GEEKOM IT13MAX Review: Quad 4K, Dual 2.5GbE, Core Ultra 9 185H

Marketing copy for mini PCs tends to throw around words like "powerhouse" and "desktop replacement" with reckless abandon. So when GEEKOM sent over the IT13MAX for testing, I went in with a healthy dose of scepticism. Three weeks later, I've got a pretty clear picture of what this machine actually delivers versus what the box promises, and the answer is more nuanced than either the hype or the cynicism would suggest.

Here's the thing: the mini PC category has matured enormously in the last two years. The question is no longer whether a compact machine can handle serious workloads. It's whether a specific machine handles your workloads, at a price that makes sense, without thermal throttling the moment things get interesting. That's what I spent three weeks finding out with the IT13MAX, running it through video editing sessions, multi-monitor productivity setups, and yes, some gaming, to see where it holds up and where it quietly waves the white flag.

The short version: this is a genuinely capable machine for the right buyer, but there are a few things GEEKOM doesn't shout about in the product listing that you absolutely need to know before spending premium-tier money on it.

The base configuration ships with 16GB of DDR5 RAM and a 1TB NVMe SSD. Importantly, the RAM is user-upgradeable up to 96GB via two dimm" class="vae-glossary-link" data-term="so-dimm">SO-DIMM slots, which is a significant advantage over soldered configurations you'll find in some competitors. Storage is similarly expandable. The machine supports quad 4K display output at up to 120Hz, which is a headline feature that I tested extensively, and I'll get into the specifics of how that actually performs in practice further down.

Connectivity is where GEEKOM has clearly put serious thought into this product. You get dual USB4 ports (which support Thunderbolt 4 protocols), eight USB-A ports across the front and rear, dual 2.5GbE LAN ports, and Wi-Fi 7 via Intel's BE200 module. That's a connectivity loadout that embarrasses most full-sized desktop builds at this price point. The full specifications are in the table below.

The dual 2.5GbE LAN ports deserve more attention than they typically get in reviews. Having two separate physical network interfaces means you can run this machine as a soft router, bridge two network segments, or simply bond the connections for up to 5Gbps of aggregate throughput if your switch supports link aggregation. For a home lab setup or a small office environment, this is genuinely useful. Most competing mini PCs at this price give you a single 2.5GbE port and call it a day. The Wi-Fi 7 support via the Intel BE200 module is also a meaningful upgrade over the Wi-Fi 6E you'll find in older machines, offering lower latency and better performance in congested environments.

The NPU built into the Core Ultra 9 185H is worth understanding properly rather than dismissing as marketing fluff. Intel's AI Boost NPU delivers around 11 TOPS (Tera Operations Per Second) of dedicated AI compute, which is separate from the CPU and GPU. Right now, the practical applications are limited to things like Windows Studio Effects for webcam processing, some Adobe Premiere Pro AI features, and Microsoft Copilot acceleration. It's not going to replace a discrete GPU for serious AI inference workloads. But as software catches up to the hardware, having the NPU there is a genuine future-proofing argument. The RAM upgradeability is the other big practical feature. Shipping with 16GB is fine for most users, but knowing you can drop in 64GB or 96GB of DDR5 without voiding anything is reassuring.

Video editing is where things get more interesting. I ran a series of 4K H.264 and H.265 editing sessions in DaVinci Resolve, and the results were solid but not spectacular. The integrated Intel Arc graphics handle hardware acceleration reasonably well for H.265 decode, and timeline playback at 4K was smooth for straightforward cuts. Add colour grading nodes or heavy effects, and you'll start dropping frames. Export times for a 10-minute 4K timeline came in at around 18 minutes for H.265, which is respectable for integrated graphics but about three times slower than you'd get from a machine with a discrete GPU. If video editing is your primary workload and you're regularly working with complex timelines, you need to know that going in.

Thermal performance is the area I watched most carefully, because this is where mini PCs often disappoint. Under sustained CPU load (running Cinebench R23 multi-core in a loop), the IT13MAX maintained performance reasonably well for the first 10 minutes before settling into a slightly reduced but stable power envelope. Skin temperatures on the chassis top surface reached around 45 degrees Celsius under heavy load, which is warm but not uncomfortable. Fan noise is audible under load, roughly comparable to a laptop running hard, but it's not the jet-engine behaviour you get from some compact machines. In idle and light workloads, the fan is nearly silent. Gaming performance is adequate for older or less demanding titles at 1080p, but anyone expecting to run modern AAA games at high settings will be disappointed. This is integrated graphics, and it performs like integrated graphics.

