This Intel N97 Mini PC Is the New Budget King! 😱 [GMKtec NucBox G5 REVIEW]

The GMKtec G5 uses the Intel N97 processor, and is a budget-friendly EMULATION BEAST!
This Mini PC can be found both directly from GMKTec and from Amazon (links below)
Windows 11 Pro is installed and in our review, we run benchmarks, test games, and also try many emulated systems from within Batocera Linux.
► Specs:
CPU: Intel N97 Processor / 4 Core 4 Thread @ up to 3.6Ghz
RAM: 12GB Samsung LPDDR5 @ 4800MT/s
GPU: Intel UHD Graphics Xe 24EUs ( - 1200MHz)
Storage: 512GB SSD
OS: Windows 11 Pro 64bit
► N97 Game Testing: TBA
►Note:
This product was received for free solely for the purpose of video review. Nothing of monetary value has been received.
Affiliate links have been added which help the channel at no additional cost to yourself.
Thanks 🙏
► Coupon Code: TBA
► Purchase links
GMKtec Website: go.teampandory.com/gmktecg5
Amazon: amzn.to/4ed1LUU
►Timestamps:
0:00 Introducing the Intel N97 Mini PC
0:12 GMKtec NucBox G5
0:12 Unboxing
0:38 GMKtec NucBox G5 Specifications
1:09 A Closer Look
2:22 Size Comparison
2:44 GMKtec NucBox G3 Specifications
3:00 First Boot, Updates, Virus Check
3:42 Office, Krita, Internet, Online Shopping
4:09 Amazon Prime, NetFlix, KZbin in 4K
4:27 Benchmarks
4:49 WiFi Strength, Bluetooth
5:01 Game Testing - Cuphead, Among Us, Pacman CE 2
5:33 Game Testing - Dave the Diver, We Love Katamari ReRoll
5:55 Game Testing - Tony Hawks Pro Skater 1+2, Fallout 4
6:31 Game Testing - Fortnite, Rocket League, Counter Strike 2
7:27 BIOS, Batocera
7:52 Emulation Tests - Amstrad, C64, Atari ST, Amiga, MS-DOS, XBOX
8:22 Emulation Tests - Arcade, MAME, Naomi, Model 3
8:50 Emulation Tests - PSP, PlayStation 2,
9:22 Emulation Tests - GameCube, Wii, Wii U
10:02 Inside the GMKtec NucBox G5
10:49 Video Output
11:01 Temps, Power draw, fan noise
11:51 N97 compared against N100, N95, N5105 and N5095
12:07 Pros and Cons
12:36 Final Thoughts and Patreon Thanks
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►Credits
'Remember Eighty Seven', 'Ocean Highway' and 'Woot the Funk (Why Not)' by Chris Huelsbeck, used under a royalty-free license, please visit www.patreon.com/chris_huelsbeck for more info!
Thanks goes to Aish from ‪@retrohandhelds‬ in improving the thumbnail. What a star!
Pandory Intro Music by Disfunktional
surroundsoundrecordings.bandc...
breakingsaints.bandcamp.com/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
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#n97 #minipc #gmktec #intel #gaming #retrogaming #review

[@GameTechTalk]

I love the vibe of your videos!

[@TeamPandory]

Thank you 🙏 😊👍

[@riseandshinejp]

When they don't even bother to put the intel sticker on straight, you know the build quality...

[@lylluzzos]

On mine, there is a Intel Celeron sticker...

[@Mclaneinc]

Bloody nora, these things get smaller every time, and yet its thermal trace is much smaller than I'd have thought. Shame it's being throttled, as it seems a capable little machine. My daughter loved the smily spoon, she collects all that sort of stuff. My lovely K6 has developed a rattling fan, goes quiet after it gets fully to speed. Chatting with them for a replacement. Great fun vid as always Tim, thank you...

[@TeamPandory]

Ruddy fans. If you need any assistance let me know 👍

[@Mclaneinc]

@@TeamPandory Thanks Tim...It seems slightly off kilter and will just get worse. Had the same with my old desktop, sounded like a nightmare..

[@TeamPandory]

@@Mclaneinc even though they use cheaper nvme sometimes, they genuinely seem to be concerned about quality - or at least the guy I chat to does 😂. If they get too many callbacks due to fans they'll need to switch their provider.

[@Snarko]

Top review as always! I'd love if you can start including a few Teknoparrot games. 😄

[@TeamPandory]

Teknoparrot games usually have geforce as a requirement, so most would probably fall flat on their face. I love a bit of outrun 2 tho 😁

[@dlewis9760]

I think it's fine to cut a bit of corners. I count 16 different and distinct offerings from them. Some with WIFI 6. You can spend a lot more with them on a different model. This one was built to hit a price point. They would be found wanting if there was competition in this size for around the same price that offered better features. Right now, there really isn't anything. This thing would be more than sufficient for most people most of the time. I'm using a laptop hooked up to a 65 inch Sony. Video consumption for the most part. Something like this could easily take its place.

