MinisForum UM690 Review (Ryzen 9 6900HX)
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- Опубліковано 25 лип 2024
- The new MinisForum UM690 features a Ryzen 9 6000 series CPU , giving it exceptional PC gaming and emulation performance in a tiny form factor and without the need for a graphics card. In this video we'll take a look at its performance as an everyday computer and also how it works as a gaming PC.
Buy one here: shrsl.com/3vp8x
RGC Mini PC spreadsheet: tinyurl.com/RGCminiPC
This was a review unit sent to me by the manufacturer. All opinions are my own, they did not see this review ahead of time, and no money was exchanged in any way.
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Timestamps:
00:00 introduction
01:46 specs and pricing
03:22 unboxing and impressions
04:41 teardown
06:30 size comparisons
07:51 benchmarking
12:09 PC game testing
15:18 3DS, GameCube, Wii U, Switch
17:43 PS2 and PS3
19:05 Xbox and Xbox 360
20:51 Batocera test
22:00 summary (likes and dislikes)
24:18 comparison with Beelink GTR6
29:59 conclusion
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This video is for entertainment and educational purposes only.
#MinisForum #miniPC #Ryzen9 - Ігри
Im glad sticks of butter are finally being recognized as units of measurement.
I want to see Russ use a popular commodity in his home of Hawaii for size comparisons, cans of Spam.
Americans will do anything not to use the metric system
@@St0rmer66 LMAO
That particular butter is incredible, too.
Just a note around the cost mentioned @3:16 - I just got my barebones UM690, added RAM & SSD then installed Win10 on it. Looks like MinisForum is using the OEM Activation feature, with a product key baked into the BIOS. It automatically activated it as Win10 Pro. (Assuming Win11 would also work.) So the windows license is included with barebones units as well - nice!
Oh that’s awesome, thanks for the feedback!
He did make that appear like a freebie you would get when you bought accessorie parts from them. I'm glad someone else brought this up. Most companies give you a license built in like this anymore when you buty a system.
This is one of the best reviews of this MiniPC that I've seen to date - and I've seen a lot of them. Thanks.
These ryzen mini pc's are getting to a point where I dont need much else.
Yeah Im sure when my system dies? One of these is replacing it. By then it will be
Same! I switched to this exact model (had an HX90 before it) and I don't have any issues with it. Of course I only care about 1080p and older games but this edges close enough to where I think it's the most you'll ever need if you're not a mega gamer or graphics nerd but still want to play something that needs some power.
And then I go play on my switch and my steam deck
@@davefroman4700You called it, sub $400 almost everywhere.
It would be pretty nice if you could do an updated batocera tutorial like you did with the updated emu deck guide that really helped me a lot. Keep up the good work
One thing to note about the cooling - it is meant to be mounted vertically on the stand so that the cooler intakes from the bottom and exhausts out the top and back.
Thanks for all the hard work of testing these mini PCs. 💪
Gave you a like and subscribe solely on the fact that you made an awesome comparison spreadsheet. Thank you so much!!
I bought one of these in the beginning of January. I love it. You stared they would ship with better storage, mine has that exact same M.2 drive. Might upgrade in the future but its great!
Just here to boost this in the algorithm. Keep the great vids coming!
First time to see the Face of this channel. Thumbs up for all the reviews. Thanks.
I have an HP from about 2013. I've been looking for something in a small form factor. I just ordered this with 64gb of ram and the 1tb ssd. Very excited to get my hands on it. Thank you, for this review.
A very thorough and informative review. Thank you!
Very good review bro..im planning to buy one of these mini pc👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 nice have spredsheet👍🏼🇵🇭
Thanks for this GREAT review!!!
That is sooo cool. I might pick one of these up
Very nice, detailed and comprehensive video. But for an in depth review, you've forgotten to mention, that the GTR6 has 4 HDMI 2.1 ports for 4*8k60Hz or 4*4k120Hz compared to the UM690 with just 2 HDMI 2.0 and 1 USB4 port, where you can use just 1*8k60hz or 1*4k120hz and 2*4k60Hz. And at least for the EU the UM690 with 32GB+512GB costs 799 € where the GTR6 costs just 769 € with the same specs.
The best review of minisforum in my opinion❤
been seriously considering getting one of these as a full time emulator system i have a 12tb external drive using hyperspin front end with hundreds of systems up to ps4 and thousands of games and i feel like this would be a perfect little setup to hook into a tv and just game like its a console plus i could take it to family or friends houses for easy gaming sessions
And? Have you bought one? Would like to hear your impressions 😅. I am also considering getting one
@@hollllllllz no still havent pulled the trigger on it lol im kinda hoping they go on a good sale and ill pick one up so for now ill keep using my main rig till then
Bought one on Amazon for $580 used it exclusively for gaming, worth it.
