Tuesday, September 8th 2015

ZOTAC Announces ZBOX Magnus EN970 Compact Gaming Desktop

ZOTAC International, a global innovator and manufacturer of graphics card and ZBOX Mini PCs, ramps up the gaming power with the MAGNUS EN970 series. Minimalism, portability, and an all new design thinly mask the power density lurking beneath.

Powered by a 5th gen Intel Core i5 CPU and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 with 3GB GDDR5 VRAM at the heart of the MAGNUS EN970, there is plenty of firepower for intense gaming and graphical work. Immerse deeper and work wider with quad-display support via NVIDIA Surround, and react faster with dual gigabit LAN or 802.11ac WiFi.
The MAGNUS EN970 features a RAID-ready storage setup that provides either blazing access speeds or the power of real-time mirroring protection. The MAGNUS EN970 is Windows 10 ready and can take full advantage of Direct X 12, so you can get even more juice from the already powerful hardware.

An all new designed housing in the same portable form factor means the MAGNUS EN970 is ready to game beyond the desk. Matte-black finishing on a minimal design thinly veil the powerful hardware. Whether it's for the living room, desk, or for a LAN party, the MAGNUS EN970 has both looks and strength to power your play.

The MAGNUS EN970 also comes with a PLUS version, pre-installed with 8GB memory and 120GB M.2 SSD. The Mini PC is easily upgradable with an easily accessible SO-DIMM ram slots and 2.5" HDD/SSD slots for further customization. Coupled with 4 USB 3.0 and 2 USB 2.0 slots, you have plenty expansion possibilities even after connecting your peripherals.
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12 Comments on ZOTAC Announces ZBOX Magnus EN970 Compact Gaming Desktop

#1
natr0n
960 is 2-4gb of ram afaik 128bit
Posted on Reply
#2
sanadanosa
natr0n960 is 2-4gb of ram afaik 128bit
Could be a typo. Judging by it's name, maybe it has 970M instead.
Posted on Reply
#3
GhostRyder
natr0n960 is 2-4gb of ram afaik 128bit
Yea I was about to say the same thing, maybe its a GTX 960m or similar?
Posted on Reply
#4
Uplink10
Only 4 HDMI ports? Someone must not have heard of DP.
Posted on Reply
#5
peche
Thermaltake fanboy
i would to see how it performs... heat... mostly ...

Regards,
Posted on Reply
#6
GreiverBlade
pechei would to see how it performs... heat... mostly ...

Regards,
well it should be like a Alienware Alpha ... (or not ... DELL/ALW did a really good job on that box ...)

Alpha :
CPU: i3-4130T 35w typical load temp 71°
GPU: GTX860m 2gb typical load temp 76°

and not noisy at all, just a little hummmmmmm from the 2 hamsterwheel fan ... trust me ... i tested it ...
and i totally can't believe how they achieved that ...even if i saw it for myself...
i retire all bad things i said/wrote about that Alienware ... at last a product who is not ... Alienware'esque

now the Zotac ... i had a zbox and it was noisy under load ... temps where high enough (around 79-85)
tho the CPU is a 15w dual core + HT with the same speed as the i3 (performance wise, it should be the same, watt to perf ratio, well quit a bit above ...) and the GPU is stronger

altho the Zbox can't be upgraded CPU wise ... the Alpha can but GPU side it's like the Zbox (and the alpha can handle a 4690K as a review shown it... it just limit the TDP and speed tho ... )
Posted on Reply
#7
peche
Thermaltake fanboy
GreiverBladewell it should be like a Alienware Alpha ... (or not ... DELL/ALW did a really good job on that box ...)

Alpha :
CPU: i3-4140T 35w typical load temp 71°
GPU: GTX860m 2gb typical load temp 76°

and not noisy at all, just a little hummmmmmm from the 2 hamsterwheel fan ... trust me ... i tested it ...
and i totally can't believe how they achieved that ...even if i saw it for myself...
i retire all bad things i said/wrote about that Alienware ... at last a product who is not ... Alienware'esque

now the Zotac ... i had a zbox and it was noisy under load ... temps where high enough (around 79-85)
tho the CPU is a 15w dual core + HT with the same speed as the i3 (performance wise, it should be the same, watt to perf ratio, well quit a bit above ...) and the GPU is stronger

altho the Zbox can't be upgraded CPU wise ... the Alpha can but GPU side it's like the Zbox (and the alpha can handle a 4690K as a review shown it... it just limit the TDP and speed tho ... )
SPECS....on the zotac box are terrific... thats why i would like to see the temps... to see how it performs, my cousin is looking for a box like this...

