an incredibly compact yet capable mini PC

Long gone are the days when a high performance PC required a massive beige case to sit on your desk. This Geekom AX8 Pro shows that the future is small, or in this case, tiny – this mini PC is one of the smallest you can buy right now, small enough to fit in your hand at just 4.3-inches wide.

While this top-end Geekom mini PC is small, it’s mighty in performance, with the AX8 Pro offering components that make it a great option for daily use. It’s an all AMD affair – the eight-core AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS that powers it is formidable, and while the integrated AMD Radeon 780M GPU won’t be competing with the best gaming PCs out there, it can still handle some modern games at 1080p, as long you choose them carefully.

Everything about the AX8 Pro feels high end, from the box it shipped in to the all metal chassis to the impressive performance. I could genuinely see myself using it on a day-to-day basis as a full replacement for my desktop PC, but it’s important to recognize its limitations: this is a daily driver, all-use mini PC, and not one that’s built specifically for gaming.

With that in mind, I tested the Geekom AX8 Pro out for a few days, seeing how well it performed in general use as both a work and gaming PC.

Specifications

The Geekom AX8 Pro isn’t the most powerful mini PC you can buy, but it certainly sits at the top end of the spectrum. We tested a model with the eight-core, 16-thread AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS CPU, clocked at 4.0GHz with a boost clock speed up to 5.2GHz and a thermal design power (TDP) rating of 45W.

Geekom also offers a less powerful version of the AX8 Pro with a Ryzen 7 8845HS – the difference between them is negligible, with a small reduction in base and boost clock speeds in the Ryzen 7 8845HS (3.8GHz and 5.1GHz respectively) compared to the Ryzen 9 8945HS.

Both versions ship with the integrated AMD Radeon 780M GPU, based on the company’s RDNA 3 architecture and housing 16 Compute Units. It handles standard 1080p gaming pretty well in most, but not all, modern games. The AX8 Pro also comes with 32GB (2 x 16GB) of Crucial DDR5 RAM running at 5600MT/s, although you can upgrade this to up to 64GB in a future upgrade.

For storage, you can choose between either a 1TB and 2TB NVMe SSD, depending on the model you choose. In our review model, this was an Acer branded 2TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, offering plenty of storage for a decent number of games and apps.

Features

There’s a good deal of connections on offer on the Geekom AX8 Pro. There’s WiFi 6E and Bluetooth support plus it includes a 2.5G Ethernet port for wired connections, which is more than plenty for handling high end gaming, as long as your network setup is good enough.

There’s plenty of external I/O on offer, too. On the back, the AX8 Pro has two HDMI 2.0 ports for multiple displays, along with several USB ports. One of these is a USB 4 gen 3 that provides a third display output via DisplayPort over USB support. It can handle resolutions up to 8K at 30Hz and can be connected to the DisplayPort sockets of normal monitors by using an adapter or connect directly to those displays that include a USB-C input. There’s also another Type-C USB 3.2 port, along with two Type-As, one USB 3.2 gen 2 and another USB 2.0. You’ll also find the 2.5G Ethernet port and DC power jack on the back.

On the front, there are two more USB Type-A ports (2 x USB 3.2 gen 2) and a 3.5mm headphone port. While it isn’t technically part of the PC itself, the Geekom AX8 Pro also ships with one really useful accessory: a handy VESA mount that you can attach to it, allowing you to hide the PC entirely by mounting it to your monitor or TV.

Geekom offers a 30-day returns period and a three-year warranty for all of its mini PCs, and the AX8 Pro is no exception here. Geekom doesn’t provide much indication as to what is covered and what isn’t, beyond a disclaimer over intentional misuse or “unauthorized” changes.

Design

The design of the Geekom AX8 Pro isn’t going to surprise you – it’s small and it’s a square. The shape is the least interesting part about this build, because held within its boxy chassis is a very cleverly-designed mini PC. The case is 4.6 x 4.37 x 1.51-inches in size, which is arguably one of the smallest mini PCs you can buy right now.

The full metal casing looks and feels premium to the touch, with a sparkling silver effect that manages to elevate it above just a metal box. On the sides, an aesthetically pleasing honeycomb design allows air to vent through, though this design isn’t echoed in the rear vents, which is a bit of a shame.

While the grills look great for the most part, though, they’re also responsible for my biggest gripe with the Geekom AX8 Pro. This is a small PC, and the fans do a great job of keeping the system cool, but the system is designed in such a way that the sound of the air forced out through the vents at the back is like that of a jet engine, if the system is working hard. It’s a trade off you’ll have to accept, however, given the incredibly small size of this mini PC. Plus, under general, lighter usage, I couldn’t hear it much at all, but it was a different story while I was gaming.

Returning to the case itself, the nice thing about the I/O on both the front and the back is that the ports themselves are very cleanly recessed back inside the metal. It makes the ports feel as solid as the case, without stopping you from using them. Flip the case over and the honeycomb vents continue, covering the entire bottom of the system, other than the two long rubber feet for the case to sit on.

One thing to note about the AX8 Pro is that, despite the small size, it actually feels quite heavy, even though it’s only 1.21lbs. That might not sound like much, but the compact nature of the AX8 Pro makes it a noticeable weight in your bag if you’re planning on transporting it anywhere. The metal casing makes it very sturdy, though, so it’ll stand up to a fair amount of in-bag jostling.

