Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 (Intel Provo Canyon NUC8v7PNB) Mini PC Review: Passively-Cooled Whiskey Lake for Enterprise

Last October, Swiss IT company Prime Computer launched the PrimeMini 5 fanless mini PC based on the Intel NUC8 Provo Canyon platform. The PrimeMini 5 can be purchased by individuals but is primarily geared towards enterprises who need an easily deployable and serviceable solution with the peace of mind of a five-year support period.
The PrimeMini 5's configuration can be customized to a large extent. Buyers can choose between Core i3-8145U, Core i5-8365U, and Core i7-8665U (the Core i5 and Core i7 are offered as vPro options) processors, 8 GB to 32 GB of DDR4-2400 RAM, and a desired combination of NVMe and SATA storage. A choice of Microsoft Windows 10 Pro, Windows Server 2016/2019, or Ubuntu can also be availed.
Our PrimeMini 5 unit is equipped with a passively-cooled Core i7-8665U Whiskey Lake vPro processor, 16 GB of DDR4-2400 RAM in dual-channel mode, 256 GB Samung 860 EVO M.2 SSD, and comes with Windows 10 Pro pre-installed. At a retail price of €1,322 (US$1,548) that includes a Windows 10 Pro license, the PrimeMini 5 isn't exactly a low-cost offering. Can it perform well to tackle the vagaries of daily office work? Let's find out.
Changelog:
01/25 - Added photos of device internals.
Competitors in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Height | Size | Resolution | Price |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
v (old) | 01 / 2021 | Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB i7-8665U, UHD Graphics 620 | 1.3 kg | 55 mm | x | ||
v (old) | 02 / 2020 | Intel NUC10i7FNH i7-10710U, UHD Graphics 620 | 697 g | 51 mm | 0.00" | 0x0 | |
v (old) | 11 / 2018 | Intel NUC8i7BE i7-8559U, Iris Plus Graphics 655 | 683 g | 51 mm | x | ||
v (old) | 06 / 2019 | Intel NUC8i7BEH Asura NVMe SSD i7-8559U, Iris Plus Graphics 655 | 683 g | 51 mm | x | ||
v (old) | 12 / 2020 | Beelink SEi10 i3-1005G1, UHD Graphics G1 (Ice Lake 32 EU) | 350 g | 41 mm | x | ||
v (old) | 10 / 2020 | Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano i5-10210U, UHD Graphics 620 | 472 g | 51 mm | x | ||
v (old) | 12 / 2019 | Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano i5-8265U, UHD Graphics 620 | 499 g | 22 mm | 0.00" | x |
Case
The PrimeMini 5 sports a premium design and this can be felt right from the time of unboxing to using the actual product itself. Having a length of nearly seven inches and weighing about 1.3 kg, the PrimeMini 5 is not the sleekest mini PC on the market. Having said that, the device still has a small footprint with a minimalist design and will easily fit in most workspaces.
The PrimeMini 5 sports an all-aluminum construction, and we didn't observe any cracks or creaks. The top side of the device has a finned design possibly to keep the device light and also help with better heat dissipation. There is provision for VESA mounting on the bottom plate, but no mounting accessory is provided in the packaging itself.
The PrimeMini 5 is IP51-rated for limited dust ingress and water condensation protection.
Connectivity
The PrimeMini 5 offers a decent port selection. Apart from the standard set of ports that includes Thunderbolt 3, buyers can also choose to have an additional RJ-45 LAN port, RS-232 serial port, VGA port, and a set of USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports if desired. The ports are upside-down because of the way the motherboard is oriented inside the chassis.
Unfortunately, an SD card slot, IR port, and audio jacks are not available.
Maintenance
Update 01/25: Upgrading the PrimeMini 5 is easy and only requires removing four screws at the bottom. Unfortunately, our review sample came with two of the four screws stripped, which meant that we could not remove them with the available tools at hand. Therefore, we had requested Prime Computer to send us a few pictures of the innards and are including them below.
