It is not every day that a new mini PC comes together which was not even on my radar. However, this is exactly what happened with the upcoming Miniforum G1 / G1 Pro, which with its white and black design and vertical orientation, certainly looks like the PS5 at first glance.
After Japan was spotted at the IT Week Spring event in April, I finally got a chance to see it for myself in the person in Computex 2025. In fact, it was sitting right next to the Last year reviewed Atomman G7 TI.
Like the G7 TI, the G1 Pro is also used in a vertical orientation and is designed to play the best PC game. However, while the G7 TI is incredibly thin and looks like one of the best gaming laptops almost without screen or keyboard, the G1 Pro is slightly thicker with more console-like appearance. Minisforum is putting the extra space for good use, however, and this mini PC has a trick up its sleeve that I have not seen anywhere else.
While I will definitely need to get a G1 Pro for testing to see whether it is really one of the best mini PCs when it comes out of this heat, I already have high expectations for this one. This is because with its smooth, eye -catching design, Minisforam has distracted from its general formula by making this mini PC surprisingly upgradable.
A gaming PC power in console size
At 12.4 x 8.5 x 2.3 inch, the Minisforum G1 Pro is not almost as long or thin as the Atomman G7 Ti, and you will definitely give it an easy time in an entertainment center. Since it is designed keeping in mind the 1440p gaming, it is more likely that you will be on your desk instead. However, with DLSS 4 being capable, you should be able to play games in 4K with some apasms and frame generations on your TV.
To make your white side panel out, Minisforum has added some grooves to both the right and left of the G1 Pro. The latter also cuts ventilation holes in the shape of a triangle, and is one at the bottom and top of this side panel. While the G1 Pro comes with a plastic vertical stand, as there are no cutouts for ventilation on one side, you will probably be able to use this mini PC vertically or horizontally, which you could not do with G7 TI.
On the G1 Pro front, there is a USB-A port, a USB-C port, a headphone/microphone combo jack and power button. All these are located in the middle of the front port device and this mini PC has RGB strips up and down with a small minisforam logo.
While I want G7 TI an SD card reader, it is understandable that Minissforam left one because it is a mini PC designed for gaming. I like how RGB light is slightly higher this time than the strip of arrows below on G7 Ti.
Behind the G1 Pro is a single USB-C port, two USB-A ports, one HDMI 2.1 port and a 5 gigabit ethernet port. It is worth noting that both front and back are able to output the USB-C port video as well as data, so you will not only have to rely on that HDMI 2.1 port.
Compared to the G7 TI, you are getting an additional USB-C port on the front, an additional USB-A port backwards and most importantly you will not need to move around a heavy electric brick to lie around after an internal 350W power supply near G1 Pro. In this way, you can use a universal power cord such as found on other desktop computers and the best gaming PCs.
There is another upgrade to the G1 Pro that I have not seen on a mini PC because I reviewed the Atmman G7 PT. This time, however, this is even better.
| Header Cell – Column 0 |
Minisforum G1 / G1 Pro Specs |
|---|---|
|
Cpu |
AMD Ryzen 98945x |
|
Agitation |
Nvidia RTX 5060 8GB GDDR7 (G1 Pro), NVIDIA 4060 8GB GDDR6 (G1) |
|
Collide |
Up to 96GB DDR5 |
|
storage |
2 x m.2 2280 pcie 4.0 x4 |
|
Ports |
1 x USB-A, 1 x USB-C, 1 x 3.5mm combo jack (front), 2 x USB-A, 1 x USB-C, 3 x HDMI 2.1, 2 x displayport 1.4, 1 x 5 gbps ethernet, 1 x dc power port |
|
Connectivity |
Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3 |
|
Power |
350W (internal) |
|
Dimensions |
350W (internal) |
|
Operating system |
Windows 11 |
A large and unexpected upgradation
If you look at the G1 Pro from the top, you note that there are additional vent on the top. Instead of cooling the PC, these are actually for its discrete graphics card. This is correct, the G1 Pro comes with an Nvidia RTX 5060 GPU, while the G1 is slightly less powerful, although RTX 4060 GPU is cheaper.
Generally, on mini PC, you are working with a laptop version of a special graphics card. However, this is not the case here. Instead, you are getting a full desktop graphics card in a very compact package.
With either RTX 4060 or RTX 5060, you get two HDMI 2.1 ports and two displayport 1.4 ports. This allows you to power four displays with graphics cards. When combined with port on the motherboard of the G1 Pro, you can technically power six displays from this mini PC. However, it will depend on how minisforum has configured the BIOS and motherboard of the system. Nevertheless, however, power to four displays from the G1 Pro is still impressive.
The G1 makes the Pro even better, the fact that its graphics card is upgradable. Not only does it give you an upgrade path below the line, it also means that you can go with cheap G1 to save money in short term and then upgrade your graphics card to RTX 4060 to RTX 5060 when you have saved enough money when you have saved enough money.
A new way for mini pc
Even though they are much smaller than your standard desktops, most mini PCs provide you some advanced capacity. Typically, it involves the option of adding another M.2 SSD or even 2.5 inch SSD or HDD, as well as adding more memory. With the G1 and G1 Pro, the Miniforum is doing things in a different way by giving you the option to upgrade its graphics card.
In Computex 2025, Miniforum told me that G1 Pro should be ready to ship in this summer. However, pricing for both G1 and G1 Pro has not yet been revealed. Given that the list price of Atomman G7 TI was $ 1,600, I hope this new mini PC will have to go a little more. Nevertheless, the G1 Pro will probably be cheaper than the more powerful version of Asus Rog NUC 970, I reviewed the previous year or new Rog NUC (2025).
I am planning to get an G1 Pro for review, so stay. With your white and black design, it can be the perfect mini PC for the same colorful desk setup that I am currently putting together for another review.
Minisforum G1 / G1 Pro shows that just because a mini PC is small, it does not mean that it cannot even be powerful and I am really excited to test one for myself.
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