[@TeamPandory]

Yes, at the end of the day it all depends on the end user. If you wanted something for batocera / emulation, who cares about WiFi? 😁

[@digitizer3627]

This is soooo cool. Put a hashbrown to it and send it to the internets..😂 Too bad no end song review recap. I loved those. Thank you for another awesome review.❤

[@TeamPandory]

They'll be back- don't worry ^-^/ We have a lot on at the moment, so there simply wasn't enough time for the 5 extra hours of work needed to get it done this time. BTW there was a song there, if you listen to the BGM in Tony Hawks. No way would any of those songs be allowed, so we made a song that "skated around copyrights" 😎

[@digitizer3627]

@@TeamPandory whoa!! I thought that song was from the game..cool!!

[@srvuk]

Not too bad. I would have thought that they could and should offer a modular options menu, where you could choose an NVME, WiFi6, or even a barebones option. Th N97 certainly does offer a little more than the N100, whilst offering great value. I don't consider a con being that is cannot play AAA games because realistically, I doubt that many would expect it. If I buy a Fiat 500, it isn't a con that it can't match the speed of a Bugatti Veyron. The MicroSD card slot is always welcome (can you boot from it?) and I'm guessing that based upon the lack of open USB port specs that we are looking at 5Gbs, which is a shame because at least one running at 10Gbs would have mitigated the lack of internal storage expansion (not that I would actually expect it from something this size). No HDMI cable and Vesa mount is a double edge sword as many may have an HDMI cable, with the Vesa mount more likely left to rust in the box. But for somebody would wants true out of the box plug and play, this might be important. Again, a modular option could include these for a few pennies extra. We have seen N100 boxes the same size that do have some of the little extra features missing here, so it is not as if it can't be done. I'm fairly sure that I could run the world from something like this too. But somehow it doesn't quite excite me as much as I was hoping for, so will wait and see what others do before considering a purchase.

[@TeamPandory]

Definitely. You hit a few nails on the head there, and the modular system is something I keep mentioning to them. I guess packaging everything with only a few SKU's is much easier than having it modular though from a company point of view, but if theyre selling direct from the factory (on their site), I think theres no reason not to pursue a 'custom variant' option. Main reason I put a few of them in was to 'warn' kids on the capabilities. Don't expect call of duty or cyberpunk to run on this. 👍

[@doughnut_panda]

Oh my God!!! Only 4K?! How is this even possible. 🙃

[@pauljohnson2513]

Just orderded, For retrogaming through Retrobat so fingers crossed.

[@N3tigen]

Can arrow lake lowest range Core 300u will comes in this micro box mini pc

[@bigginsmcsauce]

10:34 Can you verify the N97 G5 can accept a proper NVMe M.2 drive in a short follow-up video about NVMe-compatible "upgrades" like using a more common 2230 drive using a 2230 to 2242 adapter (Thingiverse has one) and the newer wifi card, please? Excellent video!

[@TeamPandory]

That sir, is a good idea 🙂 But I'm definitely not going to be faffing around with a 3d printer. Spent days trying to fix that stupid thing 😭. They have adapters for cheap on Ali / Amazon though.

[@lylluzzos]

I received the G5 yesterday, but the version without SSD (I got it for 117€ on AliExpress, with coupons). I found a 256GB Samsung PM991a (NVMe 2242 PCIE3) on Amazon for 20€ and it is recognized in BIOS (I will install the OS this weekend).

[@jabonorte]

Looks a lot like the other tiny N95/100 boxes available from other brands, which would be great if there had been any development. Shame there's no proper USB-C support, or it would be cool

[@jt3000o]

if it had two USBC video outputs it would be a game changer for me

[@erikkarsies4851]

I see you've used DirectX11. Wasn't DirectX12 available in the emulators? Especially newer Intel iGPU's might perform better with a newer DirectX I think ? It supposed to support DirectX12 anyway?

[@toddklodnicki9628]

It may have an older WiFi/Bluetooth card, but - IT COMES OUT! And you can replace it if you want. That's what I like about mini PC's, you can change out what you want.

[@ceeam]

Do these work properly with FreeSync monitors?

[@TeamPandory]

Good question, I'll check it out tomorrow for you 😸

[@TrusteftTech]

So, N97 is faster than N100 and N95, N95 is sometimes faster than N100. I appreciate you at least trying to fully open these PCs. IMO any which you can't access the CPU fan for maintenance, is not worth it.