Communication
The PrimeMini 5 comes equipped with an Intel Wireless AC 9260 WLAN card with Bluetooth 4.2 support. While a more modern wireless AX solution would have been preferable, the wireless AC 9260 can still offer a total theoretical throughput of up to 1.73 Gbps on the 5 GHz band in the 160 MHz channel.
The PrimeMini 5's Intel 9260 WLAN card showed a highly consistent send and receive performance offering up to 1.2 Gbps throughput when placed exactly at a distance of 1 m from our Netgear Nighthawk RAX120 router.
Networking | |
iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
iperf3 receive AX12 | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano | |
Intel NUC8i7BE |
Accessories
Inside the box, we find the PrimeMini 5 unit itself, the AC adapter, two antennas for Wi-Fi connectivity, and a VGA to HDMI adapter along with some paperwork.
Warranty
Prime Computer offers a neat five-year warranty for all kinds of customers. B2B customers can also lease the PrimeMini 5 for periods ranging from three to five years as part of the Prime Computer as a Service program.
Performance
The PrimeMini 5 is based on the Intel NUC Provo Canyon platform. We checked with Prime Computer as to why it didn't opt for the newer Comet Lake-based Frost Canyon base. The company said that Provo Canyon boards were the only ones available with 15 W vPro processors, which is an important factor when catering to B2B customers.
Apparently, Intel ran into some issues that delayed the Provo Canyon Pro launch, which meant that it would be available only around the time the PrimeMini 5 was being developed. Prime Computer said that it is focused on offering long-term support for businesses rather than chasing the newest CPU generation.
Processor
Since the PrimeMini 5 is a fanless PC, we do see some reduction in performance of the Core i7-8665U compared to its implementation in conventional laptops such as the Dell Latitude 5500 or the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 2019. Both the PL1 and PL2 of the Core i7-8665U have been restricted to 16 W.
Though the PL1 and PL2 can be changed in the BIOS, Prime Computer tells us that these values have been found to be optimal for this design keeping in mind the five-year warranty. The company cautioned that raising the PL1/PL2 values may damage the M.2 SSD over time if the system runs at full load. We conducted our testing at the factory-default PL1/PL2 values.
In the Cinebench R15 loop, we see that the PrimeMini 5 does not sustain too well, but the performance drop isn't drastic either. The lack of a fan and the constrained TDPs clearly show their effects as even the Coffee Lake Core i7-8559U-powered Intel NUC8i7BEH shows higher scores and a more consistent performance in the Cinebench R15 multi-core loop test.
Understandably, the same Core i7-8665U in laptops performs better overall with consistent sustained performance.
Check out our dedicated page on the Core i7-8665U for more technical information and benchmark comparisons.
The Core i7-8665U's in the PrimeMini 5 lags behind the overall processor average in benchmarks such as Cinebench R15 and R20, 7-zip, Blender, and HWBOT x265. That being said, those using this mini PC for regular office work should find no major troubles as long as the workload does not involve highly complicated spreadsheets or documents.
