ACEMAGIC M5 (Intel Core 5 220H)

This version of the ACEMAGIC M5 is a small Windows desktop for office work, programming, and desks with several monitors, and a poor pick for gaming. It shares its name and a similar 5-inch square case with the HX-based ACEMAGIC M5, but the board inside is different, with a 12-core Intel mobile chip and soldered memory in place of upgradeable slots, so buy the 16GB or 24GB build you will need for the life of the machine.

Pros and Cons

ACEMAGIC M5 (Intel Core 5 220H) Comparison Chart

	ACEMAGIC M5 (Intel Core 5 220H)	ACEMAGIC M5 (Intel Core 5 220H)
Price	List Price: $570.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: Amazon Prices: Loading prices...
Version	16GB/512GB/Intel Core 5 220H	24GB/512GB/Intel Core 5 220H
Performance Rating	4.8	5.1
Operating System	Windows 11 Pro	Windows 11 Pro
Processor	Twelve-core 2.70 Ghz (max 4.90 Ghz) Intel Core 5 220H	Twelve-core 2.70 Ghz (max 4.90 Ghz) Intel Core 5 220H
GPU	Integrated Intel Graphics	Integrated Intel Graphics
RAM	16 GB LPDDR5 (LPDDR5-5200, soldered)	24 GB LPDDR5 (LPDDR5-5200, soldered)
Internal Storage	512 GB NVMe SSD	512 GB NVMe SSD
Dimensions width x length x thickness	5.04 x 5.04 x 1.63 inches (128.02 x 128.02 x 41.4 mm)	5.04 x 5.04 x 1.63 inches (128.02 x 128.02 x 41.4 mm)
Weight	unknown	unknown
WiFi	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.2	Bluetooth 5.2
Ethernet	1 Ethernet port at 1 Gbps	1 Ethernet port at 1 Gbps
HDMI	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port
DisplayPort	1 DisplayPort (DP 1.4, 4K@60Hz; USB-C also carries DP 1.4)	1 DisplayPort (DP 1.4, 4K@60Hz; USB-C also carries DP 1.4)
VGA	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports
USB Ports	6 USB 3, 1 USB-C Front: USB-C 10Gbps (DP, PD in), 2x USB-A 10Gbps. Rear: 4x USB-A 5Gbps	6 USB 3, 1 USB-C Front: USB-C 10Gbps (DP, PD in), 2x USB-A 10Gbps. Rear: 4x USB-A 5Gbps
Thunderbolt Ports	No	No
OCuLink	No	No
Internal SATA Ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports
Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader
Headphone Jack	3.5mm (front)	3.5mm (front)
Fanless	No	No
VESA Mount	Yes	Yes
In the Box	--	--
Expandability	RAM soldered (not upgradeable). Two M.2 2280 slots, up to 2TB each; the Wi-Fi card is replaceable.	RAM soldered (not upgradeable). Two M.2 2280 slots, up to 2TB each; the Wi-Fi card is replaceable.

Ports, processor, and storage

The case measures about 5 x 5 x 1.6 inches, with vent slots along one side and a VESA mount in the box for hanging it behind a monitor. The front carries the power button, a 3.5mm audio jack, two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports at 10Gbps, and a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port that handles 10Gbps data, DisplayPort 1.4 video, and power delivery input. The rear holds the DC barrel input, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.4, a Gigabit Ethernet jack, four USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports at 5Gbps, and a lock slot. Cooling is a single centrifugal fan with two copper heat pipes and two fin stacks. Wireless is Wi-Fi 6 with Bluetooth 5.2.

The Intel Core 5 220H has 4 performance cores and 8 efficient cores (16 threads), boosts to 4.9GHz, and carries 18MB of cache at a 45W base power. Intel launched it in late 2024 in its Core Series 2 line, but it is a Raptor Lake design built on the Intel 7 process, the same family as 13th-gen Core chips, so it has no NPU for on-device AI features. Its PassMark multi-thread score of about 21,900 puts it well ahead of the Intel N150 (about 5,300) and the Ryzen 5 5625U (about 14,500), and below the Core i5-14500HX (about 28,500) in the other M5. The integrated Intel Graphics has 80 execution units and decodes AV1 video.

Memory is LPDDR5 at 5200MT/s, soldered to the board in 16GB or 24GB. Both builds ship with a 512GB M.2 NVMe SSD. Both M.2 2280 slots run at PCIe 3.0 x4, one of them also accepts SATA M.2 drives, and ACEMAGIC rates each slot for up to 2TB. There is no 2.5-inch drive bay. Inside, the Wi-Fi card can be swapped along with the SSDs.

Ahead of most older Core i9 boxes in CPU tests, 40 to 50% behind a Radeon 680M in games

Ban at Retro Handhelds reviewed the 24GB/512GB M5 on a sample ACEMAGIC supplied, comparing it with five other mini PCs, most of them older ACEMAGIC Intel machines. In Geekbench 6 CPU tests, only the Core i9-14900HX version of the M5 beat the Core 5 220H. Ban wrote: “Considering this i5 is going toe to toe against top tier CPU’s from just a few years ago, that’s genuinely pretty impressive.” The 220H also won every GPU test against the older Intel Core i9 machines in the group.

The AMD Radeon 680M machine in the group scored at least twice as high in Geekbench GPU tests and about 20% higher in 3DMark. In games, Cyberpunk 2077 and Strange Brigade ran at around 30fps with reduced settings, and the M5 fell behind the 680M machine by around 40 to 50% at the review’s benchmark settings. The reviewer added that “this Core 5 performs better than any other Intel ACEMAGIC PC I’ve run across to date,” and wrote: “So if you’re looking for intel power, surprisingly this midrange chip will be the answer.”

The shell is light blue plastic that does not feel cheap but, in the reviewer’s view, does not feel like it will outlast the parts inside. Getting in requires peeling off the feet, removing small screws, flipping a latch, and lifting a metal midplate. Of that midplate, the reviewer wrote: “It looks like it should perfectly fit a 2.5” SSD, but ends up being completely useless even though there are screws in place.” Temperatures stayed cool for the most part, but under regular load (even Steam downloads) the low-pitched fan was audible from a normal seated position. The reviewer summed up the build: “I definitely preferred the build of the Retro X3, but this is far from the worst build on a mini PC that I’ve seen.”

Other mini PCs for gaming or more memory

For gaming, Retro Handhelds pointed to the ACEMAGIC Retro X3 at a similar price, which outperformed the M5 in its game tests. Buyers who expect to need more than 24GB of memory should pick a model with SO-DIMM slots, such as the HX-based ACEMAGIC M5, which takes up to 64GB of DDR4. The KAMRUI Hyper H2 also sells a Core 5 220H build with 24GB of soldered LPDDR5. To compare more options, see Starry Hope’s Mini PC Comparison Chart.

Frequently Asked Questions