Tech Dir at a private school. Anytime I can save money and get a PC that works reasonably well, I'm all for it. I have a couple GMKTec N100's installed on the back of 75" interactive panels and they work great. Bought the 12GB / 256GB reviewed in this video on the GMKTec Amazon store for around $178. Fortunately I have Windows edu licensing and I'll also zap it and reinstall Windows when it arrives. This one I'll try as a teacher desktop with a 1080 monitor at the desk and also feeding a 1080 signal to a 75" panel at the front of the classrom. Thanks Lon, your videos are a valuable resource.
I think the form factor is excellent for people with limited space like a dorm room, or for use in a media center, or a small desk in a kid's room. For everyday office work, watching videos online or from the SSD or one of the USB 3.0 ports I think this is a great fit for casual use. It's very budget friendly and takes advantage of a modern compact lower power draw CPU That came to the market recently. The Intel integrated UHD 1200 graphics are an excellent value and a definite step above the previous integrated graphics offerings such as the Intel UHD 750 found on the 3.4 Ghz N100 CPU. I'd definitely pick this tiny beast of the alder lake chip set with a CPU that can go up to 3.6 GHz and a GPU at 1.2GHz out the gate. This chip has only been on the market since the first quarter of 2023 so it has plenty of years of life in it still. 😁
Wow Intel really messed up the naming scheme for these processors. The N97 boosts 200mhz faster and has 350mhz faster GPU than the N100, probably because they allow it to run at 12W TDP compared to 6W for then N100; other than that they have the same specs (cores, cache, process, etc.)
Dude I thought the same thing when I was browsing! Lol good thing I always read all the specs, I noticed this super confusing difference and went with this exact model he is reviewing in this video instead of the N100. Perfect for building my own offensive hacking (pentesting) labs with AD and multiple versions of Windows Server (2012 hopefully, for sure 2016, 2019, 2022, and 2025) on multiple of these N97s.
I REALLY like this physical format! Over the past 18 years, I've used various Mac Mini models, so I like the small machines. Mahalo for looking at the Linux performance on this model! I hope the...guts...of those sexy, new Snapdragon X Elite chips you've been evaluating recently find their way into THESE pocket rocket computers! Tiny size...low power consumption...the successor to all my old Apple Mac Minis! Aloha!
Thanks for the review Lon, always a pleasure to watch your reviews of these incredible new devices. I personally have a GMKTec N100 NUC and I am blown away by it. Now thanks to your review I want this G5 N97. Thanks for helping me empty my wallet :) In all seriousness, really great devices. I am now a big fan of this manufacturer in particular.
There is a firmware update released in late May that fixes the GPU being capped to 1.0 Ghz,. Now it runs at the full 1.2 Ghz. Also had to re-enable C-States and set it back to 15W in the updated bios. Not sure I'll notice a difference, but I do play a number of casual games on this since it 's the perfect form factor to sit on top of my bedroom TV. I stream any graphically heavy games from a gaming laptop w/ a 3070. Steam and Proton have come a long way on linux. Running Linux Mint 21.3, everything working great. This hardware is relatively new, so it needed the Edge version with the newer kernel.
Linux is just so good on the n97 and n100 machines, and I love this tiny format, I have the firebat t8 pro (of similar size) and it rocks on Mint XFCE4 Beta. If the pc comes without a vesa bracket, just get some velcro tape and use that. Also makes it easy to take off the computer if you need to plug/unplug something from it. The only drawback I've seen from this tiny form factor is that if you want to upgrade the SSD you often end up having to get a SATA 2242 SSD, which are slow compared to NVME and cost a lot more for equal space. Going forward I'll only get mini pcs that have 2280 NVME SSDs.
Personally, I found it easy to overheat and throttle but equally as easy to fix with some MX4 CPU re-pasting. (Video now uploaded) This box is then AMAZING for emulation of PS2/Wii/GC/Switch/Wiiu/OG Xbox and even PS3 2D titles. (Many upscaled.)