Should you need to open up the AX8 Pro for an upgrade or some tinkering, just four screws hold the bottom in place – the top then pulls straight off. Underneath, you’ll see the supplied RAM and SSD, which in our test model consists of 32GB (2 x 16GB) of Crucial DDR5 RAM in SODIMM format and an Acer N7000 NVMe M.2 SSD. While there aren’t any spare expansion slots to add additional memory or storage, Geekom has made upgrading easy enough, thanks to the very accessible positioning of the modules themselves.

If you want to use the supplied VESA mount, you’ll need to screw two mounting screws to the back of the AX8 Pro, which allow it to securely slot into the mount when it’s attached to a monitor or TV.

Benchmarks

The Geekom AX8 Pro might support a 4K resolution, but with a Radeon 780M, playing games at 4K or even 1440p isn’t on the cards. If you shift down to 1080p, however, then gaming gets a lot more realistic, although you’ll need to pick your games carefully, because as our benchmarks show, your mileage really will vary.

For instance, Cyberpunk 2077 can be punishing even with the best graphics cards, but especially with a laptop-grade GPU like the Radeon 780M. Even with low preset settings, the AX8 Pro only managed 43fps on average. That did increase to closer to the magic 60fps mark with AMD FSR switched on, but enabling FSR at 1080p comes with its own drawbacks, as the low resolution starting point for the upscaling results in much blurrier graphics.

Things were much better in F1 2024, however. Again, using low presets, the AX8 Pro managed to hit 73fps on average, with lows of only 70fps. Compared to Cyberpunk 2077, F1 2024 is a much less graphically demanding game, making it an easier ride for the AMD Radeon 780M to handle.

Finally, Total War: Warhammer 3 scored 52fps on average, also using a low graphics preset. That would certainly be playable for the most part, but it again demonstrates the limitations of the GPU’s power, and you’ll need to expect the odd stutter during periods of high demand mid-game.

The synthetic benchmark tests were a little more interesting, however. The CPU scored 953 points in Cinebench R24, during a multi-threaded test, and 108 points in the single-threaded test, showing consistent performance throughout.

Performance during 3DMark’s Time Spy tests, however, starkly highlights the two sides to this mini PC. In particular, the large gap between the Time Spy CPU and GPU scores, scoring 11,433 for the CPU and 2,986 for the GPU, shows just how big the gulf in performance is when the AX8 Pro is performing CPU-heavy and GPU-heavy tasks.

Price

A high quality build and powerful components come at a premium, and unfortunately, the Geekom AX8 Pro isn’t hitting our best budget gaming PC shortlist any time soon. This Geekom PC is firmly in the top-end of the mini PC market, no matter which option you choose, with MSRPs ranging from $749 to $899, depending on the specs.

In contrast, plenty of mini PCs at the lower end of the market are available in the $300-400 range, but crucially these aren’t 1080p gaming-capable. While you could spend a lot less on a mini PC like the Blackview MP200, it’s not going to be getting you reasonable 1080p gaming like the AX8 Pro.

Meanwhile, larger gaming PCs offer considerably more power for the same price, with easier upgrade options too. However, even $899 is still quite a tight budget for a full-size gaming PC, so we’re not talking about a monstrous machine able to game at 4K.

As for other portable gaming comparisons, modern gaming handhelds like the Steam Deck or Asus ROG Ally, offer better gaming performance and even better portability, but are far less suited to more general PC usage than the AX8 Pro.

If you’re interested in picking up a Geekom AX8 Pro, you can take advantage of Geekom’s Black Friday deal. Right now, the 1TB version of the AX8 Pro has a 16% discount, bringing the price down to just $599, while the 2TB version has a bigger 20% saving, costing just $759.

You can grab either model from the Geekom site using this link here. If you’re based in the UK, you can use this link to purchase the AX8 Pro directly from the Geekom UK website instead.

Amazon customers can also grab the same discounts for each AX8 Pro model in the US. You can grab the 1TB version by using this link or the 2TB version using this link instead. Be quick, though, as the offer ends on December 2, 2024.

Verdict

The beauty of the Geekom AX8 Pro is in its design. Without question, Geekom has really triumphed here in condensing a truly powerful all-rounder PC into a case that’s just inches wide. While the loud cooling fans under heavy loads is a trade off, it’s a fair one, as the AX8 Pro is a high-performance, high-grade mini PC that’s portable enough to take anywhere you go. It feels robust, surviving multiple trips in my backpack without a single scratch.

The AX8 Pro isn’t necessarily a top end gaming PC, but our benchmarks show it can just about hold its own, as long as you’re happy sticking with 1080p at low settings with the odd frame rate drop. Ultimately, this is a jack-of-all-trades mini PC first and a gaming machine second, aimed more at the casual gamer.

However, it’s important to mention the price. With an MSRP of between $749 and $899, depending on the storage and CPU options you choose, the Geekom AX8 Pro doesn’t offer the best cost-to-performance ratio for gaming that you can find. It’s neither as powerful as a full-size gaming PC of the same price nor as portable and convenient as a gaming handheld that’s cheaper.

All in all, though, the Geekom AX8 Pro is a decent choice if you’re a casual gamer looking for a mini PC that can do it all. It won’t appeal if you’re on a budget, but if you can afford it, the AX8 Pro will give you plenty of power for almost anything you want to do, all in a PC that you can fit in your pocket.

Check out our best mini gaming PC guide next, where you can review our selection of some of the best pre-built small form factor PCs that you can currently buy.