65W Mid-Range Meteor Lake

In recent years, small computing systems have really started to make a splash in the market. Thanks to innovations in how much processing power we can squeeze out of each watt, these compact devices are phasing out the larger desktop PCs we used to know. Intel’s latest leap into this space, the Meteor Lake processor series, represents this shift perfectly. While Intel initially rolled them out slowly since September 2023, their tile-based chiplet design coupled with advanced Foveros packaging has set off a buzz. Although primarily aimed at notebooks, many tech brands have eagerly adopted these chips to power new small form-factor (SFF) and ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) desktops, especially packing the Meteor Lake Ultra H-series (MTL-H) chips.

One of these intriguing new systems is the F2A 125H from ACEMAGIC, which hit our desk just as we were wrapping up testing on the ASRock Industrial NUC BOX-155H and the ASUS NUC14RVHv7 UCFF systems. In comparison, the F2A sports a larger size, giving it room for a beefier cooling setup that can handle the full 65W power limit of its Core Ultra 5 125H processor.

This review goes under the hood of the ACEMAGIC F2A 125H, digging into its features and how well it performs. We’ll also explore what the most efficient power setting is for getting the best out of the MTL-H processors.

Introduction and Product Impressions

Over the past decade, processors have made phenomenal gains not just in sheer performance but also in being power-smart. Couple that with improvements in thermal management, and it’s no surprise that compact systems with energy-efficient Systems on a Chip (SoCs) are on the rise, often taking over roles once reserved for much heftier desktops. This shift came into the limelight when Intel debuted their petite NUC systems back in the early 2010s, showcasing just how capable these tiny machines could be.

As we’ve moved forward, these systems have started to house more powerful processors. Those early NUCs made do with processors operating between 6W and 15W, but by the late 2010s, you were seeing more firepower with 28W chips leading the way. Things ramped up further with Intel’s Tiger Lake and its Panther Canyon NUCs, which pushed boundaries to 40W. Though cooling 65W processors in the compact UCFF design was once daunting, some brands like ASUS, with their NUC14 Pro+, and now ACEMAGIC, with the larger F2A, are taking on that challenge.

The F2A stands out with dimensions of 147 mm x 147 mm x 52 mm, making it slightly bulkier than some counterparts like the NUC14 Pro+. Featuring prominently in its marketing are its AI capabilities, and when you open its box you’ll find all you need: a 120W power adapter, a region-specific power cable, HDMI cable, user manual, and even a mounting plate with screws alongside the main unit itself.

ACEMAGIC pitches the F2A as a ready-to-go setup complete with 32 GB of DDR5-5600 SODIMM RAM and a spacious 1 TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD, all running on Windows 11 Home. However, we recommend savvy users to start fresh by reinstalling the OS using their own key, ensuring optimal performance and control. Our review unit sported Kingston-made SODIMMs and an OEM SSD powered by Kingston, relying on BiCS5 TLC NAND and a Silicon Motion SM2267XT controller without DRAM.

Accessing the SSD and RAM slots is a breeze—just unscrew four at the base. A pleasant surprise was discovering a fan tucked in underneath, offering active cooling to the SSD and RAM, which should make for cooler, more stable operations—a claim we’ll scrutinize later in this piece.

Here’s a quick rundown of the system’s tested specifications:

• Processor: Intel Core Ultra 5 125H

  • Meteor Lake-H 4P + 8E + 2LPE / 18T, speeds up to 4.5 GHz (P), 3.6 GHz (E), 2.5 GHz (LPE)
  • Integrated with Intel 4 / TSMC N5 (iGPU), 18MB L2
  • Power Specs: PL1 = 65W, PL2 = 90W

• Memory:

  • Kingston DDR5-5600 SODIMM modules, 2×16 GB

• Graphics:

  • Intel Arc Graphics (7 Xe-cores maxing at 2.2 GHz)

• Storage:

  • Kingston Design-In SSD, M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 x4, featuring 1 TB capacity

• Networking:

  • 1x 2.5 GbE RJ-45 port and Intel Wi-Fi 7

• Audio & Video:

  • Conexant audio, with video out options via HDMI 2.0 and a DisplayPort in USB-C format
• Price:
  • Listed at $699 on Amazon, with a direct $569 deal from ACEMAGIC

In the following sections, we’ll delve into the system setup and take you through a full breakdown of its platform dynamics. Stay tuned for the complete analysis!