MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra

Published on March 28, 2026

The MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra is a CES 2026 Innovation Award-winning mini workstation built on Intel’s Arrow Lake-HX processors with up to 24 cores. The 4.8-liter chassis carries a PCIe 5.0 x16 slot for full-size low-profile GPUs, dual 25GbE SFP28 networking ports delivering 62.5 Gbps of total Ethernet bandwidth, and USB4 V2 ports running at 80 Gbps. It sells in three processor tiers (the Core Ultra 9 285HX, Core Ultra 9 275HX, and Core Ultra 5 235HX) for home lab and AI workloads that need workstation-class expandability without a tower on the desk. Memory tops out at 256GB of ECC DDR5, and the 350W power supply sits inside the case.

Pros and cons

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MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra Comparison Chart

	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra	MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra
Price	List Price: $1,583.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $2,999.00 Amazon Prices: Check Price on Amazon	List Price: $1,159.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $1,239.00 Amazon Prices: Check Price on Amazon	List Price: $839.00 Amazon Prices: Check Price on Amazon	List Price: $1,023.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $599.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...
Version	32GB/1TB/Core Ultra 9 285HX	192GB/2TB/Core Ultra 9 285HX	Barebone/Core Ultra 9 285HX	32GB/1TB/Core Ultra 9 275HX	Barebone/Core Ultra 9 275HX	32GB/1TB/Core Ultra 5 235HX	Barebone/Core Ultra 5 235HX
Performance Rating	12.0	7.8	11.3	11.8	11.1	10.2	9.5
Operating System	Windows 11 Pro	Windows 11 Pro	No OS	Windows 11 Pro	No OS	Windows 11 Pro	No OS
Processor	Twenty-four-core 2.80 Ghz (max 5.50 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX	Twenty-four-core 2.80 Ghz (max 5.50 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX	Twenty-four-core 2.80 Ghz (max 5.50 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX	Twenty-four-core 2.70 Ghz (max 5.40 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX	Twenty-four-core 2.70 Ghz (max 5.40 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX	Fourteen-core 2.90 Ghz (max 5.10 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX	Fourteen-core 2.90 Ghz (max 5.10 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX
GPU	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics
RAM	32 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)	192 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)	0 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)	32 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)	0 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)	32 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)	0 GB DDR5 SO-DIMM, 4-channel (ECC supported on 285HX)
Internal Storage	1 TB NVMe SSD	2 TB NVMe SSD	0 GB NVMe SSD	1 TB NVMe SSD	0 GB NVMe SSD	1 TB NVMe SSD	0 GB NVMe SSD
Dimensions width x length x thickness	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)	8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches (221.49 x 225.04 x 97.03 mm)
Weight	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)	7.6 lbs (3.45 kg)
WiFi	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.4	Bluetooth 5.4	Bluetooth 5.4	Bluetooth 5.4	Bluetooth 5.4	Bluetooth 5.4	Bluetooth 5.4
Ethernet	4 Ethernet ports at 25 Gbps	4 Ethernet ports at 25 Gbps	4 Ethernet ports at 25 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 10 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 10 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 10 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 10 Gbps
HDMI	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port	1 Full-Size HDMI Port
DisplayPort	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)	DP Alt Mode via 3 USB-C/USB4 ports (8K@60Hz)
VGA	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports
USB Ports	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2	4 USB 3, 3 USB-C (3 USB4) 2x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1x USB4 (40Gbps), 4x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2
Thunderbolt Ports	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
OCuLink	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
Internal SATA Ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports
Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader
Headphone Jack	combo	combo	combo	combo	combo	combo	combo
Fanless	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
VESA Mount	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
In the Box	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).	Main unit, HDMI cable, C13 power cable, M.2 heatsinks, screws, manual. 25GbE NIC riser pre-installed (285HX).
Expandability	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.	Up to 256GB DDR5 (4x SODIMM, ECC on 285HX). PCIe 5.0 x16 for low-profile GPUs, PCIe 4.0 x16 riser, PCIe 4.0 x4. 350W internal PSU with 8-pin GPU power.