Regards,
Posted on Reply
#8
GreiverBlade
pecheSPECS....on the zotac box are terrific... thats why i would like to see the temps... to see how it performs, my cousin is looking for a box like this...

Regards,
well they should look on par/or slightly above the Alpha and the Alpha should cost less ... the only advantage i see in the Zotac is the GPU tho the CPU albeit being a Broadwell its still a U (ultra low voltage) type
as i said my previous experience with Zbox's from Zotac, wasn't that good temp wise.

or not ... the 860m and 960m (the 960 is a OC 860 technically) are the same GPU.
I just checked, the 960M is on the level of the 750Ti (+10%), slightly above a stock 860M the test shown i can OC the 860M and bring it to a 750Ti level (or slightly above) and the consumption would raise by 5W +/-

both are considered as Class 1 laptop gpu on notebookcheck

my Alpha is enhanced tho ... 500gb SSD 8gb 1600 RAM to add to the initial price (i have the cheapest one) pack a X360 controller and receiver .... i can hardly see Zotac being competitive to that, even on performance and temp side.
funny side ... i could really recommende a Alpha instead of that ZBOX and even the i3 haswell T serie model

my question tho is : what price would that thing cost and what wattage on the powerbrick (the Alpha's is 140w )
Posted on Reply
#9
newtekie1
Semi-Retired Folder
sanadanosaCould be a typo. Judging by it's name, maybe it has 970M instead.
Yep, I was going to say the same thing. I'm guessing 970M, since it matches the 192-bit spec and obviously there is a 970 in the name of the product.
Posted on Reply
#10
GreiverBlade
if it's so
newtekie1Yep, I was going to say the same thing. I'm guessing 970M, since it matches the 192-bit spec and obviously there is a 970 in the name of the product.
then yes that box would yield better performance than the Alpha, just curious about the powerbrick and the price now :laugh:
Posted on Reply
#11
peche
Thermaltake fanboy
GreiverBladewell they should look on par/or slightly above the Alpha and the Alpha should cost less ... the only advantage i see in the Zotac is the GPU tho the CPU albeit being a Broadwell its still a U (ultra low voltage) type
as i said my previous experience with Zbox's from Zotac, wasn't that good temp wise.

or not ... the 860m and 960m (the 960 is a OC 860 technically) are the same GPU.
I just checked, the 960M is on the level of the 750Ti (+10%), slightly above a stock 860M the test shown i can OC the 860M and bring it to a 750Ti level (or slightly above) and the consumption would raise by 5W +/-

both are considered as Class 1 laptop gpu on notebookcheck

my Alpha is enhanced tho ... 500gb SSD 8gb 1600 RAM to add to the initial price (i have the cheapest one) pack a X360 controller and receiver .... i can hardly see Zotac being competitive to that, even on performance and temp side.
funny side ... i could really recommende a Alpha instead of that ZBOX and even the i3 haswell T serie model

my question tho is : what price would that thing cost and what wattage on the powerbrick (the Alpha's is 140w )
interesting facts,
thanks in advance
Posted on Reply
#12
GreiverBlade
pecheinteresting facts,
thanks in advance
seems the GPU i the Magnus is a 970m that Zotac label as a 960 (which would indeed explain the 192bit bus) which is also logical since a 970m is on level of a desktop 960, altho the Alpha has Win 8.1 out of the box (in any configuration from base i3 to top i7, all T model and the box can also handle a 4690K as a review did show, tho to match the 35w TDP the max speed would be 2.9ghz with a constant average 2.6 but you have a quadcore in that case instead of a dual + HT i intend to test my main rig 4690K in it at a moment or another)

to me the price would do all but again i don't see Zotac competiting well in that case... dunno ... wait'n see eh?

my mini review of the Alpha
www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/your-pc-atm.65012/page-1098#post-3340625
Posted on Reply
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