Hey Lon. Long time fan. I gotta say I tried the previous green model you show at the beginning and the price savings wasn't worth the terrible fan noise. At current Amazon prices the Beelink Mini PC, AMD Ryzen 5 5560U is a far better deal for like $30 more -- and it's near silent.
I really want to buy one of these mini PCs but can't find a good use case for me. If there was a way to run Google TV OS on these, I could use it as a replacement for Nvidia shield.
Great review … subscribed 👍 … it is curious that you don’t see too many mini PCs other than on Amazon … big box retailers like Best Buy and Costco obviously behind on latest PC trends
Welcome! I think these PCs are a bit of a niche item with low margins - probably not enough consumer interest for the mass market. Additionally most of the manufacturers don't have a domestic presence so support is often hit or miss - mostly miss :).
I wanted a Beelink EQ 13 N200 to plug it on a 4k 60hz display in the future to watch stuff, but your browsing experience was not good enough. on the similar G5 N97. You saved me a lot of money :) Not being future proof, I am now considering buying a N95 for Jellyfin transcoding on linux but unfortunately there is no N95 review on your channel. I considered an older 5105 but the gen 10 cannot decode AV1. Going for a N95 instead of a N100 could save me around 100$ Canadian dollars..!
I’m sorry if this is a dumb question, but I was curious if you did any tests for the Micro SD card slot? I saw another review that said the performance was kind of poor and I have never been able to determine the speed of a slot on my computer to know which spec card to buy. Any insight you could offer would be greatly appreciated.
I have a GMktec M2 i7 and I only mention this because I tried a N5105 running a 2 GHz according to Task manager and it did everything fine for my Plex, Gmail, light video editing, 4K download and playback but one at a time. Plex and video download or anything else and Gmail brought it to 100% with ultimate failure. So Plex and gmail was fine or plex and anything else was fine. I also tried the N200 but it was only 1 Ghz and was worse, so I went with the i7 @ 3.4 GHz. I don't do gaming and the fan was quiet but did become slightly noticeable at times because it is variable. I wish Ron and others would address the effect of the GHz of the processors.
Nice review and certainly looks like a nice machine, however, is it available without Windows? I have absolutely no use for Windows and don't see why I should pay a M$ tax. If they are available without Windows then great, otherwise I have quite a selection of other NUCs from other manufacturers that don't force Windows with the sale.
Yes definitely - this and the N100 Mini PCs significantly outperform even the Pi 5.. The GPIO capability is still an advantage for the Pi but I think most consumers will get a great value with an Intel Mini PC at this point. I did a video on this a few weeks ago: th-cam.com/video/9DfK1cFuQ9M/w-d-xo.html
Nuce they have usb c power delivery but companies really need to have usb c video out. Alot of people are starting to use these mini pcs with xr glasses to have a minimum setup
Do you have any information on how to factory reset the nucbox g5??? My keyboard and mouse are not responding.. I even tried my mini keyboard with dungle.. I can not get pass the clock and date on my opening screen...any advice?
I still have an instinctual aversion to a hacked version of Windows. REALLY gives me red flags. 1.What else have they secretly changed or added (a low level virus)? 2. It's just too good a deal. With all the inflation going on and it's only $150? hmmm Are you able to nuke the included Windows, download an .iso from MS, use a different SSD and install/update without issue? Does it still activate? Also, what kind of bios does it have and is it accessible?
@@kirkkohnen5050 The wonderful thing about modern PCs, the OS runs BIOS/UEFI ACPI code extensively and with the highest privilege. Anything they want to hack in Windows can easily be made "permanent" in the BIOS/UEFI.
I found that the included USB-C power cord is shorter than the power cord that was included with an Intel NUC11. Anyone have a recommended longer USB-C power with a longer cord, up to 6ft/2m that is compatible with this G5? Would a USB-C laptop charger like the one for a lenovo T14 laptop work? Thank you.
@@PacificCoast1 yes, look next to his finger at 2:44 … there is a headphone / audio 3.5mm port you could use for powered speakers or to an amplifier with passive speakers
Seriously, if they really want to sell their products, they should at least host their own supported software like drivers and BIOS updates and all those. Instead of Google drive that you can't download anything ever because the download quota that will be exceeded like all the time. And something as important as the BIOS updates link, appearing and disappearing at random.
