Zotac Adds New ZBox QX Series Mini Creator PCs with Xeon and Quadro Inside

Today, Zotac added to their lineup of Mini PCs with Xeon and Quadro based models in the ZBox QX3P5000 and QX3P3000. The new models feature an Intel Xeon E-2136 6-core processor and a Quadro based professional graphics card inside. The miniature PCs include either a Nvidia Quadro P5000 graphics card or Quadro P3000 with 6GB of VRAM, all inside of a 9 x 5 x 8-inch box. The new QX ZBox, Zotac says, is designed to deliver the best performance for demanding creative, scientific, or financial computing projects in a small form factor. 

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Driving the new mini PCs is Intel’s Xeon E-2136 processor sporting six cores and 12 threads with a base clock of 3.3 GHz and boost speeds reaching 4.5 GHz. The E-2136 is the only CPU choice in any available SKU. Memory support is up to 64GB using two SODIMM slots with speeds up to DDR4-2666. Both ECC and non-ECC memory is supported due to the Xeon processor capable of using both. 

The Quadro P5000 SKUs, any with P5000 in the name, include 16GB of GDDRX5 memory and fits within a 180W power envelope. The P3000 card comes with 6GB of GDDR5 memory and uses less power (75W total) with both capable out outputting up to four 4K UHD (3480x2160) monitors using four HDMI (2.0b) outputs found on either GPU model.

On the storage front, the diminutive box is able to support a single 2.5-inch SATA 6 Gbps HDD/SSD along with two M.2 slots. The first M.2 slot supports both NVMe or SATA based modules up to 110mm in length while the second M.2 slot is for Intel Optane memory support and handles up to an 80mm module.

The styling of the black chassis is derived from the Zbox E series and consists of large honeycomb venting with a filter on the top along with additional holes on the side for airflow. The front panel contains an illuminated power button (yellow circle surrounding it), USB 3.1 (5 Gbps) ports (Type-A and Type-C) along with 3.5mm headphone and microphone jacks. There is also a 3-in-1 (SD/SDHC/SDXC) card reader up front for easy access. The back of the device sports four more USB 3.1 ports, a Thunderbolt 3 (data only) port along with the Wi-Fi antennae mount and power plug.

Also located on the back are two ethernet ports, a single Gigabit port along with a 2.5 Gigabit Killer based Networks NIC. The QX series Zboxes also include the latest integrated Killer Wi-Fi module, the AX1650,  supporting Wi-Fi 6 protocols (Killer calls this the world’s first). The device is a 2x2, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) module supporting 160 MHz channels as well as Bluetooth 5.0. This setup is able to deliver up to 2.4 Gbps of theoretical throughput, one of the fastest available and good for piping through large files on the network. 

Pricing nor availability was mentioned and will vary significantly between the two due to the difference in cost of the video cards, but we expect to see these on the market in the coming weeks.