This tiny unit may look like a cute little AMD graphics card but it is actually a fully-formed PC with surprising performance.

I often think about how many components I can fit into the smallest possible space. I'm a geek and I do this every night when I hit the pillow. When it comes to gaming, I'm still stuck with the idea that a proper GPU will be needed somewhere in any mini build to get the sort I truly desire.

This is a rather old-fashioned idea. Take the Next SBC as an example. It's so tiny that it could be mistaken as a mini-GPU, but it still has the goods when it comes gaming.

ETA Prime has a review sample for this yet-to-be-announced X86 SBC model (single-board computer), complete with a Ryzen 7 7840HS processor and a cute miniature cooler (via Notebookcheck). And I'll bite. It's got me all a-flutter with its combination of tiny dimensions and proper power.

It's small enough to fit in your palm, but with the Radeon 780M and Phoenix Point APU handling the graphics, it still delivers a decent gaming experience. It's the same chip that you'd find inside some gaming laptops, but usually with a GPU.

Just look at it. You'll be amazed at how far mini gaming devices have evolved.

Of course, there are some caveats when going so small. The LPDDR5 memory is soldered onto the board. There are 16 GB and 32GB variants. This APU isn't the latest Strix Point chip, which is likely an attempt to keep prices down. It's still got the RDNA 3 iGPU, and it can swing hard in certain games.

Doom Eternal looks stunning and is very well optimised. The little monster is able to maintain a smooth average of 79 frames per second at 1080p medium settings. This is more than enough to provide an excellent experience.

Overwatch 2 in 1080p medium is able to maintain a steady 80-100 frames per second. Spiderman Remastered, God of War, and God of War both needed frame gen to keep them fluid smooth but still look great when running at high frames.

Impressive, no? Upscaling can do some amazing things for framerates today, but I find it pretty incredible that this mini-machine would make a great gaming PC on a budget. You could even put it in your pocket. By the way, don't do it. It will just fill up with fluff as a caseless design.

Plus, you receive three M.2 slots. Three! My main machine's micro-ATX board only has one. I bought it cheaply and thought I would only need one large, fast SSD.

I was not wrong, but I'd like to be able to add some extra capacity at a moment's notice. This micro-machine beats my (much stronger, it has to be said) primary system in this capacity. How embarrassing.

ETA Prime has announced that the little beastie's price will be $329. However, it has been pointed out that the early pricing might not reflect what the product is like if it goes into full production.

Even though it's a miniature gaming system, the price is still less than an RTX 4160 Ti. While that's a decent gaming graphics card, getting a complete system for this kind of money is impressive. This unannounced micro terror looks like a Jack Russell.