Zotac’s ZBOX line of small form-factor computers include some models as small as the deck-of-cards-sized ZBOX Pico lineup as well as larger, higher-power models like the company’s Magnus gaming machines.
The new ZBOX Q family is on the larger side, but still pretty small by desktop PC standards… especially when you consider that these little computers are positions as workstation PCs with pro-level NVIDIA Quadro graphics.
While I got an early look at these mini workstations at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, Zotac is officially introducing the ZBOX Q series at this week’s NAB Show in Las Vegas.
The ZBOX Q series supports up to an NVIDIA Quadro P5000 GPU, up to an Intel Core i7-7700T quad-core processor, and comes in a few different sizes and configurations.
Each model, though, supports up to 4 displays and has dual Gigabit Ethernet ports and 802.11ac WiFi.
Here are some of the high-level specs for the three first Q-series workstation PCs:
ZBOX QK7P5000
- Intel Core i7-7700T CPU
- NVIDIA Quadro P5000 GPU (with 16GB DDR5 RAM)
- 2 HDMI 2.0 (3840 x 2160 @ 60 Hz) ports
- 2 DisplayPort 1.4 (4096 x 2160 @ 60 Hz) ports
- 2 USB 3.1 Type-C ports
- 2 USB 3.0 Type-A ports
- 2 USB 2.0 Type-A ports
- 2 Gigabit Ethernet ports
- SDXC card reader
- M.2 PCIe 4 2242/2260/2280 slot
- 2.5″ SATA 6 Gbps drive bay
- 2 DDR4-2133/2400 SODIMM slots (up to 32GB)
- 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.2
- 8.3″ x 8″ x 2.5″
ZBOX QK7P3000
- Intel Core i7-7700T CPU
- NVIDIA Quadro P3000 GPU (with 6GB DDR5 RAM)
- 2 HDMI 2.0 (3840 x 2160 @ 60 Hz) ports
- 2 DisplayPort 1.4 (4096 x 2160 @ 60 Hz) ports
- 2 USB 3.1 Type-C ports
- 2 USB 3.0 Type-A ports
- 2 USB 2.0 Type-A ports
- 2 Gigabit Ethernet ports
- SDXC card reader
- M.2 PCIe 4 2242/2260/2280 slot
- 2.5″ SATA 6 Gbps drive bay
- 2 DDR4-2133/2400 SODIMM slots (up to 32GB)
- 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.2
- 8.3″ x 8″ x 2.5″
ZBOX QK5P1000
- Intel Core i5-7200U CPU
- NVIDIA Quadro P1000 GPU (with 4GB DDR5 RAM)
- 4 HDMI 2.0 (3840 x 2160 @ 60 Hz) ports
- 3 USB 3.0 Type-A ports
- 2 Gigabit Ethernet ports
- SDXC card reader
- M.2 2242 6.0 Gbps slot
- 2.5″ SATA 6 Gbps drive bay
- 2 DDR4-2133 SODIMM slots (up to 32GB)
- 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.2
- 7.3″ x 7.3″ x 2.8″
All of the systems support VESA mounts, allowing you to attach them to the back of a monitor or TV. And they’re all described as featuring “air cooling,” but that’s not the same thing as passive cooling: these little workstation PCs are capable of generating a lot of heat, so there are fans as well as plenty of ventilation to help keep the systems cool.
That said, it is a little disappointing to see that Zotac’s mini workstations are coming to market in 2018 with 2016/2017 processor options rather than Intel’s newer, more powerful Coffee Lake chips.
Wish Raven ridge got more attention