Beelink EQi Wildcat Lake 304 “Intel Core 3 304” Mini PC Review – 18A Efficiency King For The Masses

Beelink was established in 2011 & is regarded as one of the top sellers in the Mini PC category at Amazon. The company has a diverse portfolio of Mini PCs, Players, and gadgets, but the core focus is on the Mini PC segment, which includes both Intel and AMD options.

While we have looked at several of Beelink's Mini PC options in the past, ranging from AMD & Intel CPUs, the company has introduced a new Intel model recently, the EQi 304, which is based on Intel's Wildcat Lake SoCs. This is the first Mini PC to feature Wildcat Lake, and as such, we've been looking forward to really trying this out, as this platform has the potential to disrupt the entry-tier segment.

Beelink is offering the EQi 304 in three configurations, which feature the same Intel Core 3 304 chip and 512 GB storage but with different memory configurations: 16 GB, 24 GB, and up to 32 GB. We got the one with 24 GB memory, which has a retail price of $659 US.

Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - Specifications At A Glance

In terms of specifications, the Beelink EQi 304 is equipped with the Intel Core 3 304. This is the most entry-level chip within the Wildcat Lake "Core Series 3" lineup, and it immediately tells us who this PC is designed for. For regular office, business, and productivity tasks, Wildcat Lake is said to be a great fit, with its highly efficient design that is a stripped-down version of Panther Lake on the same 18A architecture.

So, talking about Intel Core Series 3 or Wildcat Lake SoCs, they feature the same processor architectures as Panther Lake (Cougar Cove P-Cores / Darkmont E-Cores), the same GPU architecture as Panther Lake (Xe3), and the same NPU as Panther Lake (NPU5). The only thing that's changed, which is the case with every cost-optimized variant, is the difference in the overall specs and capabilities of each chip. That is why the chip has just two chip tiles versus several on Panther Lake SoCs.

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The Intel Core 3 304 uses a mix of Intel 18A and TSMC N3B nodes. The primary compute tile with CPU cores, GPU cores, NPU, etc, is based on Intel's leading tech, while the I/O tile is based on the TSMC process tech. It features a total of 5 cores, of which one is based on the Panther Cove P-Core architecture, while the rest of the 4 cores are based on the Darkmont LPE-Core architecture. The CPU carries 6 MB of Intel Smart Cache.

The P-Core is clocked at 1.5 GHz base and 4.3 GHz boost, while the LPE cores are clocked at 1.4 GHz base and 3.3 GHz boost. The chip has a base power rated at 15W, a minimum assured power of 10W, and a maximum turbo power of 35W.

For the iGPU, Intel's Wildcat Lake CPUs pack the Xe3 architecture. The configuration specific to the Core Ultra 3 304 features just 1 Xe3 core, which clocks up to 2300 MHz, and supports a max res of 4K@60hz. While the Xe3 architecture is featured, the graphics capabilities are dialed back for Core Series 3, and you don't get either Ray Tracing Units or the full DX12 Ultimate support.

Intel does retain Multi-Frame Generation support up to 4x through its latest Arc drivers. The GPU is rated at 9 TOPs while the NPU offers a peak of 15 TOPs. The new NPU supports the latest AI frameworks such as OpenVINO, Windows ML, DirectML, ONNX RT, and WebNN.

Processor Number	Total Cores & Threads	P-core Max Turbo Freq (GHz)	Intel Smart Cache LLC (MB)	NPU TOPS	Total Xe-cores	GPU Max Freq (GHz)	GPU TOPS	Base Power	Turbo Power
Intel Core 7 360	6	4.8	6	17	2Xe	2.6	21	15 W	35 W
Intel Core 7 350	6	4.8	6	17	2Xe	2.6	21	15 W	35 W
Intel Core 5 330	6	4.6	6	16	2Xe	2.5	20	15 W	35 W
Intel Core 5 320	6	4.6	6	16	2Xe	2.5	20	15 W	35 W
Intel Core 5 315	6	4.4	6	15	2Xe	2.3	18	15 W	35 W
Intel Core 3 304	5	4.3	6	15	1Xe	2.3	9	15 W	35 W

Mini PC Internals

With the CPU covered, let's talk about the rest of the specifications that the Mini PC has to offer. Intel made Wildcat Lake with affordability in mind, and to achieve this, they had to look at the platform level.

