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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keg504 - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
What is USB 3.1 gen 2?Wwhat - Sunday, October 30, 2016 - link
Gen1 is just USB3.0 or 2.0 with a USB-C connector. Or in other words fake USB3.1.BrokenCrayons - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
It looks like the CA320 and CI320 didn't have the same hot-running SSD problem the CI523 does. It's not exactly a fair comparison give the lower TDPs of the AMD A6 and the Bay Trail CPUs, but it looks like Skylake U is just a little too warm for a passive cooler in such cramped confines. It kind of defeats the purpose, but maybe putting it on top of one of those laptop cooling pads that power a fan from the USB port would help.slideruler - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
SSD does not get hot (in regular usage) when the box is put on it's side (see my message above).The whole thing is barely warm.
By the way, I'm running 2 port i5 version (not i3) and my Kill A Watt shows 10W idle, 30W when CPU is taxed. The only usage my GPU gets is when a movie is played, even then there's no much difference at the wall comparing to idle.
ganeshts - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
OS makes a lot of difference :)Under regular use, the CPUs idle at around 50C and the SSD is around 58C (that is a bit too high for my liking, but it is not a real issue, anyway)
fallaha56 - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
this device is pointless ! no HDCP 2.2, no HDMI 2.0...we hold our breath...
heffeque - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
Waiting for Zen APU here. It'll probably make awesome home theater material.dakishimesan - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
Zotac has really stepped it up in the art/design department with not only the design of the computers themselves, but also the boxes and marketing materials. Impressed.solnyshok - Thursday, October 6, 2016 - link
There are some cheaper fanless skylake systems by e-global on aliexpress and elsewhere. i3-6100u seems to go for $257. No mesh, only fins. Would love to see review of one of those. http://www.pcstationcn.com/index.php?route=product...ganeshts - Thursday, October 6, 2016 - link
Interesting ones.. they have a bigger surface area in the chassis for heat dissipation. Looks like it should be able to handle the 15W TDP processors at the rated load. If the vendor pitches one for review, I would take up the opportunity.