The GMKTec Nucbox G3 Plus is a compact, low-power mini PC that is well-suited for a variety of general computing and home lab tasks. It's a successor to the NucBox G3, offering some incremental improvements.

Key Specifications

• Processor: Intel Twin Lake Processor N150 (Quad-core, 4 threads, up to 3.6 GHz). This is a step up from the N100 found in the original G3, with slightly higher clock speeds.

• Graphics: Integrated Intel UHD Graphics with a 1000MHz adapter. It supports dual 4K displays at 60Hz via two HDMI 2.0 ports.

• RAM: Comes with DDR4-3200 memory 8GB  It has a single memory slot, but the RAM is upgradeable to a maximum of 32GB.

• Storage: Includes a PCIe 3.0 NVMe M.2 SSD, 256GB, . It also has a second M.2 slot that is compatible with M.2 2242 SATA SSDs, allowing for storage expansion or dual-booting.

• Operating System: comes with a pre-installed licensed copy of Windows 11 Pro, and it has solid compatibility with various Linux distributions.Connectivity:

• • Wired: 2.5G Ethernet port (Intel i226-V network adapter).

  • Wireless: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) and Bluetooth 5.2.

  • Ports: 4x USB 3.2 (Gen 2 Type-A), 2x HDMI, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It notably lacks a USB-C port.

• Dimensions & Weight: Very small and lightweight, with a plastic case. It measures around 114mm x 106mm x 42.5mm and weighs about 361g. A VESA mount is included for attaching it to the back of a monitor.

Performance and Use Cases

The Nucbox G3 Plus is not a high-performance machine for intensive tasks like video editing or modern gaming. However, it is highly capable for its intended purpose:

• General Productivity: Handles everyday tasks like web browsing, video streaming (including 4K), and using office applications (e.g., Word, Excel) smoothly.

• Home Lab / Server: Its low power consumption (around 6-10W idle and 21W under 100% load) makes it an excellent, affordable option for a home server. The Intel network adapter allows it to run hypervisors like VMware ESXi and Proxmox. It's also suitable for running Docker containers or as a bare-metal Kubernetes node.

• Light Gaming & Emulation: While not for modern AAA titles, it can handle older games and retro console emulation well, including PS2 games at native resolution.

• Media Center: Its dual 4K HDMI ports and low-power design make it a great choice for a media streaming device. It can decode HEVC (H.265), VP9, and AV1 video formats.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Excellent Value: Offers great performance for its price point.

• Low Power Consumption: Very energy-efficient, making it cheap to run 24/7.

• Quiet Operation: The fan is very quiet, even under load, which is a significant improvement over the older G3 model.

• Upgradeability: Easy-to-open case allows for upgrades to RAM and SSD storage.

• Versatile: Suitable for a range of uses, from a simple desktop PC to a home server.

• Linux Compatibility: Works seamlessly with many Linux operating systems.

Cons:

• Single RAM Slot: The single SO-DIMM slot means it's limited to single-channel memory, which can impact performance.

• Plastic Build: The build quality is good but the all-plastic case may not appeal to everyone.

• No USB-C: It lacks a modern USB-C port.

• Incremental Performance: The performance gains over the original G3 with the N100 processor are marginal for real-world tasks.