For this, memory is the biggest deal, and Intel has resorted to a single-channel memory layout while still offering both LPDDR and DDR options. In today's memory-constrained world, this should be the single biggest thing that Intel has done to give everyday users the best cost-to-memory option in a laptop.

First, we have the memory, which comes in the form of 24 GB of DDR5-5600. The Wildcat Lake SoCs support up to LPDDR5x-7467 and DDR5-6400 memory. Our unit came with a single DDR5-5600 memory module from Micron with a 24 GB capacity. The specific part number for the RAM is "CT24G56C46S5.M8C1" and operates at CL46-45-45-90-135 timings (1.10V).

It doesn't end here; storage has also been configured for cost optimizations. The use of UFS 3.0 SD card standards makes for lower power and lower cost, while offering decent space sizes, while the reliance on Gen4 SSD makes for a balanced yet high-speed approach vs the more expensive Gen5 options.

Our unit came with 512 GB of UFS 3.1 Flash storage. This is YMTC "TMUSAB4TF3D1C1" flash, which has a maximum rate speed of 2000 MB/s (Read) and 1900 MB/s (Write). The PC has two PCIe Gen4 NVMe slots, with one rated at x2 speeds and the other one rated at x1, so you can definitely expand the storage capabilities.

IO on the Mini PC comes in the form of a USB 3.2 10 Gbps port, 3.5mm Audio Jack USB Type-C 10 Gbps port, a power button, and a power indicator on the front. The backside features two USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4 ports rated at 40 Gbps, two USB 2.0 ports, one HDMI port rated at 4K @ 60 Hz, two LAN ports (10GbE+2.5GbE), and an AC Power Jack.

Talking a little bit about the BIOS, there are plenty of options such as tuning the CPU, GPU, DRAM, and Fan settings. There are options to change the power limits from the reference 15W PL1, 35W PL2, up to 50W. You can also adjust the PL4 limits and set the specific amount of memory used by the iGPU/NPU, though those options are also available in the Intel Graphics Command Center.

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Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - Unboxing & A Closer Look

The Beelink EQi 304 Mini PC comes in a white colored cardboard package, which has a simplistic look.

The back of the box has some basic specifications that list the specific configuration for this model. We got the Intel Core 3 304 variant with 24 GB of memory & 512 GB of storage capacity. Opening the box, you get a nice "Thank you" message on the plastic wrap.

Within the box, you can find the Mini PC in the top compartment, along with a guide/warranty booklet, the power cable, and an HDMI cable underneath the box. There's no adapter since the Mini PC comes with a built-in power supply.

Beelink has made use of its updated design for the EQi 304. It comes in grey color that has the Beelink logo etched in the center and hexagonal textures on the front. The PC measures 126 x 126 x 44.2mm and weighs 500 grams.

The top and sides are fully enclosed except for the rear and bottom of the chassis, which have vents to push hot air out of the unit, which is dissipated by the cooling solution. There's a single fan that is used to cool the Mini PC, while a heatsink with a singular heatpipe attaches over the main chip.

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The front I/O on the Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" includes a USB-C 10 Gbps port, a USB 3.2 10 Gbps Type-A port, a 3.5 mm audio jack, a Power button, and an LED indicator.

The back I/O on the Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" includes two Thunderbolt 4 Type-C 40 Gbps ports, two USB 2.0 ports, a single HDMI port, dual LAN ports, and an AC Power Jack. The vents are also placed on the back.

To access the internals, you have to unscrew the four screws hidden behind tiny rubber covers. There's a rubber pull tab which lets you easily lift the rear plate.

Internally, the first things that you notice are the single DDR5 DIMM, a PSU, and a heatsink that covers two additional PCIe Gen4 slots along with the MediaTek WiFi card. The topmost PCIe 4.0 slot is connected via a cable that connects to the mainboard, while the lower slot is located on the PCB. Both slots feature heatsinks.

The power supply is an 85W design, which means you don't need to carry an adapter to boot the PC up, just a wall-mount cable would do the trick, though it would have been even nicer if this PC offered Type-C power support.