[@Twiszted]

try dxvk, some (older) games runs much better with that with these low-end socs

[@migelgomez7753]

Team Pandory . Can you test ??? the Dell Treasure rgb of Amazon cost only 159 dollars . Intel quad core i5 up to 3.6 ghz 16g memory 512 SSD . Is it a good choice ??? Or not even bother ..they claim it's a very good PC gaming

[@KyleRuggles]

I swear you reviewed this several times already lol.

[@arcaderacer586]

Bring that N97 to Kashyyyk and see what happens! RAHHHH

[@keeganwong5038]

Any idea if the G5 can run GFN ?

[@TeamPandory]

Geforce Now? It should run, but you may want to either use the LAN cable, or update the wifi card inside to wifi 6E

[@tonycoffee7335]

Any one know what the boot menu button is on this little guy ? thanks

[@TeamPandory]

For bios? Either Escape or DEL.

[@tonycoffee7335]

@@TeamPandory I was thinking of installing Win 11 Tiny.

[@PiManiac]

F7 takes you into the Select Boot Device Menu with an Option to go into BIOS also.

[@Zysperro]

Damn, the DDR5 makes a huge difference. I have a N97 pc, but with 3200 DDR4 - it's about 1.5 times slower, I get constant CPU bottlenecks and ~40 fps vs 60 shown here.

[@TeamPandory]

Really? I think shifting down to 720p should help in a lot of cases.

[@Zysperro]

@@TeamPandory Does lowering res help with the CPU/RAM load too? I usually play in 600p/720p, I mostly noticed the GPU load changing. Will check CS2 and Rocket League to your results again tomorrow, maybe it's my Acemagic S1 doing smthn with the clocks.

[@TeamPandory]

@@Zysperro I'd keep an eye on power usage, degrees, and speeds. It might be limited by the power setting in your bios, or due to thermal throttling. Lower resolution should help, as you're not needing to push as many pixels to the screen. I usually don't want to go lower than 720p though, unless it's a classic title.

[@Zysperro]

@@TeamPandory Couldn't wait till tomorrow. Yeah, I get ~36 fps on 1080p and ~53 on 720p in Rocket League (Perf settings) with 99% GPU utilization. The temps are fine, CPU and GPU clocks are the same as in the video and stable, no option to change power limit in BIOS, but it is set to 25W. My guess that it is indeed a RAM limitation.

[@TeamPandory]

@@Zysperro Are the graphic options all the same? It's on "Performance settings"- basically set both (not only the one) dropdowns to performance on the left in the Rocket League graphic options. Outside that it could very well be the DDR5. We only have the one N97 mini pc, so nothing to compare it to I'm afraid.

[@roguecthulhu6002]

I'm so frustrated with the GMK website. They don't use the same stats to describe the different models, so it's hard for me to compare them. It's all market-speak and few specifications. And based on the stats that I can see, the prices seem out of wack, making me more confused.

[@TeamPandory]

We've reviewed most of them, what are you after and we'll be able to point you in the right direction.

[@omarguerrero6417]

Look great but not a fan of the cooling design

[@TeamPandory]

Yeah, we can see this being a nice portable / micro sized setup, but it doesn't need to be *that* small. Probably for a niche audience.

[@Jeprox_Gaming]

Can you hook a egpu in this?

[@TeamPandory]

You could hook up one using the nvme slot, but you wouldn't have any storage

[@Jeprox_Gaming]

@@TeamPandory how about the wifi slot?

[@TeamPandory]

@@Jeprox_Gaming I guess ? Maybe ? 🤔

[@andvaribekho]

so is n97 faster than n100?

[@TeamPandory]

Yes, but it's not far off.

[@erikkarsies4851]

I did a 'intel n100 vs n97' search and it turns out the iGPU is the same but the N100 one is clocked at 750Mhz instead of 1.2Ghz. But the N100 iGPU can clock down if not needed. Also the N97 itself is clocked a bit higher. (But not enough to make a N97 with DDR4 outperform a N100 with DDR5!) (But I don't know how it works with power limits which can have a big impact on performance also.)

[@thaigamecenter1530]

DDR Single chanal right

[@TeamPandory]

It's... Odd. Both the n95 and n100 don't support 'dual channel' and I can't see this being any different. Saying that, the memory is soldered to the motherboard and appears in hwinfo as 4 sets of 2gb Samsung blocks. 🤔

[@erikkarsies4851]

@@TeamPandory If I understood correctly that doesn't matter for the DDR5 versions?

