Minisforum NAB6 Lite Review: A High-Performance, Low-Power Mini PC

The Minisforum NAB6 Lite Mini PC is a versatile and powerful option for home lab servers, as well as a perfect choice for a general Windows PC or workstation, offering excellent performance, connectivity, and upgrade options at an affordable price.

Minisforum NAB6 Low-Power High-Performance Mini PC

Overview

The Minisforum NAB6 Lite Mini PC is a great mixture of power and efficiency, which make it suitable for both general Windows tasks and home server applications. Its user-friendly design allows for easy upgrades to memory and SSD.

Behavior Under Load

The i5-12600H is able to boost up to 4.50 GHz with its Performance-cores. This graph visualizes the initial boost, with it returning to its base clock after a bit.
What stands out is that there is still an abundance of thermal and power headroom.

Performance

Running a Core i5-12600H chip, the NAB6 Lite offers excellent performance which rivals its i7 counterpart in the NAB6 series.

Power

The peak power consumption seen in these graphs represents the maximum power draw during the turbo-boost of the Intel processor.

Idle power consumption under Windows 11 is pretty good, considering the operating system. Notable here is swapping out the PCIe 4.0 SSD noticeably reduces power consumption.

Excellent idle power consumption under Linux, making it well suited for a low power home server.

Cooling and Noise Levels

The built-in fan takes care of CPU temperatures well enough to cool efficiently during long-term operation. However, it can produce a noticeable high-pitched whine under heavy loads. This is particularly noticeable when using the PC nearby, such as on a desk.

Connectivity

Connectivity options are extensive, featuring dual Ethernet ports, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, and support for up to four 4K displays simultaneously. This makes it versatile for various networking setups and multimedia applications.

Memory and Storage

The use of DDR4 memory ensures fast performance, and the system supports easy upgrades to enhance multitasking capabilities. System memory can be expanded up to 64 Gigabytes.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Minisforum NAB6 Lite Mini PC excels as a versatile and powerful solution for home server setups and general computing tasks. It offers excellent performance, extensive connectivity options, and flexible upgrade paths, all at a competitive price point. Despite some noise under heavy loads, its overall efficiency and functionality make it a solid choice for users seeking reliability and performance in a compact form factor.

Benchmarks

Where to buy

Find out where to buy the NAB6 Lite:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1VMGMNJ?...

Get $10 off your purchase with code: KPOEYQJY