Zotac ZBOX CI523 nano Fanless Skylake-U mini-PC Review
by Ganesh T S on October 5, 2016 8:00 AM ESTNetworking and Storage Performance
Networking and storage are two major aspects which influence our experience with any computing system. This section presents results from our evaluation of these aspects in the ZOTAC ZBOX CI523 nano. On the storage side, one option would be repetition of our strenuous SSD review tests on the drive(s) in the PC. Fortunately, to avoid that overkill, PCMark 8 has a storage bench where certain common workloads such as loading games and document processing are replayed on the target drive. Results are presented in two forms, one being a benchmark number and the other, a bandwidth figure. We ran the PCMark 8 storage bench on selected PCs and the results are presented below.
The ZBOX CI523 nano comes out on top for two reasons - none of the passively cooled PCs in the comparison list had support for M.2 SSDs, and, the Crucial MX200 500GB SSD is one of the top performers in the SATA SSD segment.
On the networking side, we restricted ourselves to the evaluation of the WLAN component. Our standard test router is the Netgear R7000 Nighthawk configured with both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks. The router is placed approximately 20 ft. away, separated by a drywall (as in a typical US building). A wired client is connected to the R7000 and serves as one endpoint for iperf evaluation. The PC under test is made to connect to either the 5 GHz (preferred) or 2.4 GHz SSID and iperf tests are conducted for both TCP and UDP transfers. It is ensured that the PC under test is the only wireless client for the Netgear R7000. We evaluate total throughput for up to 32 simultaneous TCP connections using iperf and present the highest number in the graph below.
In the UDP case, we try to transfer data at the highest rate possible for which we get less than 1% packet loss.
The AC3165 solution in the ZBOX CI523 nano emerges as the top performer amongst all the compared 1T1R solutions. Only the 2x2 AC7260 solution in the Logic Supply ML100G-30 manages to beat the CI523 nano in terms of raw throughput numbers.
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burningice08 - Thursday, October 6, 2016 - link
One option for single LAN systems is to use a managed switch that supports VLANs. You put your internet on another VLAN and allow both VLANs to the system. Then, on the system you create two virtual NICs, one for each VLAN.jensend - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
Bought one of these, trying to figure out whether to return it based on poor thermal performance and some problems with coil whine. (When silence is the main selling point they ought to be extra careful about coil whine.) Any thoughts on that?Mystified about why the power consumption at the wall is so high compared to competitors.
Any thoughts about how the high temperatures may affect the SSD?
fallaha56 - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
i'd return it -without proper HEVC/HDMI/HDCP what's the point?wolrah - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
"Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3165Realtek RTL8168/8111 PCIe Gigabit Ethernet Adapter"
Can someone tell me why they'd spend the money to go Intel for the WiFi but then go with Realtek for the wired side? Intel networking is pretty much the gold standard in the gigabit world. It's not like it's expensive.
Shadowmaster625 - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
You should have used a low power SSD to see what difference it makes.slideruler - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
I have one of those. Running Lubuntu 16.10 beta (16.04 kernel is 4.4 which has halfassed skylake driver)Works fine. On thermal performance: it appears that this zbox was designed for vertical orientation (short side up). That's why there is no holes on the bottom - that's not a bottom (although rubber feet do add to the confusion). I do have some minor coil whining too.
ganeshts - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
Some of the pictures in the marketing collateral do support the vertical orientation. However, placing the unit that way completely blocks one set of the mesh ventilation slots. So, I wasn't comfortable testing it that way.As for coil whine - it is a problem with many of the affordable fanless PCs. FWIW, in the set of 4 first-generation C-series PCs that I evaluated, only one unit had that problem - easily heard when keeping the ears close to the system. My review sample of the CI523 nano didn't have that issue. I think the presence of the issue can vary from one sample to another.
solnyshok - Thursday, October 6, 2016 - link
It is for vertical orientation on VESA mount behind monitor.slideruler - Saturday, October 8, 2016 - link
Ganesh,I've found out why that back panel & SSD were hot. In my case, it was that little USB 3.1 breakout board that was searing hot. After pulling it out (have no use for it anyway), my power draw dropped to 8W. Meaning, USB 3.1 card was pulling 2 watts - a luxury which this tiny, passively cooled PC cannot afford.
Wwhat - Sunday, October 30, 2016 - link
I don't quite get the universal coil whine issue these days, why is that suddenly so much present everywhere? And why don't they just dip the damn coils in lacquer to fix that?