Recently, there seems to be a wave of NUCs. Whether it’s Intel launching its own NUCs or Apple releasing the M2 chip Mac mini, everyone can buy these compact yet powerful machines.
These NUCs are also very suitable for people with limited desk space or those who do not have high configuration requirements for office work, etc.
Earlier this year, Tony reviewed a SER6 Pro from the brand ZhiKe, which packed an AMD R7-6800H processor into a machine that can be held in one hand, and it is priced at only 3699 yuan.
Despite many people, including Tony, praising it, issues with quality control, insufficient ports, and mixed reviews on the design still leave room for improvement for ZhiKe.
So with the announcement of the new generation of AMD processors, ZhiKe also released a new machine that addresses almost all previous shortcomings — the GTR7.
Its starting price is only slightly increased to 3995 yuan…
However, rather than just filling in the gaps, it’s more like a complete redesign, as the GTR7 adopts a completely different exterior design from previous products, with four colors available.
To handle the new 7840HS “small nuclear bomb,” the internal cooling has been completely redesigned, making the entire machine larger and heavier.
The biggest benefit of this design is the rich array of ports.
Tony counted, and the GTR7 has a total of 5 USB-A ports, 3 USB-C ports, 2 3.5mm audio jacks, 2 2.5GE network ports, 1 HDMI port, and 1 DP port.
With so many ports, even heavy users like Tony are satisfied, let alone ordinary users for daily use.
Moreover, this is the first ZhiKe machine that alleviates Tony’s obsessive-compulsive disorder, as my monitor has a DP port, and I used to have to use an adapter for HDMI…
However, the front USB-C port is too shallow, only allowing half of it to be inserted, although it can be used, it always gives a feeling of not being securely plugged in.
In addition, it also has a magnetic charging port and fingerprint recognition, which is very impressive.
As for the appearance, Tony thinks it’s a bit overdone…
Actually, there’s no need to emphasize the three letters GTR too much, or it will give me the impression that it’s collaborating with the Japanese war god…
However, the official Weibo has stated that they have changed the color, and the retail version that everyone buys will differ from the appearance of Tony’s machine.
Besides the ports and appearance, the processor has also been upgraded to the new generation AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS processor, which has very strong performance and is highly anticipated by gamers.
Moreover, ZhiKe has kindly raised the original 54W TDP thermal power consumption to 65W, allowing you to use it comfortably right away.
He really understands us digital enthusiasts, I’m crying…
So the biggest highlight of this generation from ZhiKe is the “gaming cannon.”
In the previous generation processor, the Ryzen 6800H, AMD paired it with a Radeon 680M integrated graphics, which was already close to the GTX 1060…
In this generation 7840HS, the all-new RDNA3 architecture Radeon 780M integrated graphics theoretically performs close to the GTX 1650 discrete graphics.
To sum up, the performance of this processor is incredibly impressive…
First, regarding the processor, using the classic Cinebench R23 benchmarking software, single-core 1709 multi-core 16167, this score is equivalent to Intel’s 13th generation i5-13400 desktop processor, slightly lower than the 12th generation i7-12700.
Next, regarding the GPU, 3D Mark score of 3276, which is indeed similar to the 1650 discrete graphics on laptops, but still has a gap compared to the desktop version 1650.
With simple benchmarking, it can be seen that the performance of the 7840HS is explosive on mobile platforms.
Some may say, what’s so great about matching a laptop 1650? Brother, don’t forget, it’s just an integrated graphics, and the whole machine costs less than 4000 yuan.
The monitor we used for the photoshoot is more expensive than this thing…
Pure performance indeed cannot compete with i9 + 4090, but the performance you get for every dollar spent is unmatched by the 4090.
Next, let’s take a look at the gaming performance of this processor.
First, let’s state one thing, it can run Cyberpunk 2077.
Yes, integrated graphics can run 2077.
In just a few years, the game that once defeated many graphics cards has been tamed by AMD’s integrated graphics…
At 1080P medium settings, with FSR enabled, it can guarantee an average frame rate of 40-50.
For 4000 yuan, this performance is already very satisfying.
Tony also tested different quality settings of 2077 and several other games and created a simple table for everyone to feel the gaming performance of this processor.
In summary, using the ZhiKe GTR7 to play FPS games at 1080P medium-low settings is completely fine, and it can also provide a decent gaming experience for AAA titles.
However, this is just the result of testing for a while, and it remains to be seen if this small computer can hold up under long-term gaming.
During my testing, the temperature at the rear exhaust port reached 70 degrees…
If you want to plug or unplug the data cable at this time, be careful not to touch the exhaust port, don’t ask me why.
Since we are talking about size and heat dissipation, let’s open the machine and take a quick look.
Tony personally feels that the internal workmanship is better than the previous SER6 Pro, and due to the larger space, the overall layout is not so crowded.
However, the GTR7’s wireless network card is still simply glued on, although this is also to secure it and avoid it falling off.
Overall, the ZhiKe GTR7’s configuration is completely worth the price of 3995 yuan, especially with its rich ports and powerful processor. If you have a purchase need, you can definitely consider this mini PC.
Compared to hardware and workmanship, what ZhiKe really needs to improve is the design…
As for the appearance, it is indeed cool, but there are too many elements and it feels a bit mismatched, for example, the GT lettering on the top and the GTR lettering on the side are completely different styles.
But if you don’t care about the appearance or just like this style, then it’s definitely worth considering.
I would call ZhiKe’s new products a mechanical revolution in the mini-PC world…
