GIGABYTE GB-BKi7HA-7500 Kaby Lake BRIX Review
by Ganesh T S on March 16, 2017 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 GIGABYTE GB-BKi7HA-7500. 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 combination of the CPU (Core i7-7500U) and the PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe SSD (Samsung SSD 950 Pro) ensures that the GB-BKi7HA-7500 comes out on top in both the storage bench score and the storage bandwidth metrics for the PCMark 8 storage workloads.
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 1x1 802.11ac adapter proves to be a weak link when compared with PCs such as the Intel NUC6i5SYK. We would have definitely preferred a 2x2 WLAN configuration for a flagship BRIX like the GB-BKi7HA-7500.
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peterfares - Thursday, March 16, 2017 - link
The Mac Mini is quite a bit larger than these things, that's how the power supply is integrated. That said, I do prefer the Mac Mini's form-factor more. I would take a larger box and have the power supply integrated, I've always hated external power supplies. Especially in monitors - I now only buy monitors with built in power supplies.TheinsanegamerN - Monday, March 20, 2017 - link
OTOH, external is a heck of a lot easier to replace when it goes bad. And easier to get replacements, as third parties will make externals, but not proprietary internals.capedave - Friday, March 17, 2017 - link
Power brick never bothers me, as long as it is QUALITY. Better slower quieter more powerful fans? Hell yes!geok1ng - Friday, March 17, 2017 - link
i have a hard time trying to understand the market niche for such products. they cost between a chinese 2in1 and an ultrabook, without offering many advantages over either. a SFF PC with a pentium G4560 would cost a fraction of it, while having a slightly bigger footprint. The way i see it, one either picks a performance king, like the 7267U, a budget king like the G4560, or a power sipper like the 7Y57. I fail to understand why choose a 15w SKU that does not perform when you have 3 alternatives that either cost much less, draw much less power or deliver much better graphics performance.kaidenshi - Sunday, March 19, 2017 - link
"a SFF PC with a pentium G4560 would cost a fraction of it, while having a slightly bigger footprint."Indeed, my main workstation is a Skylake G4500 and it's more than fast enough. It's in a mid tower case but I could switch to a mini-ITX board and case, keeping the rest of my components, and have something 1/4 the size with the same power. Having it in a Brix/NUC format would be even better since I don't play AAA games and have no need for a discrete GPU.
I guess we don't see Pentium Gxxxx in SFF PCs because there's really no profit margin for those CPUs.
capedave - Friday, March 17, 2017 - link
A shame that more noise analysis is not mandatory in computer reviews. From what tiny amount of information exists, I am thinking it is too loud for me. Decibels? Who knows?awehring - Friday, March 17, 2017 - link
+1no, +1000
Sailor23M - Sunday, March 19, 2017 - link
Was really looking for the comparison against the Intel Skull Canyon NUC1_rick - Saturday, April 15, 2017 - link
I suspect it doesn't compare to the Skull Canyon. No Iris and only has half the cores.DroidTomTom - Saturday, April 1, 2017 - link
The NUC market is one area where more competition is needed. Same price as a similarly equipped laptop minus monitor, speakers, web cam, keyboard, and mouse. I really hope Ryzen can make a huge dent in this area.