The port layout is thoughtful. Front-facing ports include two USB-A ports and the power button, which means you're not constantly reaching around the back for USB drives or peripherals. The rear panel is dense but logically organised, with the two HDMI ports, two USB4 ports, remaining USB-A ports, dual LAN, and the DC power input all clearly spaced. I've tested mini PCs where the port density creates genuine problems with cable clearance, and GEEKOM has avoided that here. The power brick is external and reasonably compact, though it does add to the cable management challenge on a tidy desk.

Opening the machine for RAM or storage upgrades requires removing four screws from the base, which is straightforward. The SO-DIMM slots and M.2 slot are immediately accessible once the bottom panel is off, and GEEKOM provides a clear upgrade guide. The thermal solution inside is a copper heat pipe system with a single fan, which is standard for this class of machine. The build quality overall is what I'd describe as proper for the premium price tier. It doesn't feel like a budget product, and the materials suggest it'll hold up to daily use without issues.

The fan control utility deserves a specific mention because it's one of the better implementations I've seen on a mini PC. You can switch between quiet, balanced, and performance modes, and the difference is meaningful. In quiet mode, the machine is genuinely near-silent for light workloads, which matters if this is going on a desk in a shared space or a living room media setup. Performance mode unlocks higher sustained power limits at the cost of more fan noise. I ran in balanced mode for most of my testing and found it hit the right compromise for daily productivity work.

Daily use friction is low. The machine wakes from sleep reliably (something that sounds basic but isn't universal in this category), display detection across four monitors was consistent throughout testing, and I didn't experience any driver-related issues with the Intel Arc graphics. One minor annoyance: the power button placement on the front panel means it's easy to accidentally brush when plugging in a USB drive. It's not a dealbreaker, but it happened to me twice in three weeks. The included VESA mount makes installation behind a monitor clean and simple, and the short cable run from the mount position to the monitor's ports works well with the front-facing USB layout.

The Wi-Fi 7 implementation via the Intel BE200 is genuinely fast when paired with a Wi-Fi 7 router. On a 2.4GHz and 5GHz network, performance is comparable to Wi-Fi 6E. The real benefit of Wi-Fi 7's Multi-Link Operation comes through in congested environments and with compatible infrastructure. Bluetooth 5.4 handled all my peripherals without issue. The dual 2.5GbE ports both use Realtek controllers and appeared as separate network adapters in Windows without any driver installation required. I tested link aggregation with a compatible switch and it worked correctly.

Compatibility with external displays was broadly excellent. I tested with a mix of HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort monitors, and the IT13MAX correctly identified and configured all four displays at their native resolutions. One thing to note: running all four displays at 4K 120Hz simultaneously is demanding on the integrated GPU's memory bandwidth, and you may find it more practical to run two or three displays at 120Hz and the remainder at 60Hz depending on your use case. Windows 11 Pro's multi-monitor management handled the mixed refresh rate scenario without issues. USB-C to DisplayPort adapters worked correctly, but I'd recommend using active adapters rather than passive cables for 4K 120Hz to avoid potential signal issues.

Home lab and network enthusiasts will find the dual 2.5GbE ports and solid CPU performance make this a capable server or router platform. Running Proxmox or a similar hypervisor on the IT13MAX is a legitimate use case, and the 96GB RAM ceiling means you can run a meaningful number of VMs. The low idle power consumption (around 8 to 12 watts at the wall in my testing) makes it economical to run 24/7, which matters for always-on server applications. The Wi-Fi 7 support is a bonus for anyone who wants to use this as a wireless access point or router.

Light to moderate video editing and content creation is viable, with the caveats I mentioned in the performance section. If you're a YouTuber or social media content creator working with 4K footage and straightforward timelines, the IT13MAX will handle your workflow. If you're a professional colourist or VFX artist, you need a discrete GPU and this isn't the machine for you. The same logic applies to gaming: older titles, indie games, and esports titles at 1080p are fine. Modern AAA titles at high settings are not. And finally, anyone who wants a clean, quiet, capable Windows 11 Pro machine for everyday use will find this genuinely satisfying to live with.

If you need quad display output, dual 2.5GbE, and Wi-Fi 7 in a compact chassis, the IT13MAX is genuinely hard to beat at this price. Those features individually add cost to any build, and getting them all in a pre-built, pre-configured package with Windows 11 Pro included represents reasonable value. If you only need a single or dual display setup and don't care about the networking features, you can get similar CPU performance in a mini PC for meaningfully less money, and that's worth acknowledging.

