I believe that the current mini computer host market is quite competitive, with various brands continuously launching new products, and basically, we can see new products being released every month or two. The protagonist of this review is a mini computer host priced at around 1000 yuan with “high performance” launched by the domestic mini computer brand “JimoKe”; the JimoKe M2, currently priced at 1399 for the quasi-system version, is indeed reasonable to be called a 1000-yuan level product, right?
Alright, I won’t say too much, let me take you all to see how the overall experience of the JimoKe M2 is, and how its so-called “high performance” actually performs.
Hand-sized, CNC metal mid-frame design, rich interfaces
As usual, let’s talk about the appearance first. The overall design of the JimoKe M2 adopts a relatively simple style, with no excessive decorations except for the GMKtec logo on the top of the case and the intel CORE i7 sticker. In addition, the edge of the top cover has a processing similar to 2.5D curvature, combined with the sandblasted oxidized CNC metal mid-frame, the overall appearance design is simple but has a good texture.
The JimoKe M2 occupies an area roughly the size of an adult’s palm, compared to the “big guys” of desktop computer hosts, it basically won’t take up much space when placed on a desk or other locations. Meanwhile, the official weight of the JimoKe M2 is about 425 grams, so if you need to carry it out, this weight should not be a burden in your backpack.
To better illustrate the size of the JimoKe M2, I used a mobile solid-state drive for comparison, and you can see that the JimoKe M2 is indeed quite small.
The front of the JimoKe M2 features two USB3.2 ports and a power button, and there is also an indicator light in the middle of the power button.
Most of the interfaces of the JimoKe M2 are designed at the rear of the case. According to the above image, from left to right, they are: power interface, HDMI/3.5mm headphone interface, RJ45 interface, USB2.0/USB3.2 interface, Type-C/HDMI interface, and above the interfaces is the exhaust vent for the JimoKe M2‘s cooling fan.
As for the cooling design, the JimoKe M2 uses superconducting copper dual-turbo cooling combined with intelligent fan control design, along with the dual-directional airflow intake on both sides of the case, making the cooling performance of the JimoKe M2 acceptable.
The bottom cover of the JimoKe M2 can be seen in the actual shot, and you can choose to install it on the wall using the included wall mount or slot, and the bottom cover can also be removed, making it convenient for users to replace the hard drive and memory.
After removing the bottom cover, the internal shot of the JimoKe M2 can be seen, with the cooling fan located on the other side of the motherboard.
Equipped with Intel i7-11390H processor, good performance, suitable for both office and entertainment
In the introduction of the article, I mentioned the quasi-system version of the JimoKe M2. Some friends may not understand what a quasi-system means; it actually refers to a version without memory/hard drive, which requires self-installation. For friends who have extra memory/hard drives at home, choosing the quasi-system version may be more cost-effective.
However, there is one thing to note, especially for those who are not very familiar with computers but want to purchase the quasi-system version of the JimoKe M2. When installing memory after receiving the quasi-system version of the JimoKe M2, if you want to improve its performance, it is best to install two memory sticks to form a dual-channel configuration. For example: the performance test score shown in the above image was obtained with a single 16GB memory stick.
And the above image shows the performance test score obtained with two 8GB memory sticks installed, and you can see that the total score of the JimoKe M2 has improved significantly. However, whether in single-channel or dual-channel mode, through the above test scores, one thing we can confirm is that for a mini computer host priced at around 1000 yuan, the performance of the JimoKe M2 is indeed quite good.
The processor equipped in the JimoKe M2 is the Intel i7-11390H, and the graphics card is Intel’s Iris Xe graphics (96EU).
Using 3DMark to test the JimoKe M2, the score was 1728.
In the 3DMark Fire Strike Extreme test, the JimoKe M2 scored 2091.
The above image shows the CPU-Z processor score of the JimoKe M2.
Through DXVA Checker, we can see that the JimoKe M2 has good decoding capabilities, supports many formats, and also supports the AV1 format. So personally, I feel that if you have a smart TV with a high resolution but poor performance at home, getting the JimoKe M2 to “upgrade” the video playback capability of the TV is also a good use case.
The JimoKe M2 I have comes pre-installed with a Lexar brand hard drive, and software testing shows that its overall read/write speed performance is quite good, reaching over 3000MB/s.
From the above performance tests, it is clear that the overall performance of the JimoKe M2 is sufficient for office work, simple video editing, or watching high-definition videos without any pressure. Personally, I have confirmed this through practical testing. So how does the JimoKe M2 perform in gaming? I first tested the JimoKe M2 with Genshin Impact, and at a resolution of 1920*1080 with low graphics settings (the default graphics), the FPS of the JimoKe M2 was around 40. If entering some indoor scenes, the FPS can increase a bit.
If the graphics settings are set to very low, the FPS of the JimoKe M2 can reach above 60. Playing Genshin Impact on the JimoKe M2 is slightly stressful; it can be played but requires lowering the graphics quality or resolution.
At a resolution of 1920*1080, with various graphics settings set to medium while playing CS:GO, the FPS of the JimoKe M2 was around 60.
I also tested a few games that friends often inquired about in previous mini computer host reviews, such as DNF and LOL. The JimoKe M2 had no pressure while playing these games, and the FPS performance was quite satisfactory. Therefore, I can say that the JimoKe M2 can meet light gaming needs, and its official positioning is not as a gaming mini computer host.
Additionally, I tested the performance of the JimoKe M2 with 3A games, and at a resolution of 1920*1080 with low graphics settings while playing “Elden Ring”, the FPS of the JimoKe M2 was around 30, which clearly indicates stress. If you want to play at high FPS, you can only lower the resolution, so I personally do not recommend using the JimoKe M2 to play 3A games. If you really want to get a mini computer host that can play 3A games, I suggest increasing the budget to purchase JimoKe’s flagship model.
By the way, when starting the JimoKe M2, you can enter the BIOS interface by pressing F7 on the keyboard, where you can set the TDP of the JimoKe M2. Currently, the official settings include 28W/35W/45W three levels, with the factory default set at 35W, which can be adjusted as needed.
Review Summary
This concludes the review of the JimoKe M2 mini computer host. From the above content, it can be seen that the JimoKe M2 performs well in terms of appearance design and performance, suitable for office work or entertainment, and light gaming poses no major issues. If your budget is limited or you are a newcomer to mini computer hosts, I personally feel that the JimoKe M2 can be included in your list of potential options.
As for the shortcomings, I feel that if an additional DP interface could be added, it would be even better. Although I do not need this interface, I have seen many friends mention the DP interface in previous review articles, so I suggest that JimoKe consider adding it in future models.