Deal | AMD Ryzen 7-powered mini PC with 32 GB memory, OCuLink support, and dual 2.5G Ethernet wins attractive $140 discount

The skyrocketing memory and storage prices has spelled doom for many bargain hunters, including those on the prowl for a good mini PC deal. Of course, barebones variants are largely unaffected, but that is not an option for folks who do not already have memory sticks lying around. For instance, the price for a 32 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM kit from crucial has shot up by over 360% in the last year or so.

Thankfully, certain mini PCs with memory and storage can still be bought at decent prices, if one searches hard enough. For instance, the GMKtec K12 mini PC with the powerful AMD Ryzen 7 H 255 APU and 32 GB memory is now available for $610 on Amazon, courtesy of a $140 discount on the platform. 

GMKtec K12 mini PC: Hawk Point APU promises value-oriented performance

As mentioned, the K12 mini PC is powered by the AMD Ryzen 7 H 255 "Hawk Point" APU. This APU is nearly identical to the Ryzen 7 8745HS, and manages respectable multithreaded performance thanks to its 8-core, 16-thread setup. Of course, the Zen 4 cores are quite old by CPU standards, but are powerful enough to trade blows with the Core Ultra 5 225H. In simpler terms, the mini PC should easily be able to handle almost any day-to-day task as well as moderately intensive workloads.

Unsurprisingly, the mini PC simply does not have the room for dedicated internal GPUs. The Radeon 780M iGPU is therefore left to handle graphical tasks alone, and is capable enough to handle some very casual gaming and other lightweight tasks. Like a bunch of other premium mini PCs, the GMKtec K12 boasts an OCuLink port, which allows for extremely fast eGPU setups. The rest of the I/O on offer is as follows:

• USB4 Type-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (with DP, PD)
• Dual USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, dual USB 2.0 Type-A
• Dual 3.5 mm audio
• Dual 2.5 GbE
• WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2

The K12 mini PC has a rather audible downside

Our in-depth review of the GMKtec K12 mini PC was quite positive. We were quite happy with the system's overall performance, but did point out that its cooling system, which consists of a vapor chamber setup with dual fans, was too loud for our tastes. That said, we did not encounter any issues with the mini PC's performance under sustained loads. Moreover, the memory and storage are user upgradeable, up to 128 GB and 24 TB respectively.

All told, the GMKtec K12 mini PC is a decent purchase for folks with moderate computing requirements. Its current sale price is quite attractive, especially considering the ongoing circus surrounding DRAM and storage supply chains. Customers who are interested in the machine are surely advised to check out our extensive review of the K12 before making their purchase.

Disclaimer: Notebookcheck is not responsible for price changes carried out by retailers. The discounted price or deal mentioned in this item was available at the time of writing and may be subject to time restrictions and/or limited unit availability.