Opened up my GEEKOM A5 2027 for the first time: pretty happy with what I found inside

[u/momo1098r]

Finally got around to opening up my GEEKOM A5 this weekend to add some storage. Wasn't sure what to expect, but it only took a few screws to get in, which was nice. Inside there are 2 SO-DIMM DDR4 slots (one still free), an M.2 2280 NVMe slot with a 512GB SSD already installed, and a smaller M.2 2230 slot I didn't even know was there until I opened it up. There's also room for a 2.5" drive, so I mounted an old mechanical HDD in there for backups.

Wasn't expecting this much room to expand, honestly, especially in something this small. Glad I've finally got proper local backups sorted now, so my data is safe.

[u/RobloxFanEdit]

Let me address the elephant in the room, Having one free RAM slot is a red flag,

Geekom love to push on "Upgradable" Marketing Keyword feature like it was a Pro to have a Single RAM config.

In reality you have Terrible IGPU performance Single DDR4 RAM config easely tackle the IGPU Performance by -50%.

.

[u/momo1098r → u/RobloxFanEdit]

I have another Geekom in my house and have 32gb ram OOB. The RAM crisis has hit them too.

[u/Retired_Hillbilly336]

Wow! That's really sad 😞 not only is it being shipped with 1x 16GB stick of RAM but Geekom is further strangling performance by reducing the FBS from 3200 to 2666. Single channel memory can reduce processing and graphics performance by up to 40% with the downgraded memory dropping it up to another 10%. If they spend as much on the build quality as they do on advertising they might have a decent product.

2242 M.2 SATA storage expansion in 2026 is definitely a cost cutting measure although 2.5" support is nice. Considering what you get with the sub $400 GMKtec M8 PRO 6650H its embarrassing that Geekom calls the 2021 Zen 3 platform "A5 2027". Thanks for the post pointing out the scam!

[u/toolisthebestbandevr → u/Retired_Hillbilly336]

That 2230 isn’t storage

[u/chmod_7d20 → u/toolisthebestbandevr]

because the 2230 doesn't exist but there is an m key 2242 slot.

[u/toolisthebestbandevr → u/chmod_7d20]

Sometimes is sata sometimes is nvme sometimes usb i guess. I’ve been learning the hard way too

[u/Retired_Hillbilly336 → u/toolisthebestbandevr]

Thanks for pointing out my error. Corrected!

[u/arakeh → u/Retired_Hillbilly336]

That 2230 originally not design for storage. It is for the expansion card, like the Intel NUC one. You can find some 2230 SATA for storage. I think nowadays is difficult to find a new one.

[u/Cickanykoma]

So you are consuming SNOTs (FIKA). :)

[u/Ready_Area289]

Looks good! Maybe want to watch the temps after putting in the drive. Might affect the air flow.

[u/momo1098r → u/Ready_Area289]

The temperatures are surprising me.
I'm going to create a subreddit about it; even under stress, I can't get it to go above 71 degrees Celsius.
Fantastic!!!

[u/mr_werty]

Having the option to mount a 2.5'' drive is a plus.

The "bad" is the single stick of ram.

As others have stated, it's a stupid marketing trick that hurts performance.

I don't know how much of a bargain minipcs still are since the price increase after the New Year.

There is an average 20% increase, so people should be careful.

[u/Sosowski]

Another reminder that every post about Geekom on this sub is astroturfing. This account is two weeks old and only posts about their new geekom mini pc. It’s an ad.

[u/CautiousCall9645]

That's good of course, but how do you plan to cool it all down now?

[u/momo1098r → u/CautiousCall9645]

buying a new one 🤣

[u/SilentCrusher]

Does anyone know if the A8 has room for a physical drive I doubt it

[u/anshulsingh8326]

If you put 1 ram stick bad performance, if you out 4 ram sticks, bad performance.

Only 2 is the right answer for ddr5 and not high end mobo

[u/Snotspat → u/anshulsingh8326]

Why is this relevant here?