Morefine S500+ in review: AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX with 32 GB of RAM and a 1 TB SSD in Mini PC
Morefine is a Chinese manufacturer that has been making compact PCs for many years. The performance of the compact Mini PCs has been improved continuously through new developments. Morefine now markets its top model that is based on the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX under the name S500+. The recently reviewed Minisforum EliteMini HX90 also featured this processor and offered a great performance. With this knowledge, we set out to run benchmarks with high expectations. The small Morefine delivers an excellent performance as well, which you won't want to miss in everyday use after having tried it for a short time.
The very high operating speed makes the Morefine S500+ interesting, and at the same time, the system is also suitable for CPU-intensive tasks. Just like Minisforum, Morefine also follows the same path by selling the S500+ as a barebone as well as a preconfigured system with RAM and SSD storage. You currently have to pay $779 for the S500+ without SSD and RAM. Our review sample with 32 GB RAM and a 1 TB SSD costs $1,099. However, the top of the line is reached at $1,225. With that, the Morefine S500+ also comes with 64 GB of RAM as well as a 1 TB SSD. There are also alternative CPU configurations, and they can be found on the S500+'s packaging. The less powerful model based on the AMD Ryzen 3 5300U starts at $499, including shipping to Germany and taxes.
The hardware is housed in a very compact case that measures 149 x 145 x 40 millimeters. This makes the Morefine S500+ considerably more compact than the Minisforum EliteMini HX90. However, Intel's NUC 10 Mini PCs are even more compact in terms of dimensions.
The Morefine S500+ is delivered in a sturdy box with all the accessories needed to get the PC up and running quickly. The relatively large power supply is a bit flatter than that of the EliteMini HX90, but it also lacks a USB-C connector. In addition, the package includes a mounting plate to attach the device to a display (Vesa mount). Internally, the device can be equipped with two additional storage drives. Consequently, a total of three storage units can be installed in the small PC.
Case and connectivity
Unlike Minisforum, Morefine houses the hardware in an aluminum case, which looks sturdy and has a very high-quality feel. However, the surface is adorned with a plastic layer, which is reminiscent of piano lacquer after removing the protective film. Due to the disadvantageous properties (micro scratches), we aren't especially fond of these finishes. Nevertheless, the manufacturer seems to have done its homework very well here. Even after several days of intensive use, we haven't detected any micro scratches yet. These often appear right after removing the protective film. These scratches become noticeable even faster when the device is also frequently cleaned from dust.
Morefine has chosen a very flat solution for the cooling construction, which also facilitates the low build height. We only measure a bit over four centimeters including the support feet. Therefore, the cooling system is somewhat reminiscent of a laptop solution, and it makes use of a small fan.
The interior can be accessed very quickly. However, you should know that the top and bottom sides can be individually removed. The top side is only secured with two small screws, and after removing them, you can access the built-in SSD as well as the RAM. An additional storage drive in the 2.5-inch format can be installed here as well. The bottom is secured with four screws that are located directly underneath the glued-on feet. The cooling unit is located underneath the bottom cover as well as another place to fit an M.2 SSD.
In terms of external ports, the Morefine S500+ provides several options for external peripherals. We counted a total of six USB-A ports and one USB Type-C one. However, the USB ports on the back are exclusively USB 2.0 ports. This isn't quite up to date, unfortunately. We would've expected at least USB 3.0 speed here. Nevertheless, you can safely connect your input devices here. You can choose between HDMI, DisplayPort, or USB Type-C when it comes to image output. In total, the Morefine S500+ can support three displays at the same time. Sadly, this model doesn't have a Thunderbolt interface, either.
Performance - Very good all-rounder
The Morefine S500+ was provided to us with the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX. This octa-core processor offers enough computing power, and the PC's potential is actually not being fully exploited if only office tasks are to be performed. But having a certain amount of performance headroom is very reassuring. Moreover, our test sample is equipped with 32 GB of RAM and a 1 TB SSD. Therefore, you're well taken care of for the time being, and you don't run the risk of needing to upgrade quickly. Morefine doesn't explicitly classify the S500+ as a gaming PC, which is completely understandable, since the iGPU in the Ryzen 9 5900HX can only be recommended for gaming to a limited extent.
Processor
The built-in AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX originated in the mobile field and is otherwise only found in laptops. Morefine makes use of this SoC because of its low heat development and still very high performance. The processor is part of the Cezanne series family and is based on the Zen3 architecture. A total of up to 16 threads can be processed simultaneously, which makes the SoC ideally suited for multithread tasks. In a performance comparison, the Morefine S500+ falls slightly behind the Minisforum EliteMini HX90. This is due to the former's slightly inferior cooling unit, which quickly reaches its limit under load with the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX.
