ZOTAC decided to make an impact on the Computex showfloor with its new "compact" gaming devices, now powered by AMD's high-end Ryzen AI APUs.
ZOTAC's Latest "Compact" Gaming Machines Now Offer High-End Performance; ZONE Handheld Becomes One Of The Fastest Options
Well, at this year's Computex, we saw AMD's Strix Point platform in almost every manufacturer's newest product lineup, whether gaming laptops, mini-PCs, or even handhelds. Keeping up with tradition, ZOTAC showcased its latest gaming devices at Computex, notably the newer configuration of the Zone gaming handheld and the Magnus mini-PC. Both of them are now powered by AMD's Strix Point, simply because this architecture's performance and efficiency figures are too good to ignore.
Starting with the handheld, we managed to get a good look at the ZOTAC Zone gaming device, which is said to be the flagship offering by the firm. In terms of specifications, the handheld now offers AMD's Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 APU, which is the top-end offering from Team Red. In order to power the device graphically, the ZONE handheld relies on the onboard iGPU, the Radeon 890M, which is said to be a well-equipped option, suitable enough for seamless 1080p gaming. ZOTAC's handheld option is indeed one of the fastest out there, and the company's decision not to opt for the Z-series APUs is definitely interesting.
For memory and storage configuration, the handheld is said to be equipped with 24GB/32GB LPDDR5X memory, along with a 1 TB PCIe Gen4 SSD, which makes it loaded up in this particular department. In terms of the display, the ZOTAC Zone handheld features a 7-inch AMOLED 1080p panel, with a refresh rate of 120Hz and up to 800 nits of brightness. The handheld is said to be in prototype stages for now, hence final specifications could change, but it is clear that ZOTAC wants to bring a capable device to the handheld segment.
The ZONE handheld will also feature Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 and a built-in kickstand as well. As for the design, you are looking at an all-white color scheme, similar to ASUS ROG Ally, except that there's little touch of color other than white, which makes it an awesome option for those who are inclined towards the color scheme. Details around pricing and release date are uncertain, but we are told that ZOTAC plans to launch this device into retail markets pretty soon.
Now, apart from the handheld, ZOTAC also showcased its Magnus-E mini-PC, which is a newer lineup that is a derivative of the company's pre-built desktop systems. The biggest upgrade with this device is the use of AMD's "Strix Halo" Ryzen AI MAX 390 APU, which is powered by the Zen5 architecture, coming in with a 12C/24T configuration. The main advantage of this platform is the AI capability ZOTAC manages to deliver, since the Strix Halo APU can deliver up to 110 TOPS of AI power through its XDNA 2 engine and the iGPU onboard.
Speaking of iGPU, you are getting the RDNA 3.5 Radeon 8050S, which is known to be one of the fastest out there, so in terms of performance, you shouldn't expect a compromise based off the compactness of the device. For memory/storage, the ZOTAC Magnus-E mini-PC offers up to 32 GB LPDDR5X-8000 memory, along with 3x PCIe Gen4 SSD slots. The best part about it is that you also get Thunderbolt 4 support, and DP 1.4/HDMI 2.1 display ports, making it a solid high-end option in the mini-PC segment.
It's amazing to see how far ZOTAC has come with its product portfolio, considering that the company was previously limited to custom GPUs, and now they have expanded to new frontiers, that too provides one of the best products in terms of performance out there.
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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