Zotac MEK1 Black (i7-7700, GTX 1070Ti) Mini Gaming PC Review

1. Introduction2. Thermals and Noise3. Storage and CPU Performance4. 3DMark & Gaming Performance5. Closing Thoughts6. View All Pages

In this review we take a look at the Zotac MEK1 mini gaming PC. The MEK1 manages to use an ultra-slim Mini ITX form factor without sacrificing performance as it still features an i7-7700 and a GTX 1070 Ti. We tested it across a range of games and benchmarks to see if it is worth the £1439 asking price.

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Specifications:

• CPU: Intel Core i7 7700, Quad Core, 8 threads, clock speed 3.6 GHz, boost clock 4.2Ghz.
• Memory: 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 2400 Mhz
• GPU: GeForce GTX 1070 Ti , GDDR5 , 8GB
• Storage Drives: 1x 240GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD + 1x 1 TB 2.5″ SATA HDD
• PSU Wattage: 450 W
• Network: 802.11ac WiFi,Dual Wired Gigabit LAN
• Operating System: Windows 10 Home (64 bit)
• Dimensions: 118.01mm Width x 415.15mm Height x 418.32mm Depth

Front Panel:

• 1 x Headphone
• 1 x Mic In
• 1 x Power Button
• 1 x Power LED
• 2 x USB 3.0

Rear Panel:

• 1 x Center/Subwoofer Speaker Out
• 3 x DisplayPort 1.4
• 1 x DVI-D DL
• 1 x HDMI 2.0b
• 1 x Line In
• 1 x Line Out
• 1 x Mains Power Cord Connector
• 1 x Mic-In
• 1 x PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse Combo
• 1 x Rear Speaker Out
• 2 x RJ-45
• 1 x S/PDIF-Out (Optical)
• 2 x USB 2.0
• 4 x USB 3.0
• 2 x WiFi Antenna connectors

Box contents: 

• 1 x OS Recovery Disk
• 1 x Quick Start Guide
• 2 x Stands
• 1 x UK Power Cable
• 1 x USB Flash Drive with Drivers
• 1 x User Manual
• 1 x Warranty Card2 x Wi-Fi Antenna

Thermal Dynamics:

To test the cooling performance of the Zotac MEK1 we ran AIDA64 and Unigine Heaven for 10 minutes. We test the CPU & GPU at the same time to ensure that the cooling is sufficient to cool both chips. We also kept an eye on the temperatures during gaming to ensure the results are representative.

Idle temperatures are very good with both the CPU and GPU sitting at just over 30C. The CPU stays under 70C when stressed so it appears Zotac has done a good job when it comes to cooling the i7-7700.

The GPU does get quite a bit warmer at 82C but we found that the fan profile is fairly conservative, with the maximum GPU fan speed reaching 52%. At 82C the GPU is well within safe limits but we wouldn't recommend playing around with the clock speed.

Noise Levels: 

We measured fan noise levels using a sound meter while the PC was idle with no programs open, and then during AIDA64 testing to get a reading with the system under load.

At 42 decibels the Zotac MEK1 isn't a silent and stealthy desk companion but the fans are certainly nothing to worry about. Under load, the fan noise noticeably increases but not by much and at 50 decibels it still blends into the background. We'd like to see slower fan speeds when the MEK1 is idle, however, for a quieter working environment.

Drive Performance:

CrystalDiskMark tests the raw speed of a storage device. It uses a test file to write data to or read data from the drive. We test using the default 1GB file size.

The speeds coming from the 240 GB M.2 SSD aren't the best we've seen but are certainly fast enough to provide a noticeable decrease in boot times and time spent in the loading screen while gaming.

Cinebench R15: 

Cinebench R15 is a cross-platform testing suite that measures CPU performance. We compare the Zotac MEK1 with some three other systems that KitGuru has reviewed recently.