Desktop parts inside a 7.6-pound box

The chassis measures 8.72 x 8.86 x 3.82 inches, nearly three times the volume of its predecessor, the MS-01. TechRadar’s Alastair Jennings noted that lifting it from the box immediately communicates its seriousness: at 3.45 kilograms (7.6 lbs), this is a dense piece of industrial-grade aluminum and steel. The front panel houses two USB4 V2 Type-C ports, one USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 port, and a combo audio jack, while the rear provides three USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, one USB4 Type-C port, a full-size HDMI output, and four Ethernet ports. A C13 power inlet with a toggle switch feeds the internal 350W SFX power supply, so there is no external power brick to clutter your desk. Thumb screws open the case without tools, and the chassis supports both horizontal and vertical orientations.

The top configuration runs the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX with 24 cores (8 Performance-cores and 16 Efficient-cores) and 24 threads, at a base clock of 2.8 GHz with boost speeds up to 5.5 GHz. Jakkuh’s review demonstrated that this processor outperforms the desktop Intel Core i9-14900KS in both single-threaded and multi-threaded PassMark benchmarks. Pushing the power limit to 160W caused noticeable throttling in sustained workloads, with jakkuh measuring approximately 50dB of fan noise under heavy load. The 275HX and 235HX variants drop to 24 and 14 cores respectively, and the Arrow Lake architecture means there is no hyperthreading on any model.

The flagship 285HX model ships with a pre-installed 25GbE NIC riser card carrying dual Intel E810 SFP28 ports, joined by a 10GbE Realtek RJ45 and a 2.5GbE Intel I226-LM RJ45 with vPro support. Storage on that model runs across four M.2 2280 NVMe slots, two on the motherboard and two on the NIC riser card, while the 275HX and 235HX builds have two M.2 slots. All three USB-C ports support DisplayPort Alt Mode for up to 8K@60Hz output, and the quad DDR5 SODIMM slots accept up to 256GB of RAM with ECC support on the Core Ultra 9 285HX.

Reviewer Insights

ETA PRIME on the three PCIe slots and the GPU power tradeoff

ETA PRIME called the MS-02 Ultra “Minis Forum’s most versatile mini PC” and focused extensively on its expansion capabilities and gaming performance with an installed low-profile GPU. He was impressed by the triple PCIe slot configuration, which includes a PCIe 5.0 x16, a PCIe 4.0 x16, and a PCIe 4.0 x4, noting that the system could be configured as an AI workstation with dedicated accelerator cards. The thermal performance exceeded his expectations, with triple internal fans keeping temperatures manageable even under gaming loads: “CPU and GPU temps are looking better than I thought… this little thing is drawing quite a lot of power, but since we’ve got that ventilation up top with those triple fans, it seems to keep itself nice and cool.”

He also noted that installing a discrete GPU causes the BIOS to reduce CPU power levels to stay within the 350W power supply budget. He tested gaming with a low-profile GPU and found that the 8GB VRAM limitation restricted 4K performance in modern titles, though 1080p and 1440p gaming were perfectly playable.

ServeTheHome: 62.5 Gbps of Ethernet across four ports

ServeTheHome described the MS-02 Ultra as “really built for expandability and customization to a degree that we really have never seen in the mini PC space.” Their review highlighted the PCIe lane routing, revealing that the physical x16 slot is bifurcated through a complex routing arrangement. They were particularly enthusiastic about the networking capabilities: “We have two 25 GB Ethernet ports, a 10 GB, and a 2 and 1/2 GB Ethernet port, giving us 62 1/2 GBs total of Ethernet performance. I mean, it’s crazy.”

They identified the USB4 V2 front ports as being driven by Intel’s JHL9580 Barlow Ridge Thunderbolt 5 controller, though the system lacks official Thunderbolt 5 certification. They praised the internal power