Gigabyte BRIX Gaming UHD Review With Teardown And Rebuild Action

Gigabyte certainly did their homework to bring the BRIX Gaming UHD to market. It succeeds at delivering favorable gaming performance in a package just barely larger than a milk carton. This machine is well suited for kickback sofa gaming and delivers better visuals than the current crop of mainstream consoles.


The BRIX Gaming UHD does not have any glaring flaws, but a couple omissions do have us scratching our heads. First, we would really like to see Thunderbolt 3 incorporated into the Type-C port. Thunderbolt 3 would enable users to connect a graphics dock, such as the Razer Core, for some extra horsepower down the road, among the other expansion benefits Thunderbolt 3 can provide.


A lack of SD card reader is a bit easier to forgive here than with a laptop, but we would still appreciate the flexibility. This machine has the performance chops and potential storage capacity to make a great match for photographers. The ability to use four displays out of the box is certainly a plus there as well.


Ultimately, the most questionable aspect of this unit is the cost and value. Don’t get us wrong, we understand the price premium that goes along with miniaturization. However, the Alienware Alpha R2 delivers more raw performance with its GeForce GTX 960, also in a very small frame, and for right about the same price. This isn’t to say the BRIX Gaming UHD does not have its advantages, though. The BRIX Gaming UHD offers two SODIMM slots for dual channel memory instead of one, double the drive capacity, and significantly more video outputs.


There’s no question in our minds that small form factor systems will be a significant part of the future for desktop PCs, and Gigabyte is on the right track with this system design approach. It is a well developed first generation product which deserves a strong look for your living room need and we do recommend it.