Sapphire Edge AI Mini PC Review (Ryzen AI 9 HX 370)

When we think of Sapphire products, we’re almost certainly thinking of good quality AMD-based graphics cards. Sure, we’ve seen some of the company's Embedded and Edge+ solutions at Computex over the years, but we've never looked too closely. The new Edge AI series could change that however, offering a tiny barebones mini PC that packs in AMD's Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 with integrated Radeon 890M graphics, on sale for just £650 here in the UK. Let’s take a closer look…

00:00 Intro
00:57 Pricing and spec details
02:17 Design + first impressions
03:01 Connectivity options
03:46 Sapphire’s party trick for accessing internals
04:38 Key spec refresh + BIOS
05:20 CPU behaviour / power modes
06:08 Noise levels in the different modes
06:46 General system performance
07:03 WiFi speed investigation
08:06 AI performance, iGPU VRAM testing
09:51 Gaming test setup
10:05 Counter Strike 2
10:33 Cyberpunk 2077
10:49 COD: Black Ops 6
11:07 F1 25
11:26 Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
11:44 Marvel Rivals
12:02 Thermals, thermal imaging camera
12:45 Closing thoughts

Specification:

• Model name: SAPPHIRE EDGE AI™ 370, SAPPHIRE EDGE AI™ 350, SAPPHIRE EDGE AI™ 340
• Processor: AMD Ryzen™ AI 9 HX 370
• Type: Dual Channel DDR5 SO-DIMM
• Capacity: Supports up to 96 GB
• Interface: Supports M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD slot
• Expansion Slots:
  • 1 x M.2 2280 PCIe slot
  • 1 x M.2 2242 PCIe slot
  • 1 x M.2 2230 PCIe slot (default use for WLAN module; supports Wi-Fi 6e and Bluetooth 5.2)
• Front I/O
  • 1 x Audio jack
  • 2 x USB 3.2 Type-A Gen 2
  • 1 x Power button with LED
• Rear I/O
  • 1 x DC jack
  • 2 x HDMI 2.1
  • 2 x USB Type-C 4.0 (with PD 3.0)
  • 1 x USB 3.2 Type-A Gen 2
  • 1 x USB 2.0 Type-A Gen 2
  • 1 x RJ-45 (2.5G LAN)
• Power:
• Input: 19V, 6.32A
• Adapter: 120W
• Finish: Golden Black
• Supported OS: Windows and Linux
• Size (W x D x H): 117 x 111 x 30 mm
• VESA Mount Compatibility: Yes

We don't yet have a confirmed retail links, but Sapphire told us stock will be landing at OCUK in the next few weeks. Pricing for the different models is as follows:

EDGE AI 340 – £439
EDGE AI 350 – £539
EDGE AI 370 – £649

Pros

• Very compact chassis, under 0.4L volume.
• Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 is a strong all-round CPU.
• Radeon 890M iGPU is capable for 1080p low settings gaming.
• Being a barebones kit offers flexibility.
• Dead easy to removable the magnetic top cover.
• Spare M.2 2242 slot.
• Up to 96GB memory is supported.
• Good set of connectivity options.
• BIOS allows users to adjust the memory available to the iGPU, up to 24GB.
• Well-managed thermals.
• Reasonable noise levels despite the compact chassis.

Cons

• Lacks front USB-C, SD card reader and OcuLink.
• Runs at lower power targets than Geekom's A9 Max.
• DIY memory and storage installation won't be for everyone.
• Plastic construction lacks the premium feel of other all-metal mini PCs.
• WiFi 6E isn't the fastest going.

KitGuru says: If you're in the market for a new barebones mini PC, Sapphire's Edge AI series is well worth a look.

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