It has been one year after Chuwi introduced its Higame PC, which featured an Intel Core I7-8809G Processor with Radeon RX Vega M GH graphics. However, its price was too much compared to its competition. However, the question is whether the Chuwi GT Box Mini workstation encounters the same problems or not. Let’s find out by looking at the specs and features of this PC.
Design:
The GT Box has the same chassis of Higame PC with small changes. The enclosure seems like the old Apple Mac Pro has been shrunk. The device even contains carrying handles, but they are quite small and aren’t useful.
It is as stylish as the Higame PC, and the build quality is the same as what you would expect from Chuwi. It is quite solid and resolutely low key. The primary material used here is metal. The tone has sharp edges, a darker color theme, and an air vent to help air circulation.
You can position the chassis either vertically or horizontally, with a rubber strip present near the air vents to slightly lift it. Opening the GT Box is quite easy, but requires a Torx screwdriver.
There isn’t any Thunderbolt 3 port on the front, only a power button. The back has two HDMI ports, a GbE Ethernet port, four USB ports, and two audio connectors. However, there isn’t any card reader or optical out.
Hardware:
There is a shortage of Intel CPU globally. This storm results in the fact that smaller manufacturers like Chuwi or Telecast only get scraps.
In practice, it means is that they have to rely on old technology. For example, the processor of GT Box is a four-year-old Intel Core i3-5005U. It contains two cores and four threads, a 3MB cache and a 2GHz chip. This isn’t a bad chip but doesn’t come with improvements for its graphics subsystem.
The rest of the features are the same as you would expect from a device with such a price. It has a 256GB Netac SSD, an M2 extension port, a power adapter, a 12V3A brick model, and a SATA connector.
Performance:
The GT Box will work excellently for an entry-level workstation or an office PC. However, you shouldn’t expect it to run heavy games. If you want to run heavy games, you should check out the Razer Blade Performance laptop.
The GT Box contains an SSD, which is a better option than the usual eMMC present on computers and entry-level workstations. However, if you just run light applications on it, it won’t create any issues.
Competition:
No one of the big three that is Lenovo, Dell, or HP, has a computer that comes close to the Chuwi GT Box mini workstation. However, the thing is that if you don’t want a traditional box with versatility, you should buy a laptop.
Amazon is selling the Lenovo Ideapad S145 laptop for $339, which is slightly more than what Chuwi is offering. It is quite a powerful CPU with low power dissipation and over twice the storage capacity. Other things in the deal include a keyboard, display, trackpad plus, a webcam, and a battery.
Beelink also has a similar-configured PC, with a far less asking price of just $269. It also has superior expansion power and features a MicroSD card, Type-C connector, and a DisplayPort connector.
The X55, also from the same manufacturer, has a second HDMI port and swaps the memory for the new LPDDR4 type. The price is taken up to $290, which is cheaper than Chuwi’s.
Verdict:
If you don’t care much about the looks, Chuwi’s GT Box isn’t the right fit for you. The reason is that there are many other cheaper alternatives in the market with the same capabilities. Although it is aesthetically pleasing, buying a laptop is a better alternative.
