ASUS ExpertCenter E5 21.5” Full HD All-in-One PC with Wireless Keyboard and Mouse (Intel i3-11100B, 8GB RAM, 256GB PCIe SSD, Windows 11) Height & tilt adjustable screen

Product Information

Our only other criticism is that, for the same price or less, Apple's 2020 Mac mini consistently outperforms the ExpertCenter PN52 on productivity and graphics tasks. However, if macOS simply isn't an option for the apps you use, or you're Windows-loyal, that's a red line; we probably can't convince you otherwise. ASUS ExpertCenter PN64 can draw power from any USB Power Delivery-enabled display or device, eliminating the need for a separate power adapter to create a neater, uncluttered workspace. Please note that ExpertCenter D8 Mini Tower includes two up to 4 TB M.2 SSD drives and one up to 2 TB 3.5” HDD. A second 2.5” HDD of up to 2 TB can be optionally fitted by the user, for total HDD capacity of up to 4 TB. However, when it comes to GFXBench, that is Apple's game. The Mac mini beats all of its competitors by a country mile in both of the benchmark's subtests. Even as a pre-built machine, the Asus PN52 is a competitive-enough mini PC. However, the Mac mini's graphics processing appears to be more powerful, regardless.

With this benchmark, we run both the main test and PCMark 10’s Full System Storage subtest, which measures the program load time and throughput of the boot drive (these days, almost always a solid-state drive).

ExpertCenter D5 SFF (D500SCES)

Please note that ExpertCenter D5 Mini Tower includes two up to 1 TB M.2 SSD drives and one up to 2 TB 3.5” HDD. A second 2.5” HDD of up to 2 TB can be optionally fitted by the user, for a total HDD capacity of up to 4 TB. On PCMark 10, the PN52’s 6,000 score on the main benchmark and 1,535 on the storage benchmark ace out the comparison PCs, even with one (the D500) boasting a desktop CPU. This is impressive, but things look less rosy once the Mac mini is allowed to play, and when multicore processing comes to the fore (in Handbrake and Cinebench). The PN52 landed second to last in the Handbrake test at 14:27, whereas the Mac mini shoots straight to the front of the race with a time of 8:00. On Cinebench, the PN52’s score of 2,961 was last of the bunch. The Mac mini scored highly on this test once again, but is bested ultimately by the desktop CPU in the other Asus ExpertCenter. Again, rendering is generally a CPU- and core-intensive process, and the desktop chip has an intrinsic strength here. Please note that ExpertCenter D7 SFF includes two up to 2 TB M.2 SSD drives and one up to 2 TB 3.5” HDD. A second 2.5” HDD of up to 1 TB can be optionally fitted by the user, for total HDD capacity of up to 3 TB. Note that the H-series chip in the PN52 is the kind of CPU intended for gaming and other power-user notebooks. Only the ExpertCenter D500 uses a "true" desktop CPU; the Geekom and NUC CPUs employ lighter-weight mobile chips. Let's see how that plays out. Productivity and Content Creation Tests

Unless otherwise stated, all performance claims are based on theoretical performance. Actual figures may vary in real-world situations. Please note that ExpertCenter D9 Mini Tower includes two up to 2 TB M.2 SSD drives and one up to 2 TB 3.5” HDD. A second 2.5” HDD of up to 2 TB can be optionally fitted by the user, for total HDD capacity of up to 4 TB. Please note that ExpertCenter D7 Mini Tower includes two up to 2 TB M.2 SSD drives and one up to 2 TB 3.5” HDD. A second 2.5” HDD of up to 1 TB can be optionally fitted by the user, for total HDD capacity of up to 3 TB. ASUS ExpertCenter PN64 can support up to four 4K displays via two HDMI ® ports, two DisplayPort™ over USB-C ® or other user-configurable ports, without any limitation on the combination used. Based on ASUS internal testings. Unless otherwise stated, all performance claims are based on theoretical performance. Actual figures may vary in real-world situations.Unless otherwise stated, all performance claims are based on theoretical performance. UPS performance tested under system default brightness of 110 nits and volume at 67%, with both WiFi and Bluetooth enabled, but not connected, and playing an offline HD video. The data-protection period calculation is based on ExpertCenter A1 AiO entering hibernation mode after the initial usable period, providing an extended opportunity for power to be restored. Actual figures may vary in real-world situations.

While this roll-your-own approach appeals to some people, others will appreciate the ExpertCenter PN52’s "take-it-out-of-the-box, plug it in, and go" appeal. The PN52 we tested is just a touch larger than a typical NUC, measuring 2.3 by 4.7 by 5.1 inches (HWD) and weighing in at a feathery 2.4 pounds. The PN52 is unusual for a mini PC in that the CPU installed in our test unit was an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H, a mobile CPU with integrated Radeon graphics. (Intel chips tend to dominate the mini PC world.) You can also get the PN52 with a Ryzen 5 5600H or Ryzen 9 5900HX processor. Mobile CPU notwithstanding, we are pleasantly surprised with just how well the PN52 did on many of our benchmarks. ASUS ExpertCenter PN52 can draw power from any USB Power Delivery-enabled display or device, eliminating the need for a separate power adapter to create a neater, uncluttered workspace. UL’s 3DMark is a graphics test suite for Windows that contains a number of benchmarks for different GPU functions and software APIs. We run two DirectX 12 tests on all PCs: Night Raid, which is appropriate for PCs with integrated graphics (such as the ones benchmarked), and Time Spy, which is more demanding and more suitable for higher-end PCs with souped-up graphics cards and GPUs.The uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is an optional feature. Availability varies by country and region. We subjected the ExpertCenter PN52 to our standard desktop benchmark suite. In our tests, we compared the ExpertCenter PN52 to several other recommended mini PCs: the Apple Mac mini (2020), the Asus ExpertCenter D500, the Geekom IT8 Mini PC, and the Intel NUC 11 Pro Kit. The testing regimen includes the requirements of both military-grade standards and ASUS quality tests, and varies depending on device. MIL-STD-810 testing is conducted on selected ASUS products only. These tests do not demonstrate fitness for military use, or adherence to US Department of Defense (DoD) contract requirements. Similarly, the test results should not be considered an indication or guarantee of future performance under the specified test conditions. Damage occurring under these test conditions — or any attempt to replicate them — would be considered accidental, and would not be covered by the standard ASUS warranty. Additional coverage is available with ASUS Premium Care. Please note that ExpertCenter D5 SFF includes two up to 1 TB M.2 SSD drives and one up to 2 TB 3.5” HDD. A second 2.5” HDD of up to 1 TB can be optionally fitted by the user, for a total HDD capacity of up to 3 TB. ASUS secured the #1 spot for motherboard market share as of 2017, with DigiTimes reporting that the Taiwanese PC component giant owns 45% of the motherboard market.