A low-cost mini PC with a Xeon processor and dedicated GPUs: Too good to be true?

[Redaktion]

Equipped with a dedicated graphics card and a Xeon processor, the P99S stands out with a surprisingly sleek design—but its specifications are, to put it mildly, unconventional. Marketed by RmataMini as a gaming system, it is unlikely to deliver a convincing gaming experience in most real-world scenarios.


https://www.notebookcheck.net/A-low-cost-mini-PC-with-a-Xeon-processor-and-dedicated-GPUs-Too-good-to-be-true.1329402.0.html

[Julian M]

We're talking about 10-12 yo hardware, probably salvaged second-hand parts put together in a new case with some LEDs, and the supposedly low price tag is all that defines whether this is a good deal or not?

This is eBay-grade sold as new, practically a scam.

[Shawn M.]

It's really hard to justify running this. Homelabbers are ditching equivalent Dell/HP servers because they are too power hungry and underperform, but at least those can also benefit from having a massive amount of RAM. This is another X99 chipset recycling operation - which at this point is even worse because they're out of support and Spectre/Meltdown mitigations can kill performance even more.

[Tom Ford]

Garbage

[Adam Delu]

I have a dual core server of this era. It effectively runs at 1/10th the performance of my modern gaming machine, while consuming 2-3x as much electricity. Not to mention HVAC costs and the noise it generates.

Maybe by underclocking this thing and by virtue of not trying to run a beehive of tiny fans, this is viable (doubtful), but the operating costs will no doubt quickly negate the price compared to a modest AMD-based mini PC, that is faster and quieter, and uses 35-65W.

I hated my experiment with used server equipment, and I assume whoever buys this will as well.

[Adam Delu]

* dual processor, 32 Core

[Correct]

Salvaged, old and power inefficient Xeon CPUs. Even today Xeons, due to Intel's bad node, can't compete with AMD's Epyc CPUs, hence why AMD's server market share is growing (plenty of news about it). Consumer Panther Lake did improve its iGPU power efficiency a lot, but the iGPU chiplet is made by TSMC. That being said, it might not be even be a node issue for Intel: Hardware Unboxed tested a Intel CPU (was it its iGPU?) made by TSMC and its energy efficiency still didn't improve.