Recently, a friend of mine wanted to set up an office computer primarily for creating Excel reports to track daily sales. After much research, he ended up spending 1600 yuan on a second-hand computer with an i7-4790 processor, integrated graphics, 128G SSD, and 16G RAM, along with a 24-inch curved monitor. I calculated that he overpaid by about 600-800 yuan. With that kind of money, he could have bought a mini computer instead, which would not only save money but also take up less space.

For example, I have the Zero刻 SER5 5500U, which uses an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U processor with six cores and twelve threads, a base frequency of 2.1GHz, and a dynamic boost frequency of 4GHz. Its integrated graphics is Radeon Vega 7, with a maximum dynamic frequency of 1800MHz, outperforming the GT1030 and comparable to the GT950. I opted for the 16G+500G version, which comes with 16G of RAM and a 500G SSD. After over a thousand hours of use, I found that this mini computer has a rich array of ports that can fully meet needs for office work, design, and high-definition entertainment. The front panel from left to right includes a CLR CMOS hole, two USB 3.2 Gen2 ports, one Type-C port (supports video), a headphone jack, and a power switch button.

The back of the mini computer shows, from left to right, a gigabit LAN port, a USB 3.2 Gen2 port, a USB 2.0 port, a DP 1.4 port, an HDMI 2.0 port (supports 4K 60Hz), and a power port.

The body of this product is made of glossy ABS plastic, with an acrylic front panel and a metal bottom shell. The sides have ventilation holes, designed for better heat dissipation. Regarding the temperature issue that everyone is concerned about, since it has integrated graphics, the actual temperature is not high. Of course, if the casing were made entirely of metal, the heat dissipation would be better. Opening this mini case reveals its internal structure, which is somewhat similar to that of a laptop.

In terms of expansion, it only supports upgrades for memory and hard drives. The maximum supported memory capacity is 64G, and the M.2 interface SSD can support up to 2TB. Additionally, it supports expansion with SATA mechanical or solid-state drives, with no apparent capacity limit. If you value data security, it’s advisable to adopt a dual backup mode: keep the main hard drive for data and use a secondary hard drive for backups. Although solid-state drives are great, they can fail suddenly, whereas mechanical drives, despite their poorer performance, often show signs of issues beforehand, allowing for timely backups, such as stuttering or increased read noise.

This mini computer uses a hydraulic silent fan, similar to those found in laptops. However, during actual use, its noise level is very low. After some time, it can accumulate a lot of dust, but it’s easy to clean.

On the left is the Zero刻 SER5 5500U mini computer, and behind it is my traditional desktop computer, which is not housed in a case, making it easier to test different hardware. The size difference between the two products is significant, with the mini computer’s official dimensions being 126x113x40mm, making it very compact.

The hardware information and performance score displayed by Lu Master looks quite good.

Summary:

1: The product is very compact and performs well, making it capable of replacing some desktop computers, such as office computers and high-definition computers. It also supports Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2, and can display on three screens simultaneously.

2: Although it lacks the portability of a laptop, making it less suitable for carrying around, it takes up little space at home and is also suitable for online classes for children when paired with an LCD TV.

3: The expandability is decent, allowing users to upgrade the hard drive and memory themselves.

4: The heat dissipation could be improved, such as by upgrading to an all-metal casing, which would definitely enhance cooling performance. During hot summer days, placing a small fan next to it can also help with cooling.

5: Its performance is much stronger than I expected; it handles opening hundreds of web pages effortlessly and runs software like CAD, PS, and video editing smoothly.

6: The cost-performance ratio is very high, and its playability is also high. This Zero刻 SER5 5500U model, if purchased as a barebone system, costs just over a thousand yuan. You could buy two of these mini computers for the price of a single RTX 4060 graphics card.

7: It is energy-efficient and silent. This mini computer consumes only about 40W at full load, making it very power-efficient. As for noise, it is nearly silent; even with a cooling fan, you can hardly hear it.

8: Zero刻 has strong R&D capabilities and excellent after-sales service, making it easy to resolve any issues. It is suitable for both novice users and those who enjoy tinkering.

In fact, most consumers no longer consider discrete graphics a necessity, except for PC gamers. I personally feel that mini computers replacing some traditional computers is just a matter of time. What do you think?