Thanks for the video.
Hi Russ, big fan of the channel. Ever since you started reviewing mini PCs, I wanted to get one myself to turn into a dedicated retro emulation console for my TV with Batocera, to relive my childhood gaming days. But I found several of them to be lacking when it came to 6th and 7th gen consoles. When I saw MinisForum release the UM690, I knew I had to get it, and now I have the barebones model. Now I'm waiting on the RAM and SSD, I really can't wait to make my DIY retro console dream come true. Thank you so much for your thorough review of this PC, I know I'll be in good hands once I get the rest of my components. I'll also be using your Batocera mini PC tutorial to get set up.
EDIT: I got it all set up now on my TV!
I too also plan to buy one for the living room to get some nostalgia and play games I never had the chance to try on 1080p high settings. Where you able to play roms for PCS3 and Yuzu?
@@g.abzilla7665 Haven't tested out Nintendo Switch on Batocera yet, and I played a light PS3 game on it, which was Dragon's Crown. That game ran just fine.
I’m actually working towards the same build for similar reasons. Just curious if you could tell me your choice of ram and ssd type and specs that you chose for your build. Thanks!
@@jimjam-vd1ym For the RAM, I used 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 sticks from Crucial, and I used a Crucial MX500 4TB 2.5 inch SSD, which I flashed Batocera on.
Hey Eliot I want to do the same as you! But I’m still learning this all. So when you bought the 4tb ssd you flash batocera onto it. Did you also have to change the OS from wins 10 or 11 to Linux? Or is Linux on the drive with batocera?
watching this on a UM690 i bought after seeing your vids, doing a ton of research, and following your spreadsheet for my emulation needs. i am incredibly grateful!!!
Did you receive a delivery date? I ordered mine in November...
Is the UM690 better than GTR6 for gaming & rendering videos .
Ur video is quite good and informative comparitive to ETA prime 👍👍👍
Just ordered this on Amazon (UK). The 32GB / 1TB option for £527.20 !! Absolute bargain! It’s arriving tomorrow. Great review btw 👍
Nice video
Great Work ^5
Love me some pc reviews!
I don’t understand the complaint about configuring the 45W option in the BIOS for the GTR6. I was able to do that easily. Does it not actually work? Am I missing something?
My only complaint about the GTR6 is volume of fan noise. It would be great if it was a little quieter under load, but then again, overheating doesn’t seem to be an issue for it. Note that it has two fans: One to cool the m.2 and RAM slots, and the other to cool the CPU (one fan on top and the other vents underneath.
Sweet! I use a SP6 as a terminal to drive remote desktops with 1x2K (type c) and 2x4K, but I needed it to replace my radio show laptop so I bought one of these. I will upgrade in the future to 64GB and a 8K typec.
I might game on it too since my GPDWinmax2 came with a hardware error and is BSOD.
After seeing a buch of videos about the UM690, I bought the newer S variant with for 389€ and added a 16GB RAM and 500GB SSD for 90€. So I'm excited to see what 479€ of PC will get me. I'll use it for Linux testing and a bit of emulating, so it should be perfect for the task. Thanks for the overview!
This thing looks fantastic. Get this and a freesync monitor and you're set.
So this setup is more than adequate for 4k rendering for my drone footage? How about processing 6k or 8k content like from Red camera? Thanks
Thank you for your detailed review. Can you run the Minisforum PC using a USB-C 90 Watt PD monitor through a single cable solution utilizing the USB 4 port?
just found channel and love the reviews,added a sub. Just wondering if this systems on board graphics be powerful enough to play games like path of exile ?
Of course, it's enough to play games like PoE
If I could get this performance for under 300 I would buy, so Im excited to see what comes on down the line.
You can get very close to this performance in a mini PC for a little over $300 if you do some assembly:
AsRock X300 Barebones $149
Ryzen 5600g processor $128
8 GB RAM kit $13.50
512 GB SSD $27
The 5600G is a little bit older than the 6900HX, but it's got a higher TDP of 65 watts. So the performance should be very similar.
I’m waiting for my Ryzen 9 1TB 32 GB UM690 Pro to get here today, I ordered it yesterday. I paid just about $400 for it, Amazon had a $165 coupon. Pretty close to $300.. I paired it with a 32 inch 240 Hz monitor, also a good deal for about $320. I’m a MAC 🖥️ guy so I’m happy to learn this way.
