GEEKOM XT12 Pro review – Part 2: Windows 11 Pro tested on an Intel Core i9-12900H mini PC

GEEKOM XT12 Pro mini PC Review windows 11

We’ve already checked out the specifications, and gone through an unboxing and a teardown of the GEEKOM XT12 Pro mini PC in the first part of the review, so we’ll now report our experience with the 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900H mini PC with Windows 11 Pro operating system. In this second part of GEEKOM XT12 Pro, we’ll test the features of the Alder Lake mini PC in Windows 11 Pro, run benchmarks, test networking and storage, evaluate cooling performance, and finally provide some numbers for fan noise and power consumption. Software overview and features testing The System->About menu confirms that we have an XT12 Pro mini PC with a 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900H processor clocked at 2.50 GHz (base frequency) and 32GB RAM that runs Windows 11 Pro operating system version 23H2. The system was tested with Windows 11 OS build 22631.3447. HWiNFO64 program provides more details about […]

Testing ntttcp as an iperf3 alternative in Windows 11 (and Linux)

ntttcp vs iperf3 testbed

ntttcp (Windows NT Test TCP) is a network benchmarking utility similar to iperf3 that works in both Windows and Linux written and recommended by Microsoft over iperf3, so we’ll test the alternative in this mini review. iperf3 is a utility of choice for our reviews of single board computers and mini PCs running either Windows or Linux, but we’ve noticed that while Ethernet (up to 2.5GbE) usually performs just as well in Windows and Linux, WiFi is generally much faster in Ubuntu 22.04 than in Windows 11. So when XDA developers noticed a post by Microsoft saying iperf3 should not be used on Windows 11, it caught my attention. Microsoft explains iperf3 should not be used in Windows for three main reasons: The maintainer of iperf – ESnet (Energy Sciences Network) – says “iperf3 is not officially supported on Windows, but iperf2 is. We recommend you use iperf2. Some people […]

GEEKOM Mini IT12 Mini PC is now available for $349, the lowest price ever (Sponsored)

GEEKOM Mini IT12 $100 coupon code

Following the ongoing $200 off promotion for the powerful GEEKOM A7 mini PC, GEEKOM is now offering another discount for its mid-range Mini IT12 mini PC powered by an Intel Core i5-12450H processor with 16GB RAM and a 512GB M.2 2280 NVMe SSD storage that is now sold for $349 – the lowest price ever – instead of $449, when using the coupon code cnxit12off on GEEKOM US or GEEKOM UK for a $100 discount. While it’s a mid-range mini PC, it still comes with premium features such as two USB4 ports capable of 40 Gbps transfer rate and DisplayPort Alt. mode video output or 2.5GbE and WiFi 6E networking. The GEEKOM Mini IT12 (Core i5-12450H) mini PC also supports up to four 4K displays through HDMI and USB4 ports, additional storage thanks to an M.2 2242 SATA socket and a a 2.5-inch SATA slot, and comes with a total […]

Intel Processor U300/U300E penta-core Raptor Lake CPU find its way into mini PCs and network appliances

Intel Processor U300 mini PC

Some mini PCs and firewall/network appliances are starting to show up with the Intel Processor U300/U300E penta-core CPU on Aliexpress and Amazon. It looks to be a 15W entry-level part for the 13th Gen Raptor Lake processor that may provide a more powerful and slightly more expensive alternative to the popular Alder Lake-N Processor and Core i3-N305 SoCs. The Processor U300 offers one Performance core clocked at 1.10 GHz to 4.30 GHz (Turbo) and four Efficiency cores clocked at up to 3.20 GHz, with the embedded part (U300E) handling slightly lower max frequencies for a wider operating temperature range. As usual, the Performance core supports multi-threading, so the Processor U300 supports six threads. Intel Ark shows it can support up to 96GB DDR5-5200 RAM, embeds a 48EU Intel UHD Graphics capable of driving up to four independent displays, and offers 20 lanes of PCIe Gen4 (vs 9-lane for Alder Lake-N), […]

The first OpenWrt One WiFi 6 router board samples are ready, some will be auctioned at OpenWrt Summit on May 18-19

