The Manjaro Linux folks have teamed up with Minisforum to bring a very small but quite mighty system with the DeskMini UM700 × Manjaro Linux. Exciting? Well, it's basically rebrand of the existing EliteMini UM700 only it has Manjaro Linux instead of Windows 10 - and the first 1,000 orders get a free copy of CrossOver Linux.
Interestingly enough, this is pretty much the same box that Valve showed a pictured of them using in their developer documentation when talking about sorting a system for developing for Steam Deck without a Dev-Kit.
For a currently discounted price of $499, which they show will be $599 after, you get this:
| Processor | AMD Ryzen™ 7 3750H , 4 Cores/8 Threads (Total L2 Cache 2MB , Total L3 Cache 4MB , Base Clock 2.3 GHz , up to 4.0 GHz) |
| GPU | Radeon™ RX Vega 10 Graphics (Graphics Frequency 1400 MHz) |
| Memory | 2×DDR4 2400MHz 8 Dual channel (SODIMM Slots×2) Supports a maximum of 64GB(32GB x 2) of DDR4 |
| Storage |
M.2 2280 256GB/512GB PCle SSD Up to 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe SSD |
|
Storage Expansion |
1×2.5 inch SATA HDD Slot (SATA 3.0 6.0Gb/s), maximum thickness 7mm |
| Wireless | M.2 2230 WIFI Support (Intel® BlueTooth pre-install) |
|
Video Output |
HDMI 2.0 (4K@60Hz) DisplayPort (4K@60Hz) USB-C Port (4K@60Hz) |
| Audio Output | HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort, 3.5mm Audio Jack |
| OS | Manjaro OS Plasma Gamer Edition |
| Ports |
1 * RJ45 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet Port 1 * USB3.0 Port×1(Gen1 , 2.0A Max output , shutdown charging , Yellow) 3 * SB3.1 Port(Gen2 , Blue) 1 * USB-C Port(Gen2) 1 * HDMI 2.0 1 * Display Port 1 * Audio Jack 1 * Clear CMOS |
What's the price like though? Well, for the base model that gives 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD you're looking at a special launch price of $499. It shows the normal price would be $599, which is actually more expensive than the Windows version that comes with 16GB RAM ($569).
The version of CrossOver included is the "Linux One" package. Giving you a full license to the current version of Crossover Linux with no upgrades or help desk support. It's no longer sold by CrossOver directly, only for promotions now like this.
Does sound like a nice little machine overall. However, something else that's also strange is their branding. DeskMini is actually an ASRock thing, so Minisforum are being pretty cheeky here.
You can see it on the official site.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Windows is “not free” so even if prices were the same, customers would see value in getting something that costs money as the Windows license could come in handy, even if they were planning to install Linux.
Few will buy the Linux version and it’ll be discontinued citing lack of customer interest.
Quoting: pbSo what's so special about this box that it costs $60-70 more than the one with preinstalled Windows? I appreciate that they're trying, but I fail to see the point.The difference is that I assume Manjaro get a cut, which is probably part of the inflated pricing.
PublicNuisance Jan 21, 2022
Quoting: damarrinThe price is a problem, then.
Windows is “not free” so even if prices were the same, customers would see value in getting something that costs money as the Windows license could come in handy, even if they were planning to install Linux.
Few will buy the Linux version and it’ll be discontinued citing lack of customer interest.
Personally I would rather not pay for Windows at all, if the price is fair (even equal, I would rather not chose Windows). But this pricing is indeed weird, the sales price seems to be the correct price. So either they are bullshitting with the sale just to push people to go and buy it now, or there is something rotten about it.
Quoting: Liam DaweQuoting: pbSo what's so special about this box that it costs $60-70 more than the one with preinstalled Windows? I appreciate that they're trying, but I fail to see the point.The difference is that I assume Manjaro get a cut, which is probably part of the inflated pricing.
Well then it would make sense to give Manjaro the cut that would otherwise go to Microsoft for the W10 licence.
Maybe, as said above, the "normal" price is just marketing BS.
Quoting: pbSo what's so special about this box that it costs $60-70 more than the one with preinstalled Windows? I appreciate that they're trying, but I fail to see the point.
If I were in the market for one I'd just save the money and spend the 5 minutes installing a distro myself.
The issue with most mini-PC's are that they are always using old and weak hardware and still end up costing more than a laptop with very similar or even better specs.
I think the general issue with mini-PCs is that they are very cheap in used market as they are commonly used in offices and nobody seems to be interested to buy used. Heck, I got one over 3 years ago for 230€ and it still performs almost as well as R7 3750H aside of iGPU, which is weak in comparison. And it has no issues running Linux either.
Maybe someone should make a mini-PC with the specs and price similar to Steam Deck..?
not really, but close enough
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