CHUWI HiGame 2018 Mini PC - Indiegogo Crowdfunding Project Preview: Kaby Lake-G at its finest?

The Kaby Lake G integrates both a Quad Core Hyper Threaded CPU as well as a mid-range VEGA graphics to provide a medium level of gaming experience all in the same socket. It’s like having an APU in but only in this case Intel’s solution uses dedicated Vega Graphics operating on the 2nd Generation of High Bandwidth Memory. As a result, systems can shrink down for both use in Desktop and Laptop Computing at the same time. In terms of Desktops, there has only been one well-known example, the Intel NUC that uses this architecture in a miniPC…. until now.

Chuwi in their wisdom decided to follow suit, but opting for a slightly larger but still compact chassis to do its thing. And the big difference in terms of appearance is how clean the front is compared to the NUC. No added lights, no fancy patterns, just sleek, clean and simple which is what I prefer on my computers compared to others.

Source: Indiegogo, Chuwi

Source: Indiegogo, Chuwi

Spec Wise it has the following:

SPECS:

i5 Spec:
Intel Core i5 8305G (4C8T running at 2.8 to 3.8GHz)

8GB DDR4 RAM @ 2400MHz,
128GB M2. SSD
RX Vega M GL Graphics with 4GB HBM2 VRAM and 1280 Stream processing units.

Windows 10

i7 Spec:

Intel Core i7 8705G (4C8T running at 3.1 to 4.1Ghz)
8GB DDR4 RAM @ @2400MHz
256GB M2. SSD

RX Vega M GH Graphics with 4GB HBM2 VRAM and 1536 Stream Processing units.

Windows 10

OTHER TECH SPECS:

Source: Indiegogo

COMPARISONS WITH OTHER SFF GAMING GRADE PCs:

Source: Indiegogo.

The dimensions of the Chuwi Hi Game mini PC makes it thicker but is a good 2 inches shorter. Although the volume is significantly more once you add up, the weight of the system is actually just about the same as the NUC. That said, it remains to be seen as to whether the volume will play apart in the system's thermals and acoustics and overclocking capabilities if any.

The great thing about CHUWI’s crowdfunding project, is that all the dirty work of finding an OS, finding new parts to get it going is all done for you which will make a more pleasant out-of-the-box experience. Compared to the NUC which mostly comes in a barebones unit. You should be able to upgrade in the future but this'll enough to get you started and 8GB of DDR4 on a single stick is plenty for general computing and you can always double that later on.

Also what this mini PC has compared to the NUC, by only making it slightly thicker, allows space for a 2.5” Bay. Supposedly you'll have that flexibility of installing any kind of 2.5” SATA or nVMe SSD or Hard Drive should you wish, since they are more easily available and cheaper than M.2 stuff.

As for the mini PC’s use, the relatively powerful i5 8305G or the i7 8705G should have enough power to handle some medium to heavy video gaming while also can handle some heavy editing. And take the 8305G for instance, apart the Vega GPU and a higher 65W TDP, the i5 8305G is otherwise identical to the i7 7700HQ while the 8705G resembles the 7920HQ. So if you've used the regular Kaby Lake version of these chips you should be instantly familiar with their performance.

As for upgrades are concerned, there are quite bit of options. However to upgrade the GPU needs the CPU to be upgraded that has that chip and if there are I feel it’ll be difficult to source and difficult to upgrade. However the Thunderbolt 3 port that supports eGPU alleviates this problem a bit. Although more expensive to do so than miniPCI eGPU, it’s still a lot better than the latter function in terms of performance and memory bandwidth. So having a Thunderbolt 3 is always nice to have.

Now with that said, I’m not writing to say which one is better just yet, because the NUC and the Chuwi HiGame have their own strengths. The NUC is a slimmer unit with more I/O ports and lower weight and higher portability but less flexibility in terms of internal storage and a messier appearance. But as far as CPU architecture is concerned, it has proven as CPUs mature, systems get smaller, faster and more efficient for their volume.

First Impressions Bottomline:

PROS: Lightweight, Versatile I/O, Cleaner front than the NUC, dirty work for setup done. Competitive Pricing.
CONS: Not as compact as the NUC, less I/O, less M.2 Slots.

Currently it is in its Prototype Stage and more adjustments might be made at the time of this writing. Any case, I'll bring the review out once it arrives for testing. It's currently available for Backing for 899 for the i5 Version, and 1099 for the i7 Version. The secret Perk allows for a further 100 dollars off for both systems.

BACK IT HERE:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/higame-pc-mini-workstation-for-gamers-creators/x/18860519

Actual Review preview:

I will be using the i5 8305G version once that arrives So look out for the review! It'll pit against the following systems as it's what I have. This is gonna be interesting because it's more to find out how far we've come in terms of CPU efficiency over the years.

Gigabyte P27Gv2 - To compare CPU generation performance Since the Core i7 4810MQ has identical clocks and Core speeds and GPU performance difference.
My DIY Dell Precision T3500 - To Compare CPU Performance and the GTX 1060 3GB.