OpenWrt One router board

John Crispin has recently received the first samples of the “OpenWrt One/AP-24.XY” Filogic 820-based WiFi 6 router board, manufactured by Banana Pi. Those will be officially supported by OpenWrt developers with assistance from MediaTek. Announced in January 2024, we only had the specifications of the OpenWrt One router so far, but since the first samples are now available we have more details including several photos of the board, and some units will be auctioned away at the OpenWrt Summit taken place in Cyprus on May 18-19. John explains fifteen prototypes will be manufactured, a website will be set up (maybe openwrt dot one), and that MediaTek helped with documentation: Just dropping a quick update on the  OpenWrt One project. I’ve received the first batch of three PCBs for testing today. I am in the process of testing the hardware to make sure everything works as intended. There are twelve further […]

Get $200 discount on GEEKOM A7 AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS mini PC (Sponsored)

GEEKOM A7 $200 coupon code

GEEKOM A7 is a powerful mini PC based on an AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS octa-core/16-thread processor that normally sells for $849 with 32GB RAM and a 2TB SSD. But you can get $200 off using cnxa7off coupon code to get the discount on GEEKOM US or GEEKOM UK bringing the price down to $649. The mini PC also supports up to four 4K displays through HDMI 2.0 and USB-C ports, provides fast networking via a 2.5GbE jack and a WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.3 module, and offers plenty of USB ports for expansion in a compact form factor. GEEKOM A7 specifications: SoC – AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS 8-core/16-thread processor up to 4.0GHz with 16MB cache, AMD Radeon 780M Graphics; TDP: 35 to 54W System Memory – 32GB dual-channel DDR5-5600 via 262-pin SODIMM sockets, upgradeable to 64GB Storage 2TB NVMe PCIe x4 Gen 4 SSD Full-size SD card reader Video Output […]

Review of GEEKOM XT12 Pro (Intel Core i9-12900H) Mini PC – Part 1: Specs, unboxing, and teardown

Review GEEKOM XT12 Pro mini PC Windows 11 Pro

GEEKOM XT12 Pro is a Windows 11 Pro mini PC powered by a 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900H 14-core Alder Lake processor clocked up to 5 GHz with support for 8K video output, up to four 4K displays, 2.5Gbps Ethernet, and a WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless module. The mini PC supports up to 64GB DDR4 memory, 2TB M.2 NVMe SSD, and 1TB M.2 SATA SSD, and also comes with multiple USB ports (USB4, USB 3.2, and USB 2.0), a 3.5mm stereo audio headset jack, and a Kensington lock slot. GEEKOM has sent us an XT12 Pro mini PC with 32GB RAM and a 1 TB M.2 NVMe SSD for review. Today, we’ll go through the GEEKOM XT12 Pro specifications, do an unboxing to check the mini PC’s ports and accessories, perform a teardown to understand the hardware design better, and finally give it a try with Windows 11 […]

SolidRun Bedrock R8000 is the first Industrial PC to feature AMD Ryzen Embedded 8000 series

Bedrock 8000 AMD Ryzen Embedded 8000 industrial PC

Israeli embedded systems manufacturer, SolidRun, has recently introduced the Bedrock R8000, a new fanless, Industrial PC targeted at edge AI applications. The Bedrock R8000 integrates the newly-announced AMD Ryzen Embedded 8000 series processors with 8 Zen 4 cores and 16 threads clocked at up to 5.1 GHz. The Ryzen Embedded 8000 Series has a 16 TOPS NPU for AI workloads and offers up to 10 years of guaranteed availability. Also, up to 3 AI accelerators (either Hailo-10 or Hailo 8) can be combined with the onboard NPU to achieve over 100 TOPS for generative or inferencing AI workloads. Apart from the Ryzen Embedded 8000 series, the Bedrock R8000 series also supports other Accelerated Processing Units (APU) in the “Hawk Point” family. The CPU power limit can be adjusted in the BIOS within a range of 8W to 54W. Memory goes up to 96GB DDR5 ECC/non-ECC and three NVME PCIe Gen4 […]