Gigabyte today announced the BRIX Extreme, calling it the "most powerful mini PC in the world." That's probably dialing up the marketing hype a notch above where it should be, but bold claim aside, these new BRIX Extreme systems look both attractive (from the renders we've seen) and capable (from the spec sheet and...Read more...
The Gigabyte BRIX Gaming UHD is an exciting small form factor PC prospect. It packs a surprising amount of muscle into a tiny frame. This little flyweight may not sound too beastly with its GeForce GTX 950; Gigabyte, however, reckons it is more than capable of streaming 4K UHD media and taking a few swings at 1080p...Read more...
If you’re a fan of Gigabyte’s BRIX family of small form-factor barebones PCs, then you’ll be happy to learn that the company is updating the lineup with Kaby Lake power. Kaby Lake brings improved processing performance across the board, a 10 percent uplift in graphics performance, and a new HEVC 10-bit hardware...Read more...
As longtime enthusiasts, we tend to get most excited for the latest, big, bad, benchmark-busting specimens of PC hardware to hit the lab. However, there’s something about ultra-small form factor devices that’s intriguing as well. The focus on power efficiency and performance-per-watt from virtually all semi-conductor manufacturers over the...Read more...
We had a chance to visit Gigabyte this week at CES, and as always, the company had plenty to showcase for our eager eyes. On tap were new Skylake BRIX mini-PCs, new WINDFORCE graphics cards, a new gaming laptop and a familiar 34-inch curved AIO machine.
First up, however, is Gigabyte’s refreshed BRIX mini-PCs which...Read more...
Gigabyte's Brix line-up of small form factor systems is the company’s answer to the teeny, tiny NUC from Intel. These ridiculously small PCs pack all the power of a laptop, or a budget desktop, into a box small enough to fit in your palm. These wee PCs are marketed to non-gamers and people who need a basic, no-nonsense PC with a tiny footprint....Read more...
Gigabyte is introducing a new X99 motherboard for overclockers that are on a budget. The X99-SOC Champion, like the other members of Gigabyte’s X99 motherboard lineup, supports Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition (LGA 2011-v3 socket) processors, International Rectifier’s all-digital CPU power design, and a PCI Express...Read more...
These are the days of form factors. The PC market is changing rapidly as tablets supplant some laptops, new players such as the Chromebook disrupt the old WIntel model, and innovations in processors and graphics allow for ever-smaller PCs such as Intel’s NUC. Here’s a new one for you: a tiny NUC-style PC that doubles as a video...Read more...
These are the days of form factors. The PC market is changing rapidly as tablets supplant some laptops, new players such as the Chromebook disrupt the old WIntel model, and innovations in processors and graphics allow for ever-smaller PCs such as Intel’s NUC. Here’s a new one for you: a tiny NUC-style PC that doubles as a video...Read more...
There are lots of SFF PCs floating around these days, but the Zbox Sphere from Zotac is an odd duck among them. Instead of a tall and slim chassis or a tiny square-ish thing like a NUC, this PC is a sphere. (Er, hence the name.) It’s not just a gimmick to hear Zotac tell it, either; in a press release, Zotac actually calls it a “sphere...Read more...
Although it’s not the first fanless NUC-ish PC to hit the market, the Gigabyte Brix (GB-BXBT-2807) is the first to offer a dual-core Bay Trail chip with no fan. The unit has been out for a couple of weeks, but Fanless Tech has confirmed that this Brix PC will indeed be fanless. That’s a notable feature for...Read more...
Intel's Haswell 4th generation Core series processors with Iris Pro Graphics (formerly known by the code name Crystal Well) offered the promise of more robust integrated graphics performance, since we first laid eyes on the Gigabyte-built device we're showcasing here today, back at CES 2014 in Las Vegas earlier this year. The Gigabyte BRIX...Read more...
Mini PCs are big business these days, whether you consider devices like Valve's Steambox initiative, ASUS' Chromebox, Zotac's ZBox line or Intel's own NUC (Next Unit of Computing) mini PC. In fact, Intel has gone on record, projecting mini PCs like this have shipped over a million units in 2013 and are projected for strong growth this...Read more...
In this latest episode of HotHardware's Two and a Half Geeks, Dave, Iyaz, and Marco discuss AMD's recently announced Radeon R7 265 graphics card, Lenovo's new 2014 ThinkPad X1 Carbon, why Woz thinks Apple should consider building an Android phone, Sony's VIAO Tap 21 All-in-One mobile PC, a sneak peek at Gigabyte’s...Read more...
We got a sneak peak at Gigabyte’s new Brix Gaming PC when we toured the company’s booth at CES, and now the tiny machine with discrete graphics is official. Other Gigabyte Brix PCs we’ve been privy to rely on integrated graphics--which, considering that some of those IGPs are Intel’s Iris Pro...Read more...
Computer hardware companies have a vested interested in PC gaming, so it's no wonder that so many firms are excited about Valve's Steam Machine platform. No less than 14 OEM and boutique system builders announced Steam Machine configurations of their own at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas last week...Read more...
We spent a little time meeting with the folks from Gigabyte while zipping from demo suite to demo suite at CES, and have some interesting products to show you. Along with a their wide array of existing motherboards, graphics cards, and peripherals, Gigabyte was showing off some brand new products as well...Read more...
You may find that your next PC is a pint-sized model about the size of an optical drive, or even smaller. Mini PCs are becoming more powerful, making them viable options for people who really just need a daily driver for getting around on the web and productivity chores, or even some light gaming. Underscoring that...Read more...
Big, boxy, beige tower PCs aren't nearly as common as they once were, but oddly, neither are mini PCs. Instead, the notebook world has been eating into the desktop share, but that doesn't mean that there are no companies cranking out boxes for the niche. Gigabyte has just introduced the BRIX PC, a super small desktop with some pretty potent...Read more...