LOOK and DESIGN
Design wise, the new ExpertCenter PN64 is a bit bigger than the previous model, roughly 8% bigger with 120mm x 130mm x 58mm (WxDxH) in dimension. Also, the PN64 is more heavier with now 1kg with 2.5" HDD compared to 700g of the PN62 with 2.5" HDD.
The ports has been changed as well, front and back I/O has been should I say upgraded, with now 2x HDMI ports for mode displays.
PORTS
Front ports includes:
- 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C
- 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A
- 1x Audio Jack
- 1x Kensington Lock on the side
Meanwhile the back IO includes the following:
- 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (with DP output, PD input)
- 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A
- 2x HDMI
- 1x Configurable Port (on our sample unit, COM port)
- You can configure this either from the below options:
- 1x Display Port v1.4
- 1x VGA Port
- 1x HDMI Port v2.1
- 1x LAN Port, Intel I22V
- 1x 2.5G RJ45 LAN
- 1x Padlock Ring
- 1x DC-IN
As you can see, The ExpertCenter PN64 is lacking the 3-in-1 Card Reader but compensated with additional USB Type-A than can be more useful with a lot of input or storage devices.
SIZE COMPARISON
Here are some comparison of the new ExpertCenter PN64 with other gadgets (Iphone13 Pro Max)
EXPERTCENTER PN64 SPECIFICATION
|
Processor |
Intel Core i5-12500H |
|
RAM |
1x8GB DDR5 4800Mhz |
|
Storage |
256GB M.2
NVMe 4.0 SSD |
|
Graphics Card |
Intel® UHD
Graphics |
|
Networking |
Intel® Wi-Fi
6E (Gig+), Bluetooth® 5.2 |
|
OS |
Windows 11
Pro 10.0.22621 |
|
Audio |
Realtek®
ALC3251 HD Audio CODEC |
|
Power Supply |
19Vdc, 4.74A,
90W Power Adapter |
|
Accessories |
USB Keyboard &
Mouse, Mounting Bracket |
From the PN62 model, the major upgrade is the processor, RAM and storage. It is a good upgrade from using a HDD to SSD and its a NVMe 4.0, not just any SSD. ASUS also retain the part where you can place an additional HDD up to 1TB 7200 RPM but supports only 7mm height.
WHAT'S INSIDE THE PACKAGE
What we like about the ASUS MiniPCs are the fact that we don't need to look for a keyboard and mouse to set it up since both are already included on the package.
Well its just a typical office keyboard and mouse but it will do the work. The package also comes with an HDMI cable and a mounting bracket if ever you want to mount it at the back of your monitor. It has a standard mounting hole of 100x100mm or 75x75mm.
UPGRADEDABILITY
Upgrading some components on this Mini PC is easy, you just need to remove all 4 screws from its rubber feet and all the components of the ExpertCenter PN64 are exposed.
As mentioned, the ExpertCenter PN64 retain the feature where you can add a 2.5" HDD.
The only concern I have for this, is that the upper cover of the ExpertCenter PN64 is connected on the based unit by a connection film (the one in Orange on the image above) which if you are not aware that it exist, you might pull it hard enough for the connection film to tear, and the way it can be opened is also different from PN62. It can now be pulled upward to open compared to the previous model that you need to slide to the side to unlock which I prefer more to avoid accidentally opening it up all of a sudden.
You can also add 1 more RAM on the ExpertCenter PN64, but might as well check the QVL List on their website before you purchase additional RAM.
We also think that you can upgrade the SSD since the one came with the unit is only 256GB, thou we haven't tried it on this review since the storage on it can accommodate all our tests.
BENCHMARK
The unit we have has Intel Core i5-12500H that was said has 35W TDP, thou we don't have a tool to check that as of the moment, here are some benchmarks we have tried.
NovaBench
This is a benchmark tool that allows you to see your computer’s overall performance. Its tests CPU, GPU, RAM, and Storage speeds.
PassMark
This one measures CPU, 2D & 3D GPU, Memory, and Disk speeds.
On PassMark, the PN64 also gives a higher result versus PN62.
Cinebench R23
This benchmark measures the same powerful 3D engine found in the award-winning animation software Cinema 4D Release 20 to accurately evaluate CPU rendering performance capabilities across various systems and platforms.
Google Chrome Test
We also did try testing how many Google Chrome tab can the ExpertCenter PN64 can open before it starts lagging, we haven't tested this before on the PN62 but now, we added it to measure the reliability of the RAM.
We opened up to 15 Google Chrome tabs with all of them playing a video from YouTube.com and all videos are playing smoothly. The RAM usage came up to 95% or 7.3GB out of 7.7GB.
Then we tried adding 1 more Google Chrome tab and the RAM usage is still 95% but the videos are starting to buffer and the new tab is taking long to open the video, so if you are planning to open a lot of tabs using your laptop or desktop with only 8GB of RAM, consider opening until 15 tabs only to make sure all tabs are running smoothly.
CAN IT DO GAME?
Playing games has been staple now when benchmarking laptops, computer and mobile device products considering to know how the device/gadget will behave on CPU or GPU heavy games
We also, did try it on the ExpertCenter PN64, we tried it with 2 eSports title games only since the storage capacity of the miniPC can only hold 200GB or less.
Valorant
Valorant is one of the most popular FPS games today and also a benchmark games for GPUs and Processors, and for ExpertCenter PN64, here are the results.
Dota 2
Dota 2 on the other hand is the most popular MOBA game for the past 10 years with highest details in graphics and game play. For this game we tried different graphic settings.
The settings above are advanced mode wherein you need to tick certain setting, on our test, we did tick all the boxes to show the capabilities of the ExpertCenter PN64.
We also did the easier settings for Dota 2
Based on the game tests above, with only the integrated graphics, even on the esports title games, the PN64 can't produce higher than 110 FPS. Well this is because the said product is designed for work purposes and not gaming.
As mentioned on the ports section, one good thing that they have added on the ExpertCenter PN64 is the additional HDMI port, making it more productive by adding one more display without a hustle.
CONCLUSION
The ExpertCenter PN64 is much more better than the previous model with the updated specs and ports, making more productive in an office setup, thou there are still some improvements to be added; like the ease of upgrading, the connection film strip is a not good for us considering that the PN64 might be opened multiple times for upgrading purposes, hope ASUS will return the previous setup they had on the PN62.
In the US, the barebone version is around $594 or estimated PHP 33,264 here in PH, so roughly PHP 36,000-40,000 with full specs. With this price-point considering the features of being compact, and can ease of use, the new ASUS ExpertCenter PN64 is a good alternative to bulky desktops for office use.
Here at all of the above, we will give the ExpertCenter PN64 an 8/10 overall rating for upgrading its specs and making it easier to use especially for those workload that requires extended display view.
Thou we want to give it a higher score, the small capacity for RAM and storage cut the other points. Silver award is also given, for ASUS making sure that the ExpertCenter PN64 is still compact and smaller than other so called SFF form factor desktop PCs even if it did increase in dimension and weight.
We are looking forward to see and review the AMD counterpart of the ASUS MiniPC since we all know that AMD CPUs can do more when it comes to core processes.
How about you? Have you tried a miniPC personally or at your office? Tell us more about it in the comment section, you can also ask us questions about the review we had and the other products here on our website.
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