The 16GB base RAM configuration is the one area where I think GEEKOM could have been more generous given the price point. 32GB would feel more appropriate for a premium-tier machine in 2026, and buyers should factor in the cost of a RAM upgrade if their workloads demand it. The 1TB SSD is adequate, and the upgrade path is clear. Overall, I'd describe this as proper value for the right buyer, and a bit expensive for someone who won't use the headline features. Know what you're buying it for before you commit.

The Beelink SER8 with the Ryzen 9 8945HS has a meaningful advantage in integrated graphics performance, thanks to AMD's RDNA 3 iGPU which outperforms Intel Arc in gaming and GPU-accelerated workloads. If gaming or GPU compute is your priority, the Beelink is the stronger choice. However, it tops out at dual display output and offers a single 2.5GbE port, which is a significant step down from the IT13MAX's connectivity. The Intel NUC 14 Pro+ is a more direct comparison in terms of connectivity and display output, but it's typically priced higher and the Core Ultra 7 165H is a step below the 185H in sustained performance.

The comparison table makes the IT13MAX's positioning clear. It's the connectivity champion of this group, and the 96GB RAM ceiling is a genuine differentiator for power users. The trade-off is that AMD's integrated graphics are better for gaming and GPU workloads. For most productivity-focused buyers, the GEEKOM's advantages are more practically useful than the Beelink's GPU edge.

The complaints that appear repeatedly are worth taking seriously. A handful of reviewers mention that the machine shipped with the RAM running at below-spec speeds and required a manual XMP profile enable in the BIOS to hit DDR5 rated speeds. This is a known quirk with some mini PC configurations and it's easy to fix, but it's the kind of thing that shouldn't require a buyer to go digging in BIOS settings on a premium product. A few reviewers also mention that the included power adapter cable is on the short side, which can be awkward depending on your desk setup.

Thermal performance under sustained load gets mixed feedback. Most users running productivity workloads report no issues. The reviewers who push the machine harder, particularly those doing sustained video encoding or running it as a server, note that the fan ramps up noticeably and that performance can dip slightly over very long sustained loads. This matches my own testing observations. It's not a fatal flaw, but it's worth knowing that this machine has limits under extreme sustained workloads, as you'd expect from any compact chassis with a 45W TDP processor.

The right comparison is against what it would cost to replicate its specific feature set in another form factor. A small form factor desktop with quad display output, dual 2.5GbE, Wi-Fi 7, and comparable CPU performance would cost more once you factor in the case, motherboard, CPU, RAM, SSD, and Windows 11 Pro licence separately. The IT13MAX bundles all of that into a pre-built, pre-configured package that takes up less space than a shoebox. For buyers who value those specific features, the value proposition is genuinely strong.

Where I'd urge caution is if you're considering this primarily as a gaming machine or a GPU-heavy workstation. The integrated Intel Arc graphics are capable but not exceptional, and there are better-value options if GPU performance is your primary requirement. Similarly, if you're a light user who just needs a compact machine for web browsing and office applications, you're paying for a lot of capability you won't use. The IT13MAX earns its price tag when you're using the features that make it distinctive. Buy it for those features, not just for the processor badge.

The caveats are real but manageable. Integrated graphics mean gaming and GPU-heavy workloads have a ceiling. The base 16GB RAM configuration is a bit stingy for the price tier, and you should budget for an upgrade if your workloads demand it. Sustained heavy loads will push the fan to audible levels. None of these are dealbreakers, but they're trade-offs you need to accept going in rather than discovering after purchase.

Who should buy this? Content creators running multi-monitor setups, software developers who want a clean desk and serious performance, home lab enthusiasts who'll appreciate the dual LAN and low idle power draw, and anyone who needs quad display output without a tower PC. Who should look elsewhere? Gamers who want the best possible integrated graphics (look at AMD-based alternatives), buyers on a tighter budget who won't use the premium connectivity features, and anyone doing professional GPU-accelerated work who needs a discrete graphics card.

I'd score this at 8.5 out of 10. It's a well-executed machine that delivers on its headline promises, with a connectivity specification that genuinely stands out in the category. The price is justified if you're buying it for the right reasons. And honestly, after three weeks of daily use, I've found it hard to go back to a larger machine on my desk.

The GEEKOM IT13MAX is available now. Check the current price below before buying, as pricing in this category can shift with promotions.

Tested by the Vivid Repairs editorial team over three weeks of daily use, May 2026. Testing included productivity workloads, video editing in DaVinci Resolve, multi-monitor configuration testing, and sustained load thermal assessment. The unit tested was a retail sample.