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ACEMAGIC F5A Mini PC Review: AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 Performance AnalysisThis video reviews the ACEMAGIC F5A mini PC, highlighting its AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 CPU, solid build quality, and good cooling. It covers specs, benchmarks, gaming performance, and other use cases, concluding that it's the best mini PC from ACEMAGIC tested so far, despite some minor drawbacks like the large power supply and inconvenient rubber feet.
1. 🚀 Introduction to the ACEMAGIC F5A Mini PC: Features and Pricing
- ✅ The ACEMAGIC F5A features an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX370 CPU with 12 cores and 24 threads.
- ✅ It includes Radeon 890M integrated graphics, a generational boost over the 780M.
- ✅ The barebones version starts at $669 after coupon, while a pre-built with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD costs $819.
| Component | Specification |
|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX370 |
| iGPU | Radeon 890M |
| Starting Price | $669 (barebones) |
00:00 - 01:28
1. 🚀 Introduction to the ACEMAGIC F5A Mini PC: Features and Pricing
- ✅ The ACEMAGIC F5A features an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX370 CPU with 12 cores and 24 threads.
- ✅ It includes Radeon 890M integrated graphics, a generational boost over the 780M.
- ✅ The barebones version starts at $669 after coupon, while a pre-built with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD costs $819.
| Component | Specification |
|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX370 |
| iGPU | Radeon 890M |
| Starting Price | $669 (barebones) |
01:50 - 02:47
2. 📦 Unboxing and Ports Overview of the F5A Mini PC
- ✅ The F5A includes a 19V 120W power brick, HDMI cable, and VESA mount.
- ✅ Front ports: 2x USB Type-A 10Gbps, 1x fully featured USB 4 (power and display), microphone, and reset hole.
- ✅ Side: Oculink port for eGPU connectivity, Wi-Fi 7 chip.
- ✅ Back ports: USB 4, dual Intel 2.5Gb LAN, HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 2.1, USB 10Gbps, and USB 2.0.
02:49 - 03:56
3. 🛠️ Internal Components and OS Compatibility
- ✅ The mini PC includes a 1TB Gen 4 BWIN SSD and 32GB of Kimiggo DDR5 5600 SODIMM RAM.
- ✅ Both M.2 slots are Gen 4 x4.
- ✅ Pre-builds come with Windows 11 Pro pre-installed (malware scan results: clean).
- ✅ Ubuntu is compatible with the latest version.
03:57 - 06:07
4. 📊 Benchmarks: CPU, GPU, and AI Performance
- ✅ Cinebench: F5A performs slightly worse in multi-core compared to other HX370 minis.
- ✅ Geekbench: F5A wins in single-core but lags slightly in multi-core.
- ✅ Video Encoding: F5A is a bit behind in AV1 CPU encoding but wins with AMD VCE encoder on the iGPU.
- ✅ 3DMark: F5A is the fastest HX370 Mini with SODIMM memory, only beaten by Being S9 with faster LPDDR5X.
| Benchmark | F5A Result | Comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Cinebench Multi-Core | Slightly behind | Worse than other HX370 minis |
| Geekbench Single-Core | Winner | Best performer |
| 3DMark Fire Strike | 9% slower | Compared to Being S9 (LPDDR5X) |
06:08 - 07:29
5. 🎮 Gaming and eGPU Performance
- ✅ Generational upgrade in FPS over Ryzen 7 8745HS.
- ✅ Emulators get a nice boost.
- ✅ Double-digit percentage gains across iGPUs and titles.
- ✅ USB 4 and Oculink provide expansion possibilities with eGPUs.
- ✅ Oculink interface performs better than USB 4 due to extra bandwidth.
07:30 - 08:29
6. 🎤 Built-in Microphone, Coding, and Content Creation Performance
- ⚠️ Built-in microphone needs active noise reduction.
- ✅ Fastest compact mini PC for coding (Linux kernel compiling).
- ✅ Fastest in Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere, beating Intel's flagship mobile CPU.
08:30 - 09:53
7. 🌡️ SSD Performance, Thermals, Fan Noise, and Power Consumption
- ✅ Included Bwin Gen 4 SSD is above average.
- ✅ Good heat sink and fan keep temperatures low.
- ⚠️ Bluetooth range is below average.
- ✅ Wireless range is good (Valorant test at 12m).
- ✅ Idle power draw is 8W.
- ✅ Maximum CPU temp is very low.
- ✅ Low load fan noise (36 dBA in balance mode).
10:00 - 10:45
8. ⚙️ Size and BIOS Overview
- ✅ The F5A is almost a liter in volume, slightly larger than the Beink S9, mostly in height.
- ✅ BIOS can be accessed with the delete key on startup.
- ✅ VRAM allocation is set to 2GB by default (recommend at least 4GB for gaming).
- ✅ Hardware monitor allows fan setting changes.
- ✅ Power configuration includes wake on LAN, auto power on, and power limit settings.
10:46 - 12:33
9. 🏆 Conclusion: Final Thoughts and Recommendation
- ✅ Impressed with the ACEMAGIC F5A Mini due to its feature set, good cooling, and low fan noise.
- ✅ The barebones option is the most compelling price-wise.
- ❌ Power supply is too big.
- ❌ Idle fan noise could be lower.
- ❌ Rubber feet are inconvenient.
- ✅ The F5A is the best mini PC tested from ACEMAGIC.