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You do have the option to upgrade the memory and storage besides the built-in UFS 3.1 512 GB Flash, but in terms of memory, you can go up to 32 GB, 48 GB, and 64 GB. The MediaTek module offers Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 support.

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Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - CPU Performance

Now, coming to the CPU performance, there isn't a whole lot to expect from a chip with just 5 cores and 5 threads, more so given the fact that just one of those cores is a P-Core while the rest are LP-E cores, more power-tuned versions of regular E cores.

Starting with the synthetics, the Intel Core 3 304 scored 332.2 points in CPU-Z's single-core and 2767.1 points in the multi-core bench. There were times when the single-core scores went up to 500+ points, but after an initial stress run, the score mostly settled at around 300-400 points.

The Cinebench 2024 scores were seen at 105 points in single-core and 351 points in multi-core, which is nothing much to write about.

Moving over to Geekbench 6, we saw a single-core score of 2378 points and a multi-core score of 6241 points. 3DMark's CPU Profile tests show a single-core score of 954 points and a max thread score of 3147 points.

PCMark 10 was unable to complete the full benchmark, citing an "OpenCL" driver error, but the "Essentials" suite was decent in terms of performance. The Core i3-1220P "Alder Lake" CPU with 10 cores scores around the same, and that has 12 threads with a base TDP of 28W.

While these scores may look a bit underwhelming, we have to understand that Wildcat Lake is designed as a replacement for the older N-series lineup, and an N305 with 8 cores and 8 threads has nearly half the single-core performance, and lacks much behind in multi-core tests, at the same wattage, which shows the leap that the new LPE and P cores are making in the tests we conducted.

Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - AI Synthetic Performance

We tested the AI performance through Geekbench AI. The CPU bench under the ONNX framework was alright, but the NPU side under the "OpenVINO" framework saw a big boost. This is a very decent and lightweight NPU that can supplement the majority of AI-related local use cases.

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Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - GPU Synthetic Performance

Now we are going to look at the GPU performance, and before we present to you the gaming numbers, we first have to show you the synthetic performance. Now, once again, the Wildcat Lake does feature the same Xe3 architecture, but they are stripped-down versions, and feature only up to 2 Xe3 cores. The Core 3 304 is the only chip that features just one Xe3 core; as such, don't expect lots of potential here, but we really want to see what a single Xe3 core manages to offer.

For synthetic tests, we used 3DMark, and the only four benchmark results we were able to get were Steel Nomad, Wild Life, and Fire Strike. We will explain in a bit why that's so, but first, let us look at the results:

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Looking at some of these benchmarks, especially the last Steel Nomad score, we can instantly see the scaling. A single Xe3 core scores 141 points, while 12 Xe3 cores at a similar TDP on the Arc G3 Extreme gave us around 1400 points. And the X9 388H ends up around 1700 points. So yeah, you can tell almost linear scaling for each core that's added to the mix.

Now for the rest of the benchmarks, Speed Way, Port Royal, and Solar Bay failed to run due to missing RT hardware and DXR1.1/DX12U/VulkanRT support, while TimeSpy didn't run because Wildcat Lake didn't support SSSE 3.

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Understandable though since having just one GPU core makes the addition of RT pointless. Now, we will take a look at gaming performance.

Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - 720p Gaming Performance

With the synthetic performance out of the way, we can start taking a look at pure gaming numbers, and first, we tested Cyberpunk 2077 at 720p at Low, with XeSS Upscaling set to "UltraPerformance" and Frame-Gen enabled. We only got around 50-70 FPS, & without frame-generation, the performance dropped to 28-33 FPS.

We tried many other games, even Skyrim Special Edition, which ran at 720p Low natively at around 60 FPS in interiors and 40-50 FPS outdoors.

Red Dead Redemption 2 at 720p Low with Performance Upscaling (FSR) ran at around 30-35 FPS at night time. We weren't able to get daytime footage, but we managed low 30s in that setting.

No Man's Sky ran decently at 720p "Standard" with XeSS "Performance" upscaling. The FPS was over 60 in spaceflight, while on the planet, the FPS dipped in the 40-50 FPS range.

