine. So if those processors can handle basic workloads without a problem, this is even less of an issue for the N150. See:
https://www.cpubenchmar
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The only reason to go to a 500 dollar tier is if you want things like gaming or image editing out of it. I wouldn't do either on these. But for basic/mundane computer tasks, these are incredibly capable and I wouldn't let people upsell you out of them.
You can use this as a desktop, but its a narrow use case, and if you can do better, you probably should.
The N150 is supposedly a beefed up N100 that performs about 10% faster than its predecessor. There are tons of benchmark comparisons for the N100 as it has been around for much longer. So if you compare the N100 vs. the Intel Core i5-4460 using the same cpu-monkey suite, it is a completely different story. In fact, the N100 surpasses the Intel Core i5-4460 in most of the tests. And it does it with a 6W TDP vs. an 84W TDP, i.e., a 14x difference. And again, the N150 is supposedly about 10% faster than the N100 so the true difference would be greater. See:
https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/com...re_i5_4460 [cpu-monkey.com]
The N150 is not a powerhouse by any means, but for basic web surfing, office apps, YouTube, etc., it is perfectly functional! I still actively use two Dell Inspirons from the last few years with Intel Core i7-7500U and Intel Core i3-8145U processors, and both benchmark much lower than an N100, which is 10% slower than the N150 in this GMKtec machine. So if those processors can handle basic workloads without a problem, this is even less of an issue for the N150. See:
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/comp...l-i3-8145U [cpubenchmark.net]
I have two ddr5 n100's which I use for various tasks, they do not feel fast. The oldest machines I can compare them to are an i7 4770 and a core2 quad and they feel the same or faster. The cache starvation issue isn't going to show up on benchmarks, its like the 12-14th gen latency issues just worse, when it bogs it bogs.
A 1215u which has the 2 P cores feels as it should. The n100 of course wins on power and size which is why I bought them. It probably doesn't help that these things usually come with a bottom of the barrel boot drive.
Sure one can get by, but I'm just saying its not a miracle, its performance is basically from a decade ago, people are over promising on what it can do.
You can use this as a desktop, but its a narrow use case, and if you can do better, you probably should.
I have two ddr5 n100's which I use for various tasks, they do not feel fast. The oldest machines I can compare them to are an i7 4770 and a core2 quad and they feel the same or faster. The cache starvation issue isn't going to show up on benchmarks, its like the 12-14th gen latency issues just worse, when it bogs it bogs.
A 1215u which has the 2 P cores feels as it should. The n100 of course wins on power and size which is why I bought them. It probably doesn't help that these things usually come with a bottom of the barrel boot drive.
Sure one can get by, but I'm just saying its not a miracle, its performance is basically from a decade ago, people are over promising on what it can do.
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How long this crappy mini PC is going to be frontpage