GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC Review

If you’re tired of bulky desktops, you’re limited on space, or you just love a cute mini computer, the GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC may be the PC of your dreams. But just because it’s physically small, that doesn’t mean it’s not powerful. I recently had the pleasure of testing this mini PC to see just how well it stacks up in a world of desktops and laptops.

This is a sponsored article and was made possible by GEEKOM. The actual contents and opinions are the sole views of the author, who maintains editorial independence even when a post is sponsored.

Overview of Features

Let’s start with the physical size, which is just 4.4 in x 4.6 in x 1.8 in. It fits well in your hand, and it’s lightweight at just 1.25 lbs. It’ll fit pretty much anywhere without taking up much space.

The GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC isn’t stingy with ports either. The system features:

• Three USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports
• SD card reader
• Two USB4 (USB-C) ports
• HDMI 2.0 port
• Mini Display port
• Ethernet port
• 3.5 mm headphone jack
• DC port (for power)

While the model I reviewed came with 32 GB of RAM and a 2 TB SSD, you can order the Mini IT11 with different specs and upgrade as needed. Each model lets you upgrade:

• Expandable dual-channel DDR4 SODIMM up to 64 GB
• Expandable SSD (2280 M.2 SATA/PCIe) up to 2 TB
• Expandable 2.5 in SATA HDD (7 mm) up to 2 TB

You could have up to 4 TB of storage in this tiny little box and up to 64 GB of RAM.

This all goes along nicely with the 11th Gen Intel Core i7-11390H. An i5 model is also available, but the model I reviewed is an i7. The CPU ensures you can do pretty much anything you want, thanks to four cores, eight threads, a 12 MB cache, 28 W TDP, and speeds up to 5 GHz.

The Intel Iris Xe graphics card is more than capable of handling most tasks, such as watching videos, streaming shows, and even casual gaming. For more serious games requiring faster refresh rates, this won’t quite be up to par. However, it does support up to 8K UHD resolution and up to 4K UHD across, and up to four screens at once.

You’ll have no issues staying connected, thanks to:

• Bluetooth 5.2
• Intel Wi-Fi 6
• Support for up to 1,000 Mbps Ethernet

It has Windows 11 Professional preinstalled. Obviously, you can change this if you want.

In the Box

The GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC is packaged incredibly well and comes with the basic cables you need to get started. You’ll need to supply a monitor, keyboard, and mouse, as it lets you fully customize your workstation.

The package includes:

• The Mini IT11 i7 PC
• Power cable
• HDMI cable
• VESA mount with screws (to mount to a monitor)
• Thank you note
• User guide

Unless you’re planning to upgrade the PC, there’s not really much to read in the user guide. Plus, it’s just four screws to open the case, and you’re all set to start upgrading.

All the ports are easy to access. On the back, you have the DC port, Ethernet, HDMI, Mini Display, two USB-A, and one USB-C port. The front features the remaining USB ports, headphone jack, and your power button. On the left and right sides, you’ll find an SD card reader and a Kensington security lock, to be used if you have special locking cables to secure the PC to a desk.

Getting Set Up

I used a 15-in. portable monitor and my favorite wireless keyboard/mouse combo to test the mini PC. Between connecting the monitor, the power cable for the PC, and plugging in the wireless dongle for my keyboard/mouse, setup took maybe two to four minutes.

When it was time to set up Windows, the GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC powered up and took me through the initial Windows setup screens in seconds. Honestly, this was the fastest I’ve ever had a Windows PC go through the setup phase. The only time-consuming part is downloading Windows updates, but that only took about five minutes. This will vary based on how many updates are available when you receive the PC.

In less than 15 minutes, I went from opening the box to ready to use the PC. If you want to import OneDrive files and user data, it may take a bit longer, but I didn’t do any of that, though the prompts were there if I wanted to.

Blazing Fast

I honestly don’t know how to describe quite how fast the GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC really is. As an example, my usual work PC is an HP laptop with an Intel 11th Gen i5 CPU and 8 GB of RAM. It also has an SSD and loads everything fast. This mini PC made my laptop seem like an early Windows XP PC.

I was blown away at how easily it opened videos. My laptop usually takes three to five seconds to open Media Player, then a few more seconds before the video starts.

The Mini IT11 i7 had the video open in Media Player and playing in just a few seconds. Plus, the dedicated GPU really made the graphics pop.

Despite opening a few dozen browser tabs, playing a video in Media Player, checking out a video on YouTube, and having several LibreOffice files open, the PC never had an issue.

I expected it to get hot with so much going. My laptop starts running fairly warm when I try to do too much at once. This mini PC got warm, but nothing unusual for any PC I’ve ever owned. I was impressed at how quiet it was. I could hear the fan when it turned on, but it was just a low hum. I could see it being slightly louder if it’s mounted on the back of a monitor or behind a TV, where the acoustics may amplify the noise.

I had no problem with the PC recognizing USB drives, external hard drives, or SD cards.

Final Thoughts

If you need a tiny PC with a lot of power for work, school, or just watching videos, the GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC has you covered. The specs would be impressive on a much larger desktop, but to have them in a compact and easily upgradable form makes this an even more attractive PC. You could easily pack this up for travel to set up a workstation anywhere you go.

Pick up your own GEEKOM Mini IT11 i7 PC for $599 with the code summer100IT11 from the official GEEKOM site or the code 37PDS4WZ from Amazon through September 10th, 2023.