Cheaper games to refine your settings to do exactly how you want them, there are a lot of advantages to be a PC player. However, being stuck at your office when your counterparts brandish a console are extended on the sofa in front of their massive televisions is not part.
Of course, if you have one of the best game PCs with a powerful GPU, you can bring your platform in the living room for sofa games-that is, if you live alone. I used to do this when I was alone, but now with a family and a little at home, having a large bulky game office under my television is simply not possible.
Not only would it put my game PC at the risk of being overturned or damaged, but it would certainly eliminate the aesthetics of the show that I spent the last two weekends to renovate. Although you can probably convince your other significant other that your game console definitely deserves a place in the living room, doing it with your game PC is a much more difficult sale.
As I have spent in recent years in recent years testing and reviewing the best mini PCs, I also moved away from the construction and use of larger office game PCs, especially since the prices of graphics and components have skyrocketed in recent years. To my surprise, I was able to play a lot of the best PC games on some of the mini PCs that I tested. However, it was only when I reviewed the Framework office that I told myself that it was the perfect mini PC for a more discreet, but still powerful fair PC.
Here is what it looks like using and playing on the framework desk on a 65-inch TV in the comfort of my sofa last week and why a mini PC like this could easily win a permanent place in my entertainment center.
PC building, miniaturized
Especially known for its repairable and level laptops, Framework is a company that I have been since the release of the first Framework laptop in 2021. It was only at the beginning of this year when the company announced that it would make a mini PC, however, that my interest was really stung.
You see, unlike the rest of the mini PCs that I have checked in the past, it would be modular with upgraded and highly customizable parts.
With several side panel options available and a unique front panel with locations for 21 different tiles, you can really do the Framework office yours. At the front of its case, there are two locations where you can add the ports you want from your standard USB-A and USB-C to SD and microSD readers. Thanks to the extension cards of the company which are also presented in a number of different colors and finishes.
With most mini PCs, I stuck them then I go to the right to incorporate them into one of my desktop configurations. With the Framework office, however, I had to build it first. In addition to being very fun and bringing me back to my PC construction days, it was also incredibly easy.
Framework eliminates all the conjectures from the construction of a PC by pre-installing the motherboard, the processor and the RAM. All you have to do on your side is to install your storage and the CPU fan, close everything and you are ready to leave.
You must install your own operating system with the Windows and Linux supported directly out of the box. As I am not quite ready to get back into the world of Linux distros, I went with Windows 11, although for a living room game pc, I am sure that something like Bazzite would work like a charm on the framework of the framework.
The last thing in addition to its more compact form factor that makes the Framework office perfect for moving between the parts or even taking it with you on the go is the optional transport handle. He is still in progress and will probably be finalized soon, but a framework sent to a prototype with my examination unit for me to test.
Back to the sofa in style
With a completely empty room, it is very easy to see all the potential possibilities before starting to bring your furniture back. I initially picked up this entertainment center because there was enough space on each side to adapt to a PS5 or Xbox X series.
After treating overheating problems of my own Xbox Series X not having enough room for good ventilation, I started to think of putting a mini PC there instead. In fact, there is more than sitting for the framework office and the air flow is not at all a problem, because all the hot air of the Ryzen AI max + 395 AMD of my revision unit is expelled from the side rather than from the top.
Another thing that I really like in the Framework desktop is that it uses a standard PC power cable. They are easily available and, above all, very cheap, so picking up an additional one will not be at all a problem. As I have a few from various PCs that I have built over the years, I could leave one connected to it here and have another at my office to easily move the desk of my office to the living room at the pinch.
With a living room PC configuration, you will certainly need one of the best keyboards and a wireless mouse to download updates, open games and browse the web. Although I always had a Logitech K400 and later a wireless keyboard Logitech K400 Plus with a trackpad integrated into the loan to use my PC in the living room, this time I wanted to do things differently.
Given the more refined look that we are looking for with our renovated lounge, I decided to use the Keychron K2 wireless mechanical keyboard with magnetic room effects that I recently picked up, because I love its sideboard side panels. Since I wanted to play games on the Framework desktop with one of the best PC game controllers, I use an Elecom mini mouse tracks next door.
After changing the resolution of the Framework office to correspond to that of my TV, it was time to test it with some more demanding games that I had trouble working well on some of the other mini PCs. Fortunately, however, thanks to the Radeon Super Resolution functionality of AMD and its FSR technology which forced the game, things worked even better than what I expected.
Playing is believing
With AMD Ryzen AI Max 385 or a Ryzen AI Max + 395 and 32 GB at 128 GB of LPDDR5X memory, the Framework office is a small power capable of managing a variety of workloads from daily web navigation and desktop tasks with photo / video modification and even to the management of AI models.
By testing it for my exam, I was impressed enough by its performance because I used it for work during the day. However, it was only when I turned off the lights and I pulled some of my favorite games at night that I was blown away.
Unlike some other mini PCs focused on the game that I have tested in the past, such as Asus Rog Nuc 970 or Atomman G7 Ti, the Framework office has no discreet GPU. Instead, all from work to the game is managed by his APU who combines a CPU and a GPU on a single chip. This reduces costs while freeing from the room inside its case, while using less energy in the process.
Normally, with integrated graphics on a mini PC, you are quite limited about the types of games you can perform and the resolutions you can play. As a rule, while playing games on Mini PC, I opted for a lower resolution monitor on a 4K screen like that of my living room TV. However, after testing some games in my office on the 4K MPG 321URXW QD-Oled game instructor, I knew that the FrameWork office was up to playing games on my TV.
I know that some PC players could make fun of the idea of using Nvidia DLS or in this case, AMD’s FSR performance and the technology of stimulating the frenzy, but in this case, this is the perfect solution. I could never have run more demanding games like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth or Ratchet & Clank: Rift apart on PC without him.
In these two titles, I saw frequencies of smooth and regular images of 60 IPS with IT or Radeon Super resolution of AMD. And since I was sitting much further on the screen on my sofa, I was not pixels and going by imperfection. Instead, I was able to relax and play certain PC games almost as effortless as I have it on a game console.
The best of both
In terms of initial investment, the game on a Batra console always a PC. However, with a full computer, anything is possible. I worked on the framework desk, edited photos, played with games and almost as important, I had a really funny moment to build and personalize it.
As this is an exam unit after all, this will not remain a permanent element in my living room, but even if it was my own PC, I still do not think that would be the case. Instead, I like the flexibility to use it in my office for work or game, then when everyone left the house or asleep for the night, I can easily get it out in the living room for games on the big screen.
Likewise, with a starting price of $ 1,099, the Framework office is not exactly a budget mini-PC like the Geekom A5 that I have just reviewed. It is in fact a cross between a standard mini PC and a formal factor office (SFF). Although you can probably assemble a small comparable PC for the same price or even less, I really like the way Framework has simplified the PC construction process for those who could hesitate to try it by themselves.
It is not really so difficult after all, but with the Framework office, you also get the personalization for which the company is known and once this mini PC will finally be easily available (you can pre-order one now), I guarantee that there will be even more personalized tiles, side panels and maybe even alternative transport handles so that you can really do yourself.
When I contacted Framework for the revision of his first office computer, I thought I was just going to see what the company’s modular devices would be. However, I ended up seeing the full potential of the last integrated AMD graphics and given how far they have arrived so far, I really have the impression that the sky is the limit of what you can remove without a dedicated GPU.
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