Cinebench R15: CPU Single 64Bit | CPU Multi 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 -mmt1 | 7z b 4
Geekbench 5.5: Single-Core | Multi-Core
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
Cinebench R20 / CPU (Single Core) | |
Average of class Desktop (451 - 902, n=11, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (379 - 472, n=5) | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB |
Cinebench R20 / CPU (Multi Core) | |
Average of class Desktop (4085 - 16722, n=11, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (1050 - 1530, n=5) | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Beelink SEi10 |
Cinebench R15 / CPU Single 64Bit | |
Average of class Desktop (233 - 356, n=15, last 2 years) | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (143 - 199, n=7) | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano |
Cinebench R15 / CPU Multi 64Bit | |
Average of class Desktop (2094 - 6588, n=15, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (458 - 701, n=7) | |
Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Beelink SEi10 |
Blender / v2.79 BMW27 CPU | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (716 - 978, n=4) | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Average of class Desktop (77 - 333, n=13, last 2 years) |
7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 -mmt1 | |
Average of class Desktop (7176 - 8020, n=10, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (4338 - 4988, n=4) | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Beelink SEi10 |
7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 | |
Average of class Desktop (64613 - 160423, n=10, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (14665 - 20023, n=5) | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Beelink SEi10 |
Geekbench 5.5 / Single-Core | |
Average of class Desktop (1967 - 2559, n=11, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U () | |
Intel NUC8i7BE |
Geekbench 5.5 / Multi-Core | |
Average of class Desktop (11095 - 26186, n=11, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U () | |
Beelink SEi10 |
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 / 4k Preset | |
Average of class Desktop (19.5 - 45.7, n=10, last 2 years) | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Dell Latitude 5500 | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U (3.82 - 5.2, n=5) | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Beelink SEi10 |
LibreOffice / 20 Documents To PDF | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U () | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Average of class Desktop (35.5 - 45.1, n=10, last 2 years) |
R Benchmark 2.5 / Overall mean | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB | |
Average Intel Core i7-8665U () | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano | |
Intel NUC10i7FNH | |
Intel NUC8i7BE | |
Average of class Desktop (0.3307 - 0.4141, n=10, last 2 years) |
* ... smaller is better
System Performance
Though the effects of the power and cooling limitations imposed upon the processor are evident, the overall system performance is good. The PrimeMini 5 shows marginal advantages over the Beelink SEi10 and the Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano in most PCMark tests.
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2 | 3703 points | |
PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2 | 4783 points | |
PCMark 10 Score | 3763 points | |
Help |
DPC Latency
Since the PrimeMini 5 runs on standard Intel hardware without any additional third-party driver overheads, we see that the highest measured latency is just 647.20 µs in LatencyMon.
Frame drops in our sample YouTube 4K playback test were minimal at about 9 frames out of a total of 2,098. That being said, the integrated UHD Graphics 620 looks to be stretching itself in order to ensure fairly smooth 4K playback.
DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
Beelink SEi10 | |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB |
* ... smaller is better
Storage Devices
Our PrimeMini 5 unit came equipped with a 256 GB Samsung 860 EVO M.2 SSD. The read/write performance is on par with what can be expected from a high-performing SATA SSD. Users can also install an NVMe SSD and/or a SATA 2.5-inch drive if desired.
The Samsung 860 EVO showed no throttling in the DiskSpd read loop test.
Refer to our dedicated HDD/SSD benchmarks page for more storage performance comparisons.