Imagine how even better these would be with the new ARM chips. But I'm pleasantly surprised at its GTA performance. Did not expect that out of a PC that's this tiny.
I don't get the 12GB RAM. Dedicate use, sure. But for a general purpose desktop system? Maybe if you are on a strict 2 or 3 year replacement cycle or if Windows was as aggressive about shutting down apps as Android... People just don't understand the power or crippling affect of RAM. "It works" is not at all the same as "it works really well." For my wife and kids I started buying 8GB in 2011 and only compromised that once since then... When Win10 was intro'd the claim was it would work well with 4GB and I tried, but it really needed 8GB to get comfortable. If not at first, you were sure feeling the pain of 4GB and were eager to upgrade hardware by the time Win11 came out. Now I view 8GB the same as I did 4GB back then and start with 16GB to get more useful and comfortable life from the hardware. So 12GB is more, but I'd be a lot happier to start with 16GB and for my use I'm buying 32GB (and ideally upgradeable to more). With my M1 Macbook Air I ignored recommendations that 8GB was plenty spent the money to get 16GB. It isn't really enough. It makes for an adequate Chromebook replacement but when you get doing anything serious the SSD gets a workout and that is simply not acceptable.
I like these mini computer reviews. I did buy the Minix computer because there is no fan to worry about things. I think it will make a good Boomer Computer.
![[MV] A leap of faith...ความเชื่อใจครั้งสุดท้าย (From "Petrichor the series")](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/U1piZH2CNXA/mqdefault.jpg)
Tech Dir at a private school. Anytime I can save money and get a PC that works reasonably well, I'm all for it. I have a couple GMKTec N100's installed on the back of 75" interactive panels and they work great. Bought the 12GB / 256GB reviewed in this video on the GMKTec Amazon store for around $178. Fortunately I have Windows edu licensing and I'll also zap it and reinstall Windows when it arrives. This one I'll try as a teacher desktop with a 1080 monitor at the desk and also feeding a 1080 signal to a 75" panel at the front of the classrom. Thanks Lon, your videos are a valuable resource.
I got this exact unit one month ago and so far it’s been great!
I think the form factor is excellent for people with limited space like a dorm room, or for use in a media center, or a small desk in a kid's room. For everyday office work, watching videos online or from the SSD or one of the USB 3.0 ports I think this is a great fit for casual use. It's very budget friendly and takes advantage of a modern compact lower power draw CPU That came to the market recently.
The Intel integrated UHD 1200 graphics are an excellent value and a definite step above the previous integrated graphics offerings such as the Intel UHD 750 found on the 3.4 Ghz N100 CPU. I'd definitely pick this tiny beast of the alder lake chip set with a CPU that can go up to 3.6 GHz and a GPU at 1.2GHz out the gate. This chip has only been on the market since the first quarter of 2023 so it has plenty of years of life in it still. 😁
Wow Intel really messed up the naming scheme for these processors. The N97 boosts 200mhz faster and has 350mhz faster GPU than the N100, probably because they allow it to run at 12W TDP compared to 6W for then N100; other than that they have the same specs (cores, cache, process, etc.)
It's super confusing!
and also the fact those wattages mean nothing except for the need of a fan (which the n100 version also comes with)
Dude I thought the same thing when I was browsing! Lol good thing I always read all the specs, I noticed this super confusing difference and went with this exact model he is reviewing in this video instead of the N100. Perfect for building my own offensive hacking (pentesting) labs with AD and multiple versions of Windows Server (2012 hopefully, for sure 2016, 2019, 2022, and 2025) on multiple of these N97s.
The fact that this even runs GTA5 is astonishing to me. Should play all my old man 90's PC games and emulation just fine 😂
I REALLY like this physical format! Over the past 18 years, I've used various Mac Mini models, so I like the small machines.
Mahalo for looking at the Linux performance on this model!
