Mini PCs haven't been shielded from this year's price increases, but the GMKTec K8 Plus still manages to pose a serious threat to Valve's $1,000+ Steam Machine. The AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS box launched a good few years ago, but has nevertheless risen to fame among those looking for a lightweight gaming experience. Its sturdy 1080p performance across some of the most demanding games on the market keeps it fiercely competitive with both cheaper alternatives and more expensive mainstream devices, even if the days of a $500 price tag are long behind us.
The K8 Plus used to be a steady $400 - $500 device, but the 32GB RAM version I've been testing is now more likely to be found between $750 and $900. If you spot it on a good day, though, it could be one of the few last bastions of entry-level PC gaming - assuming you're happy rolling the dice on its WiFi card.
With the best gaming PCs running you thousands of dollars and the best gaming laptops seeing their own inflations, many are looking to integrated GPUs to see them through these troubling years. The GMKTec K8 Plus does much more than its Radeon 780M would suggest, though. With easy upgradeability, a rare Oculink port for additional eGPU access, and a cooling system equipped to deal with gaming's larger challenges, the K8 Plus could give the Steam Machine something serious to think about.
This far into the GMKTec K8 Plus's lifespan, there are only two configurations that sit with consistency on the shelves.
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