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB Samsung SSD 860 Evo 256GB M.2 | Intel NUC10i7FNH Kingston RBUSNS8154P3256GJ1 | Beelink SEi10 Silicon Motion AZW 256G M.2280 NVMe 4X 200725 D | Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano Western Digital WD Blue 3D WDBNCE5000PNC | Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano Samsung SSD PM981 MZVLB512HAJQ | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
AS SSD | 37% | -40% | -23% | 108% | |
Seq Read | 526 | 1306 148% | 1111 111% | 507 -4% | 1668 217% |
Seq Write | 492.8 | 611 24% | 323.5 -34% | 413.8 -16% | 1150 133% |
4K Read | 43.79 | 21.53 -51% | 33.1 -24% | 36.75 -16% | 48.46 11% |
4K Write | 95.8 | 53.5 -44% | 66.2 -31% | 88.5 -8% | 116.5 22% |
4K-64 Read | 372.2 | 652 75% | 357.3 -4% | 369.4 -1% | 726 95% |
4K-64 Write | 331.8 | 648 95% | 154.8 -53% | 193.7 -42% | 1074 224% |
Access Time Read * | 0.048 | 0.114 -138% | 0.066 -38% | 0.103 -115% | 0.039 19% |
Access Time Write * | 0.104 | 0.07 33% | 0.616 -492% | 0.095 9% | 0.032 69% |
Score Read | 469 | 804 71% | 501 7% | 457 -3% | 942 101% |
Score Write | 477 | 762 60% | 253 -47% | 324 -32% | 1305 174% |
Score Total | 1200 | 1944 62% | 983 -18% | 1023 -15% | 2716 126% |
Copy ISO MB/s | 488.8 | 976 100% | 1160 137% | 482.5 -1% | |
Copy Program MB/s | 377.5 | 346 -8% | 121.1 -68% | 191.9 -49% | |
Copy Game MB/s | 383.9 | 735 91% | 364.4 -5% | 248.9 -35% | |
CrystalDiskMark 5.2 / 6 | 170% | 117% | -3% | 144% | |
Write 4K | 113.7 | 442.4 289% | 203 79% | 105.9 -7% | 130 14% |
Read 4K | 44.61 | 371.1 732% | 63.2 42% | 39.15 -12% | 45.61 2% |
Write Seq | 408.1 | 900 121% | 1114 173% | ||
Read Seq | 541 | 1582 192% | 1765 226% | ||
Write 4K Q32T1 | 318.8 | 373.8 17% | 423.9 33% | 320.5 1% | 365.3 15% |
Read 4K Q32T1 | 342.6 | 374.9 9% | 389.2 14% | 342.1 0% | 350.2 2% |
Write Seq Q32T1 | 517 | 893 73% | 1104 114% | 514 -1% | 2986 478% |
Read Seq Q32T1 | 559 | 1582 183% | 1990 256% | 554 -1% | 3565 538% |
Write 4K Q8T8 | 348.2 | 399.1 15% | 330.8 -5% | 368.7 6% | |
Read 4K Q8T8 | 396.9 | 688 73% | 391.8 -1% | 790 99% | |
Total Average (Program / Settings) | 104% /
93% | 39% /
17% | -13% /
-16% | 126% /
123% |
* ... smaller is better
Disk Throttling: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
GPU Performance
There is no discrete graphics in the PrimeMini 5, and the mini PC relies solely on the integrated UHD Graphics 620 in the Core i7-8665U. Given the TDP limitations, the performance is not surprising. Additionally, the slower DDR4-2400 RAM also impacts the scores.
The same UHD Graphics 620 in the Intel Frost Canyon NUC10i7FNH and the Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano is between 10% and 18% faster as these mini PCs do not have such stringent TDP restrictions and also come with faster DDR4-2666 RAM.
3DMark 11 Performance | 1912 points | |
3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 8187 points | |
3DMark Fire Strike Score | 1111 points | |
3DMark Time Spy Score | 432 points | |
Help |
The PrimeMini 5 is not a gaming machine by any stretch. The UHD Graphics 620 can only play older titles such as Dota 2 Reborn at low settings. Those seeking a mini PC capable of gaming should look elsewhere.
low | med. | high | ultra | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Dota 2 Reborn (2015) | 76 | 45.9 | 20.1 | 18 |
Final Fantasy XV Benchmark (2018) | 12.3 | |||
X-Plane 11.11 (2018) | 12.6 | 12.2 | 11 |
Emissions
System Noise
The PrimeMini 5 is a fanless mini PC, so the operation is pretty much silent. We also did not notice any whine or sounds emanating from other internal components during stress testing with a combination of Prime95 and FurMark for about an hour.
Temperature
Being power-limited does have its advantages at least when it comes to temperatures. We recorded a maximum of 50.5 °C surface temperature under stress. The bulk of this heat seemed to localize mostly around the middle region of the device.
As a result, the PrimeMini 5 can be handled away from the center without much discomfort if the device is under stress. The AC adapter warmed up to just 40.1 °C under full load.
Stress Test
We stressed the PrimeMini 5 with Prime95 and FurMark for about an hour to see how they affected clocks and temperatures. Though the Core i7-8665U can boost up to 4.8 GHz, it can do so only momentarily. Prime95 stress showed the CPU clocks settling around 1.7 GHz on all four cores resulting in an average core temperature of about 62 °C. Adding FurMark to the mix results in a reduction of clocks to 0.89 GHz as the available thermal headroom needs to be shared with the iGPU.
