Thunderobot teases gaming desktop with 16-core Chinese processor to rival modern Intel processors

Earlier this month, Thunderobot introduced its Mix G2 and Mix NUC mini-PCs based around Intel and AMD processors, respectively. For reference, while the former rivals the Asus ROG NUC 2025, the latter features the same form factor and processor as the Beelink SER9 and other comparable mini-PCs (curr. $649 on Amazon).

Now, Thunderobot has pivoted to the Hygon C86, an x86 processor made in China that is also known as the Black Warrior Hunting Blade Pro. Built around 16 cores with 32 threads but with an unknown TDP, the Hygon C86 is said to sit between Intel's Core i7-13700 and Core i7-14700K in terms of multi-core performance. However, a 2.8 GHz peak clock speed sees the Hygon C86 reaching the single-core performance of the Core i7-12700 with a pretty woeful showing of 1,073 and 8,811 points in Geekbench 6's single-core and multi-core benchmarks.

Despite these middling performance numbers, Thunderobot has decided to keep the Hygon C86 in check with an all-in-one (AIO) cooler aided by a top-mounted radiator and three other large fans. Unfortunately, other details like pricing and availability remain unknown for now. From the picture below, Thunderobot's gaming desktop also contains enough space for a full-length desktop graphics card, along with a host of front-mounted I/O.