Gigabyte BRIX i7A-7500 (Kaby Lake) Barebones Review

Rating: 9.0.

Gigabyte have impressed us previously with their BRIX family of devices. We last reviewed the BRIX Gaming UHD, a slightly larger, Mac Pro-style device which focused on being a small gaming machine. Today we look at the latest-and-greatest BRIX i7A-7500, featuring a brand-new Kaby Lake i7 processor. Can this tiny PC be a true desktop replacement?

Using the latest i7-7500U Kaby Lake processor, the BRIX i7A-7500 is a device I have been excited to review for a while. As it is a barebones system, memory and a M.2 storage device need to be supplied by the consumer, but the PC itself is truly miniscule – measuring 34.4 mm x 112.6 mm x 119.4 mm. We assess whether or not this tiny piece of kit is worth buying.

Specification

• Dimensions: 34.4 mm x 112.6 mm x 119.4 mm (1.35″ x 4.43″ x 4.7″)
• Motherboard Size: 105 x 110 mm
• CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-7500U 2.7GHz / 3.5GHz
• Memory: 2 x SO-DIMM DDR4 slots, 2133MHz, Max. 32GB
• LAN Gigabit LAN (Intel i219LM)
• Audio: Realtek ALC255
• Graphics: Intel® HD Graphics 620
• Expansion Slots: 1 x M.2 slot (2280_storage) PCIe /SATA, 1 x PCIe M.2 NGFF 2230 A-E key slot occupied by the WiFi+BT card
• Front I/O: 1 x USB 3.1 type C, 1 x USB3.1, 1 x head phone jack with MIC
• Rear I/O: 1 x HDMI (2.0), 1 x Mini DisplayPort (1.2), 2 x USB 3.0, 1 x RJ45, 1 x DC-In, 1 x Kensington lock slot
• Power Supply Input: AC 100-240V. Output: DC 19V. 3.42A
• VESA Bracket: Supports 75 x 75 and 100 x 100 mm
• Wifi Card: Intel® Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168

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