And the following system in terms of dimensions:
Alienware Alpha with a Core i3 4170T.

What I'll test is how easy it is to upgrade in General too, especially the 2.5" Drive because I pilfered a 500GB Hard drive out of my Alienware Alpha after swapping it out for a spare 128GB SSD as the HDD is so slow as a boot drive. The 500GB is the only one I have in spare, but I will get a faster storage drive in the future like a 256 or 480GB SSD or a 1TB 7200rpm HDD or SSHD. 

Project: Maintenance and conversion of a Clevo W110ER Laptop to a fixed gaming / main Computer

I intend to have some use for the Laptop, I needed to do some maintenance first:

For a while there has been a few problems with it. And for a long time, the laptop has some screws and joint problems in there. But I'm not concerned over the aesthetics of it because I'm more concerned of the performance of the laptop was not up to par.

Overwatch and Fortnite simply crashed. Diablo 3 ran slow and even games like CS:GO was a slideshow fest at a few SECONDS per FRAME, not Frames per second. My guess was that the Aftershock X11 / Clevo's thermal paste had probably dried and the GPU simply was probably on its last legs. It had IC Diamond in it and I'm having a heck of time removing it. But it has to be done as it's completely hardened and dried.

Maintenance of my Clevo W110ER

Grease mostly removed

So my solution for this one is this, Thermal Grizzly's Kryonaut. That solved most of my heat issues I'd may have with this Netbook.

And while I was at it, a thought came up saying.... why don't I convert the mini PCI-E slot that is being occupied Wireless WIFI Adapter to an External GPU? That way I can draw a lot of the heat away from the internal GT 650M it had and just leave that to the CPU which even 5 years later still kicks serious ass today. And I've a few components that I can use and further make it into a desktop conversion.

Components added to Conversion

USB Wireless Adapter
GDC Beast 8.0 (The Highlight of this project)
Corsair RM1000
External Peripherals
Assortment of GPUs to test (Primary Gaming will be a GTX 970)
1440p Monitor (advisable to have an external one)

The Build

The reason I prefer to go with nVidia Cards because of their driver support and it'll be less of a conflict and AMD Crimson drivers are normally like a few months late to even worse a year late to the party. In general, nVidia Drivers and cards are just better in almost every way in terms of power and noise and efficiency.

A GTX 970 will be the primary driver after the tests.

But let's get to the build, shall we?

The connections are pretty straightforward with plugging the cables to a Power Supply and linking with the provided ones to the GPU. Having a modular PSU would be great because it'll be a lot less messy and unsightly. But generally any ATX PSU will be fine.

Disabling the on-board VGA was a little finicky because there was no function on the BIOS to disable the GT 650M. But upon reading a tutorial to disable internal PCI-E lanes that power your dedicated GPU, that did switch off the GT 650M and the eGPU is ready to be installed which of course includes the usual install of the drivers too.

But that said, I did test that with an R9 290 as shown in the following photos and it works fine too after installing its Crimson Driver. This I finally got around to testing 2 years after I received it free as a gift from an NUS lecturer. It was his R9 290 before his PC died and I ran a FF XV Benchmark merely to test that his old baby checks out. At the same time I reapplied Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut on it... I had to, cause' I mean seriously, when I opened Dr Matt's Card, there was hardly ANY grease in it no wonder it was always throttling.

Repasting (Above) and testing Dr Matthew's R9 290 on the GDC Beast eGPU Dock (below).
Works with no problem.

Also I know the Corsair RM1000 was many times overkill to no end, but the whole rig remained cool and quiet and the PSU was hardly emitting any heat even when the GTX 970 is fully loaded as well as less unsightly cables to handle. So that turned out working pretty well.


First Impressions
The difference after going full desktop GPU was night and day. It's good to go for some really nice gaming even if it's operating on a 1x PCI-e Gen 2.0 which reduces some performance. I don't mind the drawbacks of operating in such narrow PCI-E buses so long it does what it needs to do. Click on the Link or the YouTube Boxes to watch the videos for the various gameplay tests.

1. Final Fantasy XV Benchmark: 1080p Lite Settings.

2. Forged Battalion

1440p with the GTX 970 eGPU works nicely with some of the lighter titles like Forged battalion. Then again it's a super light title, so let's toss it to the deeper end of benchmarks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zjbGTLlMhQ

3. Battlefield 1

Battlefield 1 was playable, though not super smooth. Partly because I hadn't fully downloaded the game and just dived straight in. The difference between 1080p Ultra and 1440p Ultra in terms of fps isn't particularly huge, definitely a PCI-e Bus limitation somewhere.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zqCwls_6W4


4. 3DMark Firestrike

8900 Score on 3DMark. I had a 10,500 on a single GTX 970 and an i7 2600K overclocked. But still, nice boost

5. Doom 2016

This title, actually, surprised me a lot, not only working at all but performing very well across 1440p at Maximum settings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrREGRQzaF8

6. Crysis 3

Testing.... TBA.



