Morefine S600 Apex Engineer Review: a powerful mini PC with an Intel Core i9 12900HK and 64 GB RAM
Launched as a crowdfunding campaign, the Morefine S600 Apex Engineer is finally seeing the light of day and is already available for pre-order via the campaign site. Everyone should already know about the risks associated with a crowdfunding campaign, but Morefine has already proven that they can pay off, given their many projects that have come to fruition on crowdfunding platforms.
We focus in this review on the top-of-the-line configuration of the S600 series, which is based on an Intel Core i9 12900HK alongside 64 GB RAM and a 1 TB SSD. The device currently costs US$1,399 as part of the crowdfunding campaign (normally US$2,099). Delivery should begin in December 2022. The project can also be backed for a bit less money, as the barebones model offered by Morefine that comes with the (not much slower) Intel Core i9 12900H costs US$669, including the early bird discount.
The Morefine S600 Apex Engineer is delivered in a sturdy box with all the accessories necessary to get the PC up and running. The device is also delivered with a mounting plate (VESA mount). Internally, the device can be outfitted with up to three mass storage devices.
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Possible competitors in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Height | Price |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
v7 (old) | 10 / 2022 | Morefine S600-Apex Engineer i9-12900HK, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 795 g | 63.5 mm | |
v (old) | 01 / 2022 | Minisforum EliteMini HX90 R9 5900HX, Vega 8 | 60 mm | ||
v (old) | 01 / 2022 | Morefine S500+ R9 5900HX, Vega 8 | 697 g | 40 mm | |
v (old) | 05 / 2022 | Minisforum EliteMini B550 R7 5700G, Vega 8 | 1.1 kg | 67 mm | |
v (old) | 02 / 2022 | Minisforum EliteMini TH50 i5-11320H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 763 g | 55.5 mm | |
v (old) | 12 / 2021 | Minisforum HM90 R9 4900H, Vega 8 | 55.5 mm | ||
v7 (old) | 09 / 2022 | Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 i5-1135G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 586 g | 53 mm |
Case
The Morefine S600, like the S500+, also has a very high-quality construction. The case is primarily made out of an aluminum/magnesium alloy that gives the device sturdiness and which also feels very high quality to the touch. The top of the case has a metal-reinforced plastic cover, which however, is very susceptible to scratches thanks to its high-gloss surface.
At only 800 grams (1.7 lb), the Morefine S600 Apex Engineer is incredibly light, while the power adapter comes in at a not-insignificant 500 grams (1.1 lb).
Connectivity
At first glance, the available connections seem to provide everything you need: a total of 6 USB Type A ports is plenty, and Type-C is also available. The latter, however, is not a full Thunderbolt port, which we think is a bit of a shame, as this limits the ability for expansion somewhat. Nevertheless, displays can also be connected with this Type-C port, giving the Morefine S600 the ability to connect to a total of three screens at the same time.
Communication
Morefine has installed an Intel Wi-Fi 6E AX211 module in the S600 Apex Engineer. We were able to achieve good transfer rates with our Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000 test router in our review. Compared to its competitors, the Morefine S600 had an easy time in this regard. For LAN connections, the user has a 1G and a 2.5G port available on the S600.
Maintenance
The device can be opened relatively easily for upgrades or maintenance, which is also implied by the fact that the Morefine S600 is also available in a barebones version. The lid and the bottom can be removed. However, the screws on the underside are hidden directly under the rubber feet, and unfortunately, there is a risk that these will no longer stick properly to the bottom when replaced after removal. Due to the fact that a storage device can also be installed on the underside, we would have hoped for a slightly better solution for removing the base plate. After all, the lid can be removed as well, and is fixed with two screws on the back. A similar system could have been used on the underside.
Performance - extremely high capabilities
The Morefine S600 Apex Engineer is more than well equipped with the Intel Core i9 12900HK. The SoC always offers enough performance, at a level which really is normally only expected in a gaming laptop. However, you will have to do without a dedicated graphics card. With its 64 GB of RAM, our test unit is equipped with the maximum that is available for the device.
Testing conditions
We carried out all performance tests using the high-performance profile.
Processor
The Intel Core i9 12900HK is a high-end SoC based on the new Alder Lake architecture. Thanks to the new structure consisting of P and E cores, the SoC has been improved across the board and also ensures a very good performance overall. Our test sample manages to secure first place overall, although the average performance is not on the same level as other Intel Core i9 12900HK based devices. The manufacturer has set a power limit of 65 watts for Power Limit 1 (PL1), although the PL2 value of the SoC is not further throttled at 115 watts. Due to the high temperatures, we only observed very short power bursts of up to 100 watts in our review.
You can find more benchmarks for the processors here.