I hope the...guts...of those sexy, new Snapdragon X Elite chips you've been evaluating recently find their way into THESE pocket rocket computers! Tiny size...low power consumption...the successor to all my old Apple Mac Minis! Aloha!
I've got the GMKTec with the N100 and I like its upgradeablity.
Good review as always! Just need to add turning on C States in Bios as this increases performance
Thanks for the review Lon, always a pleasure to watch your reviews of these incredible new devices. I personally have a GMKTec N100 NUC and I am blown away by it. Now thanks to your review I want this G5 N97. Thanks for helping me empty my wallet :)
In all seriousness, really great devices. I am now a big fan of this manufacturer in particular.
They are really cranking out some good, affordable stuff. Hopefully they stick around and their devices keep working over the long haul :)
These will be replacing my raspberry pi 4s.
Maybe if it had gpio. RPIs aren’t just general purpose computers
@@tylerwatt12 just plug an arduino into usb 😂
There is a firmware update released in late May that fixes the GPU being capped to 1.0 Ghz,. Now it runs at the full 1.2 Ghz. Also had to re-enable C-States and set it back to 15W in the updated bios. Not sure I'll notice a difference, but I do play a number of casual games on this since it 's the perfect form factor to sit on top of my bedroom TV. I stream any graphically heavy games from a gaming laptop w/ a 3070. Steam and Proton have come a long way on linux. Running Linux Mint 21.3, everything working great. This hardware is relatively new, so it needed the Edge version with the newer kernel.
My N5105 at 2 GHz ran better than an N200 because it ran at only 1 GHz. I don't think, based on my experience, 1.2 GHz is enough for multitasking.
Just bought one of these. Really really impressed.
Thanks Lon. Great review as usual.
@@chasjeff thank YOUS for thanking great LonBall Plus.
Lon is killing it in 2024!
The one they sent you for review didn't have any viruses on it. 😉
Linux is just so good on the n97 and n100 machines, and I love this tiny format, I have the firebat t8 pro (of similar size) and it rocks on Mint XFCE4 Beta. If the pc comes without a vesa bracket, just get some velcro tape and use that. Also makes it easy to take off the computer if you need to plug/unplug something from it. The only drawback I've seen from this tiny form factor is that if you want to upgrade the SSD you often end up having to get a SATA 2242 SSD, which are slow compared to NVME and cost a lot more for equal space. Going forward I'll only get mini pcs that have 2280 NVME SSDs.
LonBall, my aunt Marmalade thought this was her pill box and swallowed the ram module. Is this bad for the unit?
It’ll eventually find its way back out!
All that details on Windows 11 and Antivirus is so good, thanks for reporting that.
Personally, I found it easy to overheat and throttle but equally as easy to fix with some MX4 CPU re-pasting. (Video now uploaded) This box is then AMAZING for emulation of PS2/Wii/GC/Switch/Wiiu/OG Xbox and even PS3 2D titles. (Many upscaled.)
Hey Lon. Long time fan. I gotta say I tried the previous green model you show at the beginning and the price savings wasn't worth the terrible fan noise. At current Amazon prices the Beelink Mini PC, AMD Ryzen 5 5560U is a far better deal for like $30 more -- and it's near silent.
@@screenplayhouse4932 no quicksync
dude this thing can emulate up to ps2 native, this thing is a beast i picked one up on sale for 161.00
I also emulate PS2 @ 720p/1080p, Switch, OG Xbox and 2d PS3 titles on mine. (Videos coming!)
I really want to buy one of these mini PCs but can't find a good use case for me. If there was a way to run Google TV OS on these, I could use it as a replacement for Nvidia shield.
What would you recommend for a media server. The G3 or G5
Great review … subscribed 👍 … it is curious that you don’t see too many mini PCs other than on Amazon … big box retailers like Best Buy and Costco obviously behind on latest PC trends
Welcome! I think these PCs are a bit of a niche item with low margins - probably not enough consumer interest for the mass market. Additionally most of the manufacturers don't have a domestic presence so support is often hit or miss - mostly miss :).