Forza Horizon 6 at 720P with Low Settings and XeSS "Ultra Performance" gave us around 30 FPS. With Frame-Gen, this could have been pushed higher, but even running the game at 30 FPS on just 1 Xe3 GPU core is impressive. Besides that, we also tried Baldur's Gate III, LEGO Batman, Marvel Rivals, CS2, and Minecraft.

You can use Wildcat Lake SoCs for playing classic and older titles at around 30 FPS at 1080p with low settings, and around 60 FPS at 720p with low settings. The chip also does a nice job at emulation. Video playback was also great, so besides gaming, the single Xe3 GPU core handles most of your routine and everyday tasks quite well.

Beelink EQi 304 "Wildcat Lake" Mini PC - Power & Thermals

As for the power figures, the Beelink EQi 304 is rated at 15W PL1 and 35W PL2 out of the box. The PL4 is rated at 80W, but the chip hardly ever crosses 25W. In CPU tests, the chip stayed around 20 Watts but did initially pull over 30 Watts for a few milliseconds before returning to the original 20 Watts state. The idle power draw was very low at sub-2W, and video playback was around 2.5-3.5 Watts. In gaming, we saw that the GPU only consumed 5-6W of power while the CPU consumed around 18-20W.

As for thermals and noise, the idle temperatures were around 34-35C while the chip peaked at 87C when the initial 30W limit kicked in before settling down to 60-70C. There was also a 10C difference between the P-Core and the E-Cores. The P-Core peaked at 87C while the E-Cores peaked at 74C.

Conclusion - Mini Daily Driver With Mass Appeal

With this, we have finally tested our first Wildcat Lake system, sure it's not a laptop, which this chip is primarily designed for, but even in a Mini PC, it is an efficient offering that gets most of your daily work done.

Beelink definitely made use of those cost-saving analogies that are a must in today's world, where component prices are ever rising. Although the retail price is still $659, you are getting 24 GB, and that alone retails for $360 (Newegg listing). That leaves $299 US for the rest of the PC, which offers a 512 GB UFS 3.1 storage solution, which is around $70-$90 these days if you buy it separately off retail shelves. That leaves us with $210-$230 for the PC.

Now for the performance, Wildcat Lake was meant to be an Alder Lake-N replacement, and the Core 3 304 with its single P-Core and 4 LPE cores offers all the capabilities a regular PC user will ever want. It's not a multi-tasking powerhouse, and it's not a machine designed with gamers in mind. For everyday productivity and office tasks, the chip is enough. In terms of gaming, you can expect to play a few older titles at 720P with 60 FPS, but don't expect a lot since most games will not work due to lack of RT/DX12U/VLKRT support.

But an iGPU running at 5W with just 1 Xe core delivering around 60 FPS in Skyrim Special Edition was a surprise, albeit it was at 720p and low settings.

Some positives about the Beelink EQi 304 include its dual Thunderbolt 4 ports, dual LAN ports, including 10 GbE LAN, dual M.2 SSD slots (Gen4), and a built-in PSU. One thing I would like to say is that the UFS 3.1 storage is decent, but not all that great. Windows encountered major hiccups when running on it, and I had to switch over to an M.2 drive, which ran perfectly.

Design-wise, it's a super-light PC with whisper-quiet operation. The CPU never surpassed 25W in power, and most workloads were running between 15-20W. We are thoroughly impressed with the Wildcat Lake SoC in its overall capabilities, and Beelink has done a great job with its EQi 304 series.

The following are the pros and cons of the Beelink EQi 304 Mini PC:

• +Wildcat Lake runs efficiently (sub-25W operation)
  +Decent Temperatures & Whisper-quiet cooling
  +1 Xe3 GPU @ 5W can play Skyrim at 60 FPS (at 720p)
  +Dual PCIe 4.0 NVMe slots
  +Dual Thunderbolt 4 Ports (Type-C)
  +Dual LAN ports (10GbE+2.5GbE)
  +Nice Compact chassis
• -UFS 3.1 storage can be a bit slow in Windows 11
  -CPU & GPU are only meant for entry-level productivity tasks
  -Single-Channel memory support
  -High Price (Due to DRAM/NAND shortages)

If the prices weren't as bad as they are right now due to NAND/DRAM shortages, we would expect these PCs to be retailing for $300-$350, making them a great choice for mainstream masses looking for a lightweight and efficient system.

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