@@MidnightMedia_ mac guy too but sweat deal man congrats on new setup
@@CountryAzHell dude thanks for even responding! oh yeah, I’m pretty stoked, for the price I couldn’t see anything better. I’m in Vegas and I went all around this damn valley and saw some really expensive towers. Eventually I want to build a monster but for now, I kinda want to learn what the parts are with a starter. Just found out you can add an external GPU which kind of changes the game now. Have a good one bro.
can i also use it for 3d printing programs (like cura or fusion 360)?
If this is a gud enuf APU,what do u estimate the 7040HS with radeon 780M will be?
A 4k emulation machine?
I bought two of these machines to use for virtualization but I couldn't install ProxmoxVE or XCP-ng using various versions. I think there might be issues with the I tegrated graphics on these machines but I can't seem to figure it out. No settings available in bios related to virtualization at all, very barebones bios.
Nice review - I’ve been waiting for this one! Do you know if the emulation performance is still good in local 4 player split screen, for example in Mario Kart Double Dash or Mario Kart Wii?
Can't wait for the Ryzen 7040 series version with the 780M GPU!!
Dont every stop making youtube videos please your one of the G.O.A.TS
Does it support powering from that USB4 port? I do want to use it connecting to my USB-C lenovo dock station without a bulky adapter. The same way I can connect my laptop.
Finally, a mini PC that actually looks remotely worth it for the price.
I have had a B550 mini pc and it worked great at first but then started getting major issues with an AMD software driving crashing the pc, I believe this to be software and windows 11 related but good old amazon just told me to send it back for a refund so I think I'm gonna go for this one this time! Seems like a decent step up from the B550 for not too much more cost.
wane get this to play for mostley retro games from gog , starcraft 2 and black mesa on my living room tv , would you recommend ?
I'm just waiting for the zen 4 versions with rdna 3. Amazing for editing and light gaming
Great review. Is it a good choice to play emulators via parsec?
I can't wait for the New HX99G to come out. It's the same RX6600 GPU. But now, with the originally promised 6900HX and DDR5 4800 memory.
My test unit just came in the mail, I'll get started on the video soon!
Super tempted by this or beelinks gtr6... But I think I'll hold on just a little bit longer for updated versions with the 4nm AMD 7040 series APUs that are said to be almost twice as fast in theoretical performance. But good times ahead all the same!!!
Yeah, the Ryzen 7740 and 7840 should be really excellent. I'm hoping we see them in handhelds sometime soon.
Hey Russ I’ve been following you for about a year or 2! You helped me thru miyoo mini, RP3, ps vita and just understanding emulation overall. So my questions is Linux and batocera. How does this work like do I need to change from windows to Linux or is Linux installed on the flash drive that you run batocera from. Cause I love how batocera looks. And instead of batocera would launchbox big box be a substitute?
What's that laptop looking like / slimline PC, you had on tour desk called ?
im stuck. i need to transfer to my new microsc card for rg351p. somehow i cant make a new partation for make sepreate volume. i need help. i noticed a discord link was invaild too
Do you plan on plug in a external GPU? I would love to see the performance with something like a rtx 3060ti
I'm curious how well this would run MS Flight Sim 2020.
I'm heavily debating getting one of these but I would like to know if this would be worth versus getting a standard gaming pc
just get a standard pc. These suck still.
if it has an accessible BIOS you can disable C-State or use an app in windows to turn off power throttling
Was thoroughly impressed by my UM960 I got back in January. I used to lug around my beefy Alienware gaming laptop and chunky 180W Power brick, now I can tote the UM690 with mini keyboard, portable 1080p screen and mouse around and that lot weighs less, performs better and with the cradle it sems to stay cool and quiet even under gaming loads! It can even operate off in-seat power on a plane which my Alienware could not. Unfortunately, after 4 months my UM690 died in the middle of a game and is now completely dead with a flashing LED on the power brick indicating the system is likely shorting out. Now I'm waiting to find out how effective the Minisforum tech support is. Looking at other reviews, it seems my situation is far from unique with a significant failure rate citing the same issue :(
So far - Minisforum had me ship the unit in for a replacement - waiting for it to arrive. Hopefully this was just a QA issue and not a major design flaw.
@@mpwaterhouse hey, interested to see how this turned out? Did you get a replacement unit?