Conclusion

This was a fun project and it has been working beautifully for the week I've been using it. Sure, the mini PCI-E 1x limits performance and bandwidth but I love it so far and that has opened a new path for GPU upgrades in the future. What will be interesting to find out later is how much more of a Graphics horsepower we can squeeze in there can give us good benefits till the 1x Bus becomes a bottleneck and will not benefit us any further. But for now, stay tuned as this article will constantly be updated.

You can purchase the GDC Beast v8.0 eGPU Dock here:

Banggood
https://www.banggood.com/Mini-PCI-E-Version-V8_0-EXP-GDC-Beast-Laptop-External-Independent-Video-Card-Dock-p-1011222.html?cur_warehouse=CN

Gearbest:
https://www.gearbest.com/laptop-accessories/pp_229101.html

Aliexpress:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/EXP-GDC-Laptop-External-Independent-Video-Card-Dock-with-PCI-E-Interface-Black/32456172794.html

Lazada Singapore
https://www.lazada.sg/products/v80-exp-gdc-laptop-external-independent-video-card-dock-mini-pci-e-for-beast-intl-i102419952.html?spm=a2o42.order_details.details_title.1.56b646929D99F3

Forged Battalion - Brings back good ol' C & C Generals Nostalgia (Early Access)

Overview

Forged Battalion is an upcoming 2018 RTS title being developed by Petroglyph Games and published by TEAM 17. Petroglyph games is a private developer actually formed from the ashes and employees from what used to be Westwood, who developed the Red Alert series which has been my favorite RTS series to date. The dissolution of Westwood into EA saw a huge layoff of employees and it led to some founding Petroglyph Games which also includes the composer of Forged Battalion's Music Klepacki. TEAM 17 is the publisher that published the very successful Worms franchise of games. Much more doesn't need to be said about TEAM 17, c'mon, they did Worms.

Design your own faction, create your own units from the ground up, build a base, and wipe the enemy, pretty much the norm for RTS these days. By winning battles both in the Campaign as well as Ranked and Unranked matches, you will earn research points to unlock weapons and parts from the Tech Tree for your faction.

Unit Builder:

The commander has the option to create his own infantry and vehicles using parts and weapons researched from the tech tree. Each weapon or component modifying the base chassis will alter the cost of the unit. And great that they tell you the general effectiveness of each weapon type against various unit types (Infantry, Light, Armored, Aircraft, turrets, Buildings respectively) A Maximum of 4 units can be chosen to be built by one type of factory. Essentially you can customise and build up your own faction or army type depending on your needs.

Tech Tree:

As you win various battles in the game, whether campaign, offline skirmish or PvP ranked / unranked, you'll earn research points based on difficulty for your faction. So basically you can skirmish everytime to earn all the points you need. Currently 3 tiers are available and as to the 4th one, I guess it'll be unlocked in the full release of the game.

The Game:

 The game is very similar to C and C generals in terms of its look and feel as well as many of the Command and Conquer series and the Dawn Of War Series of RTS games. So you'll feel at home. Of course, since the people who are developing Forged Battalion, developed Red Alert 2 and Generals. So your role, most of the time is to take out your enemy using the units you made via the Faction Creator. You can capture outposts with Infantry as soon as your Comm center is built, around a similar manner as Company of Heroes and Dawn of War, which is to move infantry next to the outpost and hold till it's captured. 

Performance:

Performance of this game is fairly light to run. And because it looks like it, I went straight to Maximum Settings as shown in the test videos below within my devices' native resolutions. 1440p for the GTX 1060 Rig, and 1080p for the GTX 860M Rig.

Test Device 1: Desktop Test Bench
Xeon X5670 6C12T
16GB DDR3 RAM
250GB Samsung EVO 850
3GB GTX 1060 EVGA ACX Gaming 'Mini' - Overclocked

Test Device 2: GTX 860M / GTX 750 Ti Bench
Core i7 4810MQ
16GB DDR3 SODIM RAM
120GB mSATA SSD
2GB GTX 860M, Slight overclocked

1080p Maximum Settings

Low End GPU Test: 
Aftershock X11 / Clevo W110ER
Core i7 3630QM
8GB RAM
GT 650M
Windows 7 Home Premium.


Although this game is relatively light on GPU power, more CPU power is definitely needed as your army grows larger as you'll very likely expect. But for most of the time, playable framerates, a GTX 860M that I had will be fine and a GTX 1060 3GB will hardly break a sweat at maximum settings at 1440p 60fps. However, old GPUs like the GT 650M can only settle at 768p at low details. Probably due to newer drivers don't really support Kepler based GPUs anymore.

More devices will be added later, as soon as I have the time to bench them.


Conclusion

Forged Battalion really brings back some of the old concepts and keep the spirit of Command And Conquer Generals alive. And being fairly light to run, it will be easy on the hardware. Since it's just went early access, the game is currently under promotional price of just over 10 USD which is pretty sweet. And considering this early stages of the game development, it is quite well optimised. And considering the price at 17 USD, and minus 15% from a promo deal, it may be worth taking a look, especially if you like real-time strategies like Dawn of War and Red Alert.