I wanted a Beelink EQ 13 N200 to plug it on a 4k 60hz display in the future to watch stuff, but your browsing experience was not good enough. on the similar G5 N97. You saved me a lot of money :)
Not being future proof, I am now considering buying a N95 for Jellyfin transcoding on linux but unfortunately there is no N95 review on your channel. I considered an older 5105 but the gen 10 cannot decode AV1.
Going for a N95 instead of a N100 could save me around 100$ Canadian dollars..!
Looks like the Chuwi Larkbox Pro case with different colors! I love the nano-sized form factor.
Lon, great video as usual. I bought an Anker solar portable LED projector. Do you think that this mini-pc will play nice with this projector? Thanks
Wow, that's really impressive in such a small package. And the price is nice as well 😁
I’m sorry if this is a dumb question, but I was curious if you did any tests for the Micro SD card slot? I saw another review that said the performance was kind of poor and I have never been able to determine the speed of a slot on my computer to know which spec card to buy. Any insight you could offer would be greatly appreciated.
Hey Lon!, Thanks for posting this video
o wow, it's so tiny. thanks for letting us know it runs at 4k 60hz.
One thing not covered here was how TH-cam videos play with this set up for the ones who have training videos or want to watch TH-cam movies
seams like a great TV PC
where did the outro go? I feel like I've been deprived of closure!
I do miss that music and Lon's voice in the outro.
I have a GMktec M2 i7 and I only mention this because I tried a N5105 running a 2 GHz according to Task manager and it did everything fine for my Plex, Gmail, light video editing, 4K download and playback but one at a time. Plex and video download or anything else and Gmail brought it to 100% with ultimate failure. So Plex and gmail was fine or plex and anything else was fine. I also tried the N200 but it was only 1 Ghz and was worse, so I went with the i7 @ 3.4 GHz. I don't do gaming and the fan was quiet but did become slightly noticeable at times because it is variable. I wish Ron and others would address the effect of the GHz of the processors.
Lon, how would this work with a service such as streamyard or Streamlabs talk studio running via chrome? In only interested in live streaming content
Nice review and certainly looks like a nice machine, however, is it available without Windows?
I have absolutely no use for Windows and don't see why I should pay a M$ tax.
If they are available without Windows then great, otherwise I have quite a selection of other NUCs from other manufacturers
that don't force Windows with the sale.
Great little PC if you wanted to run a BBS such as Synchronet or Mystic. And thanks for testing in both Windows and Ubuntu.
nice little machine, would like you to review a laptop by Blackview Acebook 8 running the same cpu...
Would be nice to see the inside.
Very competitive with Raspberry PI when a Pi has similar addon components.
Yes definitely - this and the N100 Mini PCs significantly outperform even the Pi 5.. The GPIO capability is still an advantage for the Pi but I think most consumers will get a great value with an Intel Mini PC at this point. I did a video on this a few weeks ago: th-cam.com/video/9DfK1cFuQ9M/w-d-xo.html
How do these mini pcs handle transcoding apps like MCE Buddy or Handbrake? Is performance acceptable?
wow I'm going to get me one of those
Can the WiFi card be swapped out for a second drive? One could always stick a WiFi adaptor to one of the USB ports.
Nuce they have usb c power delivery but companies really need to have usb c video out. Alot of people are starting to use these mini pcs with xr glasses to have a minimum setup
Question is this mini pc good for obs streaming?
Keep one of this in your office shelves , This is really amazing and a break-through design ❤
Thank you.
Do you have any information on how to factory reset the nucbox g5??? My keyboard and mouse are not responding.. I even tried my mini keyboard with dungle.. I can not get pass the clock and date on my opening screen...any advice?
how would video editing run on this thing?
how much performance can it gain by replacing the msata to nvme ssd?
If you connect this to your router, what's the best way to access it externally?
So the gmktec n97 is better then the n100?
Hi, I have a question. Can port replicator be connected to this mini-pc?