@@luxorcephrenSE23 Just got a reply, they received my tracking number and wanted my address/phone so they will have a replacement ready to ship as soon as my package arrives at their US address. Hopefully should have one in a few days.
@@mpwaterhousethinking of getting one. Would you recommend?
@@casper75559 The replacement certainly does a decent job so far of running all games in my Steam library very nicely. After I've had it a few months more - I might have a more solid idea for long-term reliability. The current price-point makes the UM690 a great deal for a decent Ryzen 9 platform - the MINISFORUM Neptune Series HX99G has slightly better specs with fewer reported issues but costs at least $300 more. I would certainly recommend the UM690. For the UM690 I would consider adding the 3 year protection plan for $64.99 just for peace of mind.
Is it possible to hook up a Monitor like for example the Viewsonic VX1755 through USB-C only ?
What Batocera theme were you using? It looks awesome!
Can you test games in the mini with the 6600 video card ?
how do i activate the audio outuput?
Yup I ordered me one of these bad boys while it was on Sale.
Any way to add heat sinks to the ram ?
can you elaborate on what "3rd party tools" could let me experiment with the 40fps cap etc you mentioned?
Guitar pick
Would you mind retesting the UM690 with some constant GPU load? The RAM (32GB in my case) seems to reach 80C after 3-5 mins of GPU load resulting in heavy FPS drops.
All tests 6900 on UA-cam have same game videos. It meens all blogers doesn't test it by themselves. They just copied test videos. Look at Beeelink GTR 6 tests. Same tests, same videos....
@@ILYAVIKNG what would you get for video editing in the 350 to 600$ range? I'm a novice when it comes to computers
I ordered mine in November, still waiting for it :(. First it was scheduled for the end of December, then mid January.. and now I don't really know.
I am waiting since November for it....😂
if i wane upgrade ddr5 ram do i need laptop size ones ?
Any idea of the difference between this one and the UM773 Lite?.
Cool vid, love to see xbox 360 getting some love. Really looking forward to fable 2 hopefully working right. For Batocera, are xbox 360 and ps3 the only unsupported "main" consoles/handles?
would love to know how this works with Photoshop and Lightrooom, the version with 1tb SSD and 32 or 64gigs or RAM looks tempting.
Did you think it can replace your Steamdeck ?? Maybe on your nightstand with your Nextwear S and HoloISO installed on it ???
Hi how you doing I've been looking at your channel for a while and every single time you doing Mini PC, I always have a question if someone wanted to pick up a Mini PC for let's just say music production but didn't want to buy a Apple mini which one would you recommend
for the price of some of these min computers you could build a budget desktop and get a 100ft hdmi cable run it to your living room then connect the controller to your tv... use the steam link app to launch steam big picture and swap inputs to the pc... my steam link does this lol.
Question 🙋.. How on earth are you getting that 95% score in thr stress test 🤷♂️
Best I have got so far is 69% running the 54W with a Tj Max of 80°.. FPS drops right after the 4th5th pass then again around the 10th pass.. 🤷♂️
Also.. Does anyones 65w option in the bios just not work at all.. Select 65W and it instead reads 30W (30W isn't even a standard option 🤷♂️)
Driving me mental this box.. Would love to here what CL ram people are getting as well.. Mine is clocking at CL36 5000Mhz (any higher is not stable).. Am using a low latency G.Skill set..
Is the trick to be setting manual SmarShift settings in the bios? 🤔 (Is what I will probably try next unless somone can point out what I might have missed)
The question is how does this compare to the steam deck. Price point is similar and the SD can be used as a PC but it also has portability.
Quick question can this connect to wifi or is it only ethernet port connection only?
¿Can the WiFi module be replaced with another NVMe storage?
Bit to pricy for my liking but that emulation is insane for something that compact.
Compare the price to m2 Mac mini )
How would this one compare to the Nucxi7?
How do you hook a printer to it, DVD romance, and xbox?
Hey Russ, I know you mostly focus on retro gaming. But any chance you'll start reviewing how these mini PCs handle VR gaming?
No dedicated GPU means no VR.
someone tryed to add a sata ssd with more than 2 gig?! does it work?
Xemu emulator itself is still pretty hit or miss even on my RTX 3080Ti laptop it still struggling to run and play many games, lile LA RUSH where it will stuck in constant low 20 fps slowdown and never recover not to mention it loads my CPU harder and hotter than RPCS3 which goes to show that Xemu still have a long way of from being a good stable emulator.
Still very impressed with this Mini PC, might consider something similar down the line.
Hey, if you still have this around, I'd love to see it running Starfield if it can manage it, with and without a eGPU.