CPU Clock (GHz) | GPU Clock (MHz) | Average CPU Temperature (°C) | Average GPU Temperature (°C) | |
System Idle | 0.69 | -- | 44 | 37 |
Prime95 Stress | 1.7 | -- | 62 | 54 |
Prime95+FurMark Stress | 0.89 | 698.3 | 62 | 56 |
Energy Management
Power Consumption
The PrimeMini 5's power consumption is generally economical though the consumption at idle seems to be a little on the higher side as evidenced by the occasional spikes seen.
Under a combined Prime95+FurMark stress, the consumption peaks to a maximum of 38.38 W but later averages out at 33.1 W.
In 3DMark 06, we see an average power consumption of 29.95 W during the entire benchmark run. The average consumption drops to about 26.16 W during the CPU phase of the benchmark (between 3 min and 4 min) as the GPU clocks down to nearly zero.
The PrimeMini 5 cannot run on USB power and must be used with the supplied 90 W power brick. The AC adapter uses a standard 2-pin power connector though a 3-pin one would have been preferable for proper earthing.
Off / Standby | ![]() ![]() |
Idle | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Load |
![]() ![]() |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |
Key:
min: ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Prime Computer PrimeMini 5 i7 NUC8v7PNB i7-8665U, UHD Graphics 620, Samsung SSD 860 Evo 256GB M.2, , x, | Beelink SEi10 i3-1005G1, UHD Graphics G1 (Ice Lake 32 EU), Silicon Motion AZW 256G M.2280 NVMe 4X 200725 D, , x, | Zotac ZBOX MI642 Nano i5-10210U, UHD Graphics 620, Western Digital WD Blue 3D WDBNCE5000PNC, , x, | Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n-1 Nano i5-8265U, UHD Graphics 620, Samsung SSD PM981 MZVLB512HAJQ, , x, 0" | Intel NUC8i7BE i7-8559U, Iris Plus Graphics 655, , , x, | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Power Consumption | 24% | -1% | 33% | 6% | |
Idle Minimum * | 6.19 | 6.3 -2% | 8.9 -44% | 4.4 29% | 2.7 56% |
Idle Average * | 11.16 | 6.6 41% | 9 19% | 4.4 61% | 3.1 72% |
Idle Maximum * | 30.04 | 6.7 78% | 9.9 67% | 4.7 84% | 6.3 79% |
Load Average * | 33.1 | 25.9 22% | 33 -0% | 27.7 16% | 59.7 -80% |
Load Maximum * | 39.38 | 46.7 -19% | 58 -47% | 49.9 -27% | 78 -98% |
Witcher 3 ultra * | 47.2 |
* ... smaller is better
Pros
Cons
Verdict
With configuration choices up to the Core i7-8665U vPro, up to 32 GB of RAM, and a combination of NVMe and SATA storage, the PrimeMini 5 has a lot to offer for businesses that require a robust computing solution that can be deployed with minimum fuss. The all-aluminum construction lends a premium look to the device while also offering IP51 protection to keep dust out.
Connectivity options are good, and buyers will be glad to know that Prime Computer also allows adding a few additional ports in addition to what the Intel NUC8 Provo Canyon Pro board already offers.
The PrimeMini 5 will appeal to enterprises looking for simple IT administration and long-lasting product support, and to those who don't mind an older generation platform as long as it offers an overall low total operating cost. This is definitely not a mini PC aimed at performance connoisseurs.
There is still room for improvement, though. For the asking price, we would like to see more accessories in the box such as a VESA mounting plate, for example. Though additional peripherals can be added via USB docks, presence of an SD card slot, 3.5 mm audio jacks, and a Kensington lock slot would have been welcome. Some users may also feel the need for an IR port and biometric authentication.
On the processing side, the overall performance should be just about sufficient to cater to regular office work such as word processing, basic spreadsheets, and presentations. The passively-cooled, TDP-limited chip means that there's only so much performance that can be squeezed out of the machine before hitting throttling thresholds. That being said, a slightly higher power limit may be useful for that occasional boost.
Price and availability
Prime Computer confirmed that it is no longer selling products via its webshop. Individuals and B2B customers can purchase the PrimeMini 5 from the company's list of official resellers and distributors.