Minisforum N5 packs serious specs in a weird box powered by a mystery Chinese-only Ryzen chip
Ryzen 7 255 is a downclocked, China-exclusive chip without the usual 16 TOPS AI NPU
Minisforum N5 supports up to 96 GB of DDR5 RAM but lacks ECC memory support
The N5 offers dual USB4 ports and 10GbE networking for versatile connectivity
Minisforum has introduced the N5, a compact network-attached storage (NAS) device now available globally.
Released alongside the more powerful N5 Pro, this new model is powered by the AMD Ryzen 7 255, a processor so obscure that it doesn't even appear on AMD's official global website.
Instead, it's listed only on AMD's Chinese site as the Ryzen 7 H 255, a chip with eight Zen 4 cores and a base clock of 3.8GHz, boosting up to 4.9GHz.
Downclocked chip with missing AI features
Falling under the Ryzen 200 and Hawk Point series, the processor has a default TDP of 45W, configurable between 35W and 54W.
However, the Ryzen 7 255 raises some questions about positioning and performance.
Minisforum also uses this processor in the AI X1, but it seems to be a rebadged Ryzen 7 8745HS, essentially a lower-wattage variant of the Ryzen 7 8745H, a chip offered exclusively in China.
It appears that the Ryzen 7 255 misses out on the 16 TOPS NPU that most of the Ryzen 7 250 series chips use, which means the chip is expected to lag in AI-centric tasks.
The CPU and GPU are also slightly downclocked, which could lead to modest but noticeable performance reductions.
Despite those caveats, the Minisforum N5 offers an attractive array of features that may appeal to users seeking a hybrid between a NAS device and a mini PC.
Like its Pro variant, the N5 supports up to 96GB of DDR5 memory through dual SO-DIMM slots.
However, it does not offer ECC RAM support, a key distinction for those prioritizing data integrity.
The device can run multiple operating systems, including Linux, MinisCloud OS, and Windows 11 Pro.
For connectivity, it includes two USB4 ports, 5Gbps and 10Gbps Ethernet ports, an OCuLink interface, and a PCIe x16 slot running at PCIe 4.0 x4 speeds.
These features make it viable not only as a NAS device but also as a potential mini workstation, especially when paired with the best NAS drives for storage expansion.
Pricing begins at $553 for a base configuration that includes 64GB of storage but no RAM, though a version with 16GB of RAM is available for an extra $48.
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