Gigabyte BRIX GB-XM11-3337 System Review

Gigabyte’s BRIX GB-XM11-3337 isn’t widely available yet in the UK but we’ve seen it priced at about £348 in the UK and $420 in the USA. If you look at Intel Core i5 based NUCs then the price is actually pretty similar. Except the Gigabyte BRIX has a marginal advantage in being slightly more compact and having an included wireless module while the Intel Core i5 NUC (DC53427HYE) is marginally faster on the CPU side with a slightly better Core i5 3427U.

In the UK I found one site who are doing an optional “add SODIMM and an mSATA SSD” and basically their estimator says about £431 to get going with a 64GB mSATA SSD and 4GB of SODIMM while a 256GB mSATA SSD and 16GB of SODIMM will set you back a hefty £610. Again this certainly makes Gigabyte’s BRIX a very expensive little mini PC if you want to maximise storage and RAM. Even if you opt for the cheapest configuration £420 is way more than you’d pay for some Core i3 based desktop systems. Again I am still quite sceptical of Gigabyte’s BRIX in the same way I was of Intel’s NUC. This is because these mini PCs are hugely expensive for what you actually get. In effect you are paying a rather large premium for the innovation of the size and for the miniaturisation of the desktop system.

Gigabyte’s BRIX excited me a lot more than the Intel NUC for a few reasons. Firstly, it has a much better CPU component, although it is worth noting you can now buy Intel Core i3 and i5 NUCs abd Gigabyte also offer a Core i3 based BRIX for about £270. Though Gigabyte currently are the only ones to offer a Core i7 variant for about £490 while Intel do not currently offer a Core i7 based NUC. Secondly, Gigabyte bundle a wireless module with their BRIX and this does work out giving you a bit better value for your money. Finally, Gigabyte’s BRIX is actually smaller and better ventilated meaning it is easier to stow away and runs a bit cooler. Additionally the matte design of the unit we looked at means it isn’t a finger print magnet like the Intel NUC.

I have enjoyed reviewing the Gigabyte BRIX GB-XM11-3337 because it is genuinely like a desktop replacement as it packs a lot of punch thanks to its dual core hyperthreaded Ivy Bridge CPU. And like the NUC platform it still manages to be silent, compact and very efficient on the power consumption side of things. The Gigabyte BRIX does make a very capable desktop replacement but naturally you can get a much better desktop for the same money as this. I guess you really have to find a particular use for the low power, compactness and portability of the Gigabyte BRIX otherwise you are just paying hundreds of pounds for what is in effect a novelty item.

Pros

• Low power consumption
• Highly responsive in productivity and general usage scenarios
• Totally silent
• Very compact
• Attractive design, not a finger print magnet
• Decent I/O selection
• Supports 16GB RAM
• Can achieve SATA III disk speeds
• Dramatically faster than Intel’s Atom
• Customisable
• VESA mount makes it incredibly versatile for a wide range of uses
• Available with Core i3, i5 and i7 CPUs
• USB 3.0
• Strong CPU and reasonable GPU

Cons

• Only two USB ports
• Very Expensive, particularly for CPU upgrades (about £100 to go from a Core i3 to a Core i5 and from a Core i5 to a Core i7) although this isn’t something within Gigabyte’s control as Intel dictate CPU, chipset and motherboard prices which is the majority of the unit’s cost
• Comes without RAM, a storage drive and an OS – this makes the device hugely pricey when purchasing them all separately. Gigabyte could bring “economies of scale” cost savings to the consumer by offering pre-built BRIXs with RAM, storage, and an OS in addition to the barebones kits
• Old and dated AMI BIOS
• Storage drive performance is lower than the cheaper Intel Pentium NUC
• No hard drive activity light
• Only a 1 Year warranty

eTeknix says: Gigabyte have taken Intel’s NUC platform and turned it into a rather sexy looking powerhouse. It may not cheap by any stretch of the imagination but it packs a hugely impressive amount of performance for its tiny size. Gigabyte’s BRIX is an innovative take on the NUC platform and a much needed revamp to the previously boring and homogeneous Atom/Brazos dominated mini PC market.

Thank you to Gigabyte UK for providing us with this review sample.