[@ordinarygg]

Hardly beats used HP g2, g4 will destroy this pc. Pricing less the. 90 euro. But the size is so cool!)

[@TeamPandory]

Checking the specs of the G2, they're actually pretty similar in price AND performance. The N97 will benefit with faster memory, lower power usage, and it being new parts, whereas the G2 would probably be able to use a real GPU plugged straight into the motherboard (which would be much better for gaming) New vs used parts is something to think about, as PSU, thermal paste, things like that would need replacing soon enough through wear.

[@erikkarsies4851]

@@TeamPandory In my country I don't see any 'HP G's' for below 200. And always be carefull buying 2nd hand relatively new stuff because : why does the previous owner want to loose it so quickly? Warrant and life expectancy are rarely factored in to 2nd hand prices nowadays so most prices are too high for them in online marketplaces.

[@TeamPandory]

@@erikkarsies4851 usually prices are low on small computers like this when businesses upgrade and need to quickly get rid of their current stock. It's perfectly possible to get a bargain, but a lot of wear will be on power supply, hard drive, thermal paste will need flipping - it can be great value if you're knowledgeable though.

[@erikkarsies4851]

@@TeamPandory The older stuff yeah but anything which is only 1~2 years old? Not a chance in our country. Those are way over priced and the still can be something wrong with it. Warranty should count for something. And warranty from a small one person business is dubious also.

[@erikkarsies4851]

@@TeamPandory I found some HP G3s but those have intel 6400T cpu's. Might be more powerfull on the cpu side, but the iGPU is worthless. That makes it very expensive again if you need to buy a lp gpu

[@JustPeasant]

Aside from a clear obsession with teabag (giggity), what Englishman uses those?🤨 That would make Douglas Adams fidgeting in his grave!😵

[@TeamPandory]

An Englishman uses any tea or teabag he can get his hands on. The one you're referring to, is a rooibos teabag. Caffeine free. Quite nice in the summer with ice cubes.

[@JustPeasant]

@@TeamPandory I'll have that in mind for the next grocery shopping👌

[@NyneIX9]

GoW 2 sucks?!

[@TeamPandory]

Yes. And we're not going to pretend otherwise 😂 - nah tbh it's all opinions, people like it, some people don't. And that's fine. 👍

[@NyneIX9]

@@TeamPandory I just never heard anyone say that. I had to rewind it three times to make sure I heard it right lol

[@TeamPandory]

@@NyneIX9 😅 Yeah, I guess it is what it is. I'd rather have a bit more behind a game than hack'n'slash, so the Dynasty Warriors franchise never really struck me as a good game either. That was until Dynasty Warriors 4 Empires or Bladestorm anyways, as they both added a bit more strategy and RPG elements to the mix.

[@NyneIX9]

@@TeamPandory I feel like some people made Kratos seem more vapid than he really was, but then again I was in high school when the game came out. It was astounding, and I never really saw anyone take Greek mythology as a framework of a vengeance story in a videogame. Kratos was shockingly brutal to me and heartless. He didn't value human life until he lost his family by his own hands under the influence of Ares (I believe). I know David Jaffe worked incredibly hard on this game, nearly losing his marriage over it, and I think it was a very influential game. Of course, today's Kratos is way more enriched as a character, but I think that the older GoW still serves a purpose in history. To each his own. I was just shocked by what you said lol but I take no offense. It's nice to hear a different opinion. P.S. I didn't bother with Dynasty Warriors, either.

[@TeamPandory]

@@NyneIX9 don't get me wrong, the visuals are *outstanding*, and there's certainly a lot to it regarding the story and lore... It's just not one for me, and that's fine 🙂 You should've seen the backlash when I said Truxton was garbage ^-^ People lost their minds about that, rather than just seeing it as a differing opinion. ✌

[@SP95]

Still way more expensive than the Radxa X2L

[@TeamPandory]

More expensive, sure, but ... 1. The N97 runs rings around the J4125 2. LPDDR5 > LPDDR4 3. 12GB > 8GB 4. M2 SSD > eMMC 5. Storage 512GB > 32GB max ...etc

[@richardmcgowan1651]

If you are buying stuff like that you arent looking at mini PCs like this.

[@SP95]

Twice more performance to three times the price is not what I would call a budget king Sure the UHD Graphics Alder Lake chip is nice but given the games that were used here that chip is either overkill or underpowered

[@PiManiac]

I have X2L (it's good) also the X1 (it's better) but this, this G5 WINS for my Emulation +Win10/11/Ubuntu basic Desktop needs at least.

[@erikkarsies4851]

That J4125 power! That kinda of power is easily bought 2nd hand for even less. That doesn't even top the new Arm SBC's in performance.