* ... smaller is better
AIDA64: FP32 Ray-Trace | FPU Julia | CPU SHA3 | CPU Queen | FPU SinJulia | FPU Mandel | CPU AES | CPU ZLib | FP64 Ray-Trace | CPU PhotoWorxx
Performance Rating | |
Gigabyte A7 X1 | |
Intel Beast Canyon NUC | |
Intel Dragon Canyon NUC - RTX 3060 | |
Zotac ZBOX Magnus EN173070C | |
Average of class Mini PC | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Zotac MEK Mini (RTX 2070 Super) |
AIDA64 / FP32 Ray-Trace | |
Gigabyte A7 X1 | |
Intel Beast Canyon NUC | |
Intel Dragon Canyon NUC - RTX 3060 | |
Zotac ZBOX Magnus EN173070C | |
Average of class Mini PC (646 - 51004, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Zotac MEK Mini (RTX 2070 Super) |
AIDA64 / FPU SinJulia | |
Gigabyte A7 X1 | |
Intel Beast Canyon NUC | |
Intel Dragon Canyon NUC - RTX 3060 | |
Zotac ZBOX Magnus EN173070C | |
Average of class Mini PC (408 - 29064, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Zotac MEK Mini (RTX 2070 Super) |
AIDA64 / FP64 Ray-Trace | |
Gigabyte A7 X1 | |
Intel Beast Canyon NUC | |
Intel Dragon Canyon NUC - RTX 3060 | |
Zotac ZBOX Magnus EN173070C | |
Average of class Mini PC (350 - 26952, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Zotac MEK Mini (RTX 2070 Super) |
AIDA64 / CPU PhotoWorxx | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Average of class Mini PC (4408 - 50500, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Zotac ZBOX Magnus EN173070C | |
Intel Beast Canyon NUC | |
Intel Dragon Canyon NUC - RTX 3060 | |
Zotac MEK Mini (RTX 2070 Super) | |
Gigabyte A7 X1 |
Morefine S600 Apex Engineer running the Cinebench R15 Multi Loop
We get a good insight into the efficiency of the built-in cooling during the Cinebench R15 loop: after the first few runs, the performance drops only a bit, and then levels off at an average of 1,986 points.
System Performance
The Morefine S600 cannot match the CPU's very good performance benchmarks in the system benchmarks. The Minisforum HX90 and even the Morefine S500+ were able to perform significantly better here. Subjectively, the performance of the Morefine S600 is very good at all times, because our test unit delivered rock-solid performance in the tested configuration, which was great in everyday use.
AIDA64 / Memory Copy | |
Average Intel Core i9-12900HK (44442 - 62959, n=13) | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Average of class Mini PC (6481 - 89287, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Minisforum HM90 |
AIDA64 / Memory Read | |
Average Intel Core i9-12900HK (44775 - 66989, n=13) | |
Average of class Mini PC (6914 - 99171, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Minisforum HM90 |
AIDA64 / Memory Write | |
Average Intel Core i9-12900HK (45952 - 65268, n=13) | |
Average of class Mini PC (6862 - 98583, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Minisforum HM90 | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 |
AIDA64 / Memory Latency | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Average of class Mini PC (44.9 - 184.8, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Minisforum HM90 | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Average Intel Core i9-12900HK (79.9 - 109, n=13) |
* ... smaller is better
DPC Latency
The Morefine S600 Apex Engineer has no problems with increased latencies. Neither opening multiple tabs in Edge nor playing the 4K test video can throw the compact number cruncher off track. The comparison devices often have more problems in this regard.
DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550, AMD Ryzen 7 5700G | |
Morefine S500+, AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Minisforum HM90, AMD Ryzen 9 4900H | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90, AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer, Intel Core i9-12900HK | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0, Intel Core i5-1135G7 | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50, Intel Core i5-11320H |
* ... smaller is better
Storage devices
Our configuration includes an NVMe SSD with 1 TB of storage space. The built-in model is fast and can also achieve good results in our test, and is thus very suitable for everyday tasks. Two more mass storage devices can also be installed in the device, for which another M.2 slot and a 2.5-inch slot are available.
For more comparisons and benchmarks, we refer to our comparison chart.
* ... smaller is better
Disk Throttling: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
GPU Performance
Image output is done via the Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7, and is not supported by a dedicated graphics card. When compared to the rest of the test bench, the Morefine S600 Apex Engineer still has enough performance to secure first place in the synthetic benchmarks. The performance of the AMD Radeon RX Vega 8, which is used in the Morefine S500+, can be surpassed by eleven percent. The iGPU delivers consistently good performance, exceeding the average performance of the Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 that we've documented so far.
Performance Rating - Percent | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Minisforum HM90 |
Unigine Valley 1.0 | |
1920x1080 Extreme HD DirectX AA:x8 | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Minisforum HM90 | |
1920x1080 Extreme HD Preset OpenGL AA:x8 | |
Morefine S600-Apex Engineer | |
Minisforum EliteMini TH50 | |
Minipc Union Ace Magician TK11-A0 | |
Morefine S500+ | |
Minisforum EliteMini HX90 | |
Minisforum EliteMini B550 | |
Minisforum HM90 |