I still have an instinctual aversion to a hacked version of Windows. REALLY gives me red flags. 1.What else have they secretly changed or added (a low level virus)? 2. It's just too good a deal. With all the inflation going on and it's only $150? hmmm Are you able to nuke the included Windows, download an .iso from MS, use a different SSD and install/update without issue? Does it still activate? Also, what kind of bios does it have and is it accessible?
I have the same machine. Downloading a clean copy of Win 11 Pro and doing a clean install worked fine and activated fine too.
@@kirkkohnen5050 The wonderful thing about modern PCs, the OS runs BIOS/UEFI ACPI code extensively and with the highest privilege. Anything they want to hack in Windows can easily be made "permanent" in the BIOS/UEFI.
What are people's thoughts on the GMKtec K9 Intel Ultra 5 125H? Want a home server running proxmox and can't decide between that or the K8
The Intel performs a little faster than the Ryzen one. I reviewed it here: th-cam.com/video/TPmLybdUsQM/w-d-xo.html
Can you use this little gadget to speed up an old computer? That’s super slow and old Apple computer?
is this good on photoshop and adobe illustrator or coreldraw? the latest one....
Is this the one that was outperforming the rest of the mini pcs during the live stream?
Yes the same !
@@LonSeidman thanks couldn't remember which one out of that bunch was the most powerful one
I found that the included USB-C power cord is shorter than the power cord that was included with an Intel NUC11. Anyone have a recommended longer USB-C power with a longer cord, up to 6ft/2m that is compatible with this G5? Would a USB-C laptop charger like the one for a lenovo T14 laptop work? Thank you.
Can you attach external speakers?
@@PacificCoast1 yes, look next to his finger at 2:44 … there is a headphone / audio 3.5mm port you could use for powered speakers or to an amplifier with passive speakers
Here in Canada that little guy is $357.00
Whar psu is supplied with the PC ?
Kinda cool, but that goes way over board with form over functionality. Reminds me of Tropic Thunder. "Never go full ret..." 🙂
How would solid works run on this
Seriously, if they really want to sell their products, they should at least host their own supported software like drivers and BIOS updates and all those. Instead of Google drive that you can't download anything ever because the download quota that will be exceeded like all the time. And something as important as the BIOS updates link, appearing and disappearing at random.
The lack of a fully enabled USB-C port puts this unit firmly in the “nope” category no matter how nice it is otherwise.
Imagine how even better these would be with the new ARM chips.
But I'm pleasantly surprised at its GTA performance. Did not expect that out of a PC that's this tiny.
I installed tiny 11 on it. Uses less ram and CPU.
I don't get the 12GB RAM. Dedicate use, sure. But for a general purpose desktop system? Maybe if you are on a strict 2 or 3 year replacement cycle or if Windows was as aggressive about shutting down apps as Android... People just don't understand the power or crippling affect of RAM. "It works" is not at all the same as "it works really well."
For my wife and kids I started buying 8GB in 2011 and only compromised that once since then... When Win10 was intro'd the claim was it would work well with 4GB and I tried, but it really needed 8GB to get comfortable. If not at first, you were sure feeling the pain of 4GB and were eager to upgrade hardware by the time Win11 came out. Now I view 8GB the same as I did 4GB back then and start with 16GB to get more useful and comfortable life from the hardware. So 12GB is more, but I'd be a lot happier to start with 16GB and for my use I'm buying 32GB (and ideally upgradeable to more). With my M1 Macbook Air I ignored recommendations that 8GB was plenty spent the money to get 16GB. It isn't really enough. It makes for an adequate Chromebook replacement but when you get doing anything serious the SSD gets a workout and that is simply not acceptable.
I like these mini computer reviews. I did buy the Minix computer because there is no fan to worry about things. I think it will make a good Boomer Computer.
Christiansen Wall
Lol try vr gaming on this
This is maybe good for a Linux machine.
serious question...why would anyone want a microsoft account?
sucks that its only sata
People one chanel ram so slow, know, you not have nice gaming performance in 1 channel ram😂
Why do they persist with the 'nuc' naming, it's terrible? 'Next Unit of Computing', what a meaningless title and acronym!
@@jonjohnson2844 they do not persist you persist
I have it... Its great