  

It's interesting that Zotac has opted to use a 7th Gen Kaby Lake processor in the MEK1. Perhaps it was to cut costs, or perhaps an updated model will be coming out soon – but in any case, it does put the MEK1 behind its rivals. The MSI Vortex G25 uses an i7-8700, for instance, and with its two extra cores it achieves a significantly higher Cinebench score than the MEK1. This won't affect gaming performance too much, but it makes the Zotac MEK1 a poor option for users that want a PC with the best rendering performance in 2018.

3DMark scores:

For this test, we ran the Zotac MEK1 through Time Spy Extreme, Time Spy, Fire Strike, Fire Strike Extreme and Fire Strike Ultra. We first look at the overall scores given at the end of each test.

As expected the Zotac MEK1 gets some very good benchmark scores. It does particularly with Fire Strike, showing that it should perfect for gaming at 1080p.

The below graph shows the individual results for the GPU and CPU:

The GTX 1070 Ti is a very capable GPU with 8GB of memory and it performs well throughout the tests. Both the CPU & GPU are reasonably matched in performance and should provide plenty of power for playing the latest games.

Gaming performance: 

We used the Zotac MEK1 to play 3 different popular and graphically demanding games to see just how powerful this PC is when it comes to gaming. We tested the games at 2 different image quality settings in order to test the performance of the 8GB GTX 1070 Ti. We also tested the games at different resolutions (1080p, 1440p, 2160p) to allow for different monitor specifications.

Rise of the Tomb Raider is an action adventure game with many different environments and immersive landscapes making it a useful way to test this PC's gaming performance. Rise of the Tomb Raider doesn’t have an ultra setting so we opted to use the very high setting. We also include screenshots of the results from the in-game benchmark.

Far Cry 5 is the most recent release we tested on the MEK1. The gigantic open world of Hope County has plenty of beautiful scenery to test how well this PC performs with a brand new AAA game. We also include screenshots of the benchmark results.

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands is another game with a superb open world environment. The beautiful scenery of mountains, forests and deserts requires a lot of GPU power to render, making it a very demanding game that is perfect for testing this PC's gaming performance. We have also included screenshots of this game’s very handy in-built benchmark.

At 1080p, the Zotac MEK1 proved to be a very capable gaming PC. It posted impressive frame rates for all of our test games, even with very high graphics settings. We think it would pair really well with a high refresh-rate 1080p monitor.

The MEK1 also proved to be cable of playing our test games at 1440p, with the frame rate rarely going below 60FPS. The GTX 1070 Ti begins to struggle at 4K resolution but it still powerful enough to run the latest games at the 30FPS mark with high settings.  Overall the Zotac MEK1 provided an excellent gaming experience.

The Zotac MEK1, with its compact form factor, is a great option for users who want high end gaming performance in a PC not much larger than a console.

Pre-built PCs often come at a premium but we think the £1,399 asking price is reasonable for the specification of the MEK1. You do pay a bit extra for the small form factor and unique looks, but the mark-up is reasonable.

Elsewhere, the plastic body with its large fins is not the most attractive but the customisable lighting is a nice touch. It's still a nice and compact rig, though, so this will easily fit on your desk.

In terms of cooling performance, the thermal results are overall pretty good, but the MEK1 can be a little loud when idle, though this could easily be adjusted with a fan profile change.

The gaming performance is great as expected thanks to the GTX 1070 Ti, but we're not sure why Zotac opted to use the outdated i7-7700 processor in 2018. It certainly puts the MEK1 at a disadvantage compared to other compact PCs coming out this year featuring the new 8th Gen processors.

All in all the Zotac MEK1 is a good option for high end gaming performance in a smaller form factor. It's easy to set up and live with but its looks may prove divisive.

The Zotac MEK1 can be found for £1439.99 HERE.

Pros: 

• Fairly priced.
• Powerful gaming performance.
• Stays reasonably cool and quiet under load.
• Easy to set up.
• Customisable RGB lighting with good software.

Cons:

• Not the prettiest to look at.
• Outdated 7th gen processor.
• Could be quieter when idle.
• Coil whine was occasionally noticeable.

KitGuru says: The Zotac MEK1 does a good job of offering impressive gaming performance in a compact form factor.

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