Like Minisforum, Morefine also offers different settings in the BIOS (10-, 15-, 25-, 35-, 45-, and 54 watts) when it comes to the SoC's TDP. The AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX is used with 45 watts by default. However, the SoC can also be run with 54 watts. We performed all benchmarks with the increased TDP to enable a better comparison with the EliteMini HX90 from Minisforum.
Due to the marginally worse but still very good performance of the SoC in the Morefine S500+, its performance can keep up with an Intel Core i5-11600K. The latter, however, requires a lot more energy (125-watt TDP), which once again clearly sets the performance of the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX apart here.
For further comparisons and benchmarks, please refer to our CPU Benchmarks article.
* ... smaller is better
Cinebench R15 multi loop
During our first load test, which we simulate with the Cinebench R15 multi-loop, we can clearly see that the compact design and the small cooling unit can still handle the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX well. At the same time, however, the higher TDP can't be kept constant, which is reflected in a lower average score. With 1,892 points, the Morefine S500+ ranks just ahead of the Minisforum EliteMini HM90 that is based on the AMD Ryzen 9 4900H. Minisforum shows what can be achieved by implementing a better cooling system with the EliteMini HX90. You can expect a good 10% more performance in the long run.
System performance
The synthetic benchmarks make a good job of reflecting the subjective impression of the system's performance. At all times, the system works quickly and without long waiting times. The AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX is perfectly suited for demanding applications, and the SoC doesn't run out of breath quickly even when running multiple tasks at the same time, which is also thanks to the ample RAM. However, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 can't compensate for a dedicated graphics card as can be seen in the render tests. The Intel Ghost Canyon NUC and the Zotac Magnus One are clearly ahead here.
In terms of the latencies measured, the Morefine S500+ performs slightly worse compared to the Minisforum EliteMini HX90. Nonetheless, there were no noticeable drawbacks when playing 4K content. The iGPU was loaded by about 30%, and the latencies only increased slightly after Prime95 was launched.
| DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
| AC6-M Mini-PC, Intel Celeron J4125 | |
| Morefine S500+, AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
| MSI Cubi 5 10M, Intel Core i3-10110U | |
| Minisforum HM90, AMD Ryzen 9 4900H | |
| Minisforum EliteMini HX90, AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
| AMD Ryzen 7 5700G, AMD Ryzen 7 5700G | |
* ... smaller is better
Storage
Morefine is generous and packs a 1 TB SSD in our test system. This corresponds to the top configuration that is offered in the in the manufacturer's store. The SSD is made by ADATA and uses the NVMe protocol for lightning-fast data transfers. The SSD achieved very good rates in sequential reading and writing of data in our test. However, the 4K read performance was a bit disappointing at only 27 MB/s. We expected a much better result here. For comparison: The Kingston SSD in the Minisforum EliteMini HX90 achieved 54 MB/s here.
If you find the 1 TB of storage space insufficient, you can still fit two additional mass storage drives in the Morefine S500+. There's another M.2 slot and a free 2.5-inch slot for this. The right mounting equipment as well as the connection cables are included in the box. However, the maximum height of 7 millimeters should be taken into account for the 2.5-inch unit.
| Drive Performance Rating - Percent | |
| Zotac Magnus One (ECM73070C) | |
| Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
| Morefine S500+ | |
| MSI Cubi 5 10M -8! | |
* ... smaller is better
Graphics card
As we mentioned before, there's no dedicated graphics card in the Morefine S500+, which conversely means that the AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 serves as the integrated graphics unit of the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX. We're already familiar with what can be expected from the iGPU, since the model isn't an unknown one, and it already has a few years under its belt. With the innovations of the SoC, AMD has also slightly improved the performance of the AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 as well. Nevertheless, it's still the old Vega architecture at its core.
The Morefine's iGPU can use 4 GB of RAM in gaming mode, which can be activated in the BIOS. This value can also be adjusted by the user, though. A maximum of 16 GB is possible, provided that the installed RAM is sufficient. This option is also available with the competition. Nevertheless, the Minisforum EliteMini HX90 only gets 2 GB of RAM for the iGPU due to the lower amount of RAM. There is a small advantage to the slightly larger allocated RAM, as many games deliver higher frame rates at medium presets. Still, you can't expect too much from the iGPU. Compared to a modern dedicated graphics card, the iGPU has to admit defeat.
Speaking of dedicated graphics cards: Desktop GPUs can also be used via the M.2 interface with a suitable adapter. The only drawback here is the PCIe x4 speed. Nonetheless, an external desktop GPU should still deliver better frame rates over the four PCIe lanes compared to the iGPU. Since we haven't received a suitable adapter so far, we can't make any concrete statements regarding performance here.
So, if you want to buy the Morefine S500+, you should know that the AMD Radeon RX Vega 8's performance is only sufficient for a limited amount of games or for those that aren't very demanding. An improvement in 3D performance should accompany the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX, because Navi is supposed to replace Vega in the iGPU for the first time here. But this is only pure speculation at the moment.
You can find more benchmarks based on the AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 here.