Thank you so much for this video! I’ve been looking for a deep analyze of it. For someone that has a steamdeck/dock, do you think it’s worth picking this up? Use case of purely 1080p emulation (up to yuzu) and indie windows games. Thanks!!
Honestly? No. Unless you really need a PC this small, there are actually PCs with discrete GPUs that cost about the same but slightly bigger.
@James Yu Okay - could you give an example for that? (I'd find something comparable to the HX90G quite interesting - one CPU generation back, but with an at least decent separate GPU -> should pack quite a bit more punch... but it wouldn't have to be quite _that_ small a case, which should make cooling the whole shebang easier. But that one is quite a bit more expensive than this, at least in my corner of the world...)
@@jamesyu5212 can you list a couple. I don’t mind if the mini computer is bigger than this if it has a dedicated GPU.
@@Dan-lm4di if you are in Asia the Topton brand has M600S and F11. Otherwise Minisforum has the HX90, hx99 or nucxi5 for a little bit more.
Topton actually has quite a few models without a model number so I can't specify. But if you just type "Topton mini pc" I'm sure you'll find something you'll be interested in. Some of the are cheap because they are older models, but the have GPUs all the way upto 3060. There's a small pc I'm looking at that's intel i7 10th gen + gtx 1650 for about 550 USD.
I've a problem with batocera on that's unit. Batocera won't boot properly and the boot stops at minisforum splash screen with "booting batocera. Linux" phrase on top. I've tried botocera troubleshooting on bios, but it doesn't work. Someone could help me?
I've made a working solution by myself
So what am I supposed to do if the one I bought only has a 2048 VRAM?
How would it be for graphic design and video editing?
Watch the video.
Russ, as far as I know you should be able to use RSR in games that don't support FSR - like Control. Through the AMD Adrenalin software you toggle RSR on in Adrenalin's game setting menu. Then in the game's menu you set the resolution to, in this case, 720p and AMD's software will use RSR to upscale to 1080. I've had great luck using FSR/RSR and honestly cannot tell the different between it and fully rendered resolutions. I think as technologies like FSR and Nvidia's DLSS develop they will really help find that sweet spot for AAA on lower end hardware in the future.
I am struggling to make Batocera run on USB. Have you changed some Bios setting? Cheers
Hi, I didn’t alter the BIOS at all, but I am running the latest beta/development version of Batocera which works well with some recent Beelink and MinisForum PCs. So if you have access to a different PC I would start up your Batocera USB drive with that PC, update to the development channel in the update settings, then try it in the UM690.
@@RetroGameCorps Thank you very much for your quick answer. What do you mean with "update to the development channel in the update settings"?
@@pietrotria when in Batocera, there is an updates and downloads section in the main menu. Inside that section you can change from “stable” releases to beta/development releases.
@@RetroGameCorps It makes sense now. Thank you very much!
Sorry to bother you again. I updated Batocera to the last beta but I still have the black screen with Minisforum logo in the middle when rebooting with usb and UM690. Another guy in Batocera forum had the same issue with UM690. Do you remember of any particular setting you may have selected?
Serious question: where does one purchase the components if you buy one of their barebones systems? I have no earthly idea where/how to buy an AMD mobile processor.
The barebones version has the processor already installed, it just doesn’t come with RAM or storage. You can grab those from Amazon or a retailer like Micro Center, just buy some with the same spec as those shown on the PC’s webpage.
@@RetroGameCorps Thanks. Well dang that's easy if one has expetience building computers.
Did you used It with a 1440 monitor resolution ? Or It Need to be used only in 1080 full HD ? Thanx
The 699/690S are the only 6900hx systems i have found that let you increase memory speed, which is very helpful on the performance front. The 690S has a much better cooling solution, so it would be very interesting to see performance comparisons between the different memory speeds on the 690S with an eye on thermals.
Can this be powered via USB4? Thanks in advance!
Next time I upgrade, it will be to something like this. However, this won't be it, because I absolutely want (at least) a single USB-A port on the front.
Wish it had 2 NVMe drive slots
Thermal throttling on this model, hoping the UM690S is better (arriving today :D)
I’m coming from
Mac and so
Confused. I stream live and bought a 4k dslr. I used my iMac 2020 to stream and got a 4k stream. I bought this just to stream, and only get up to 1080.. can someone help me understand lol🤦🏻♀️
I sold ALL my consoles from NES to PS2 and bought this model today. My PSTV and PS3 are not ready to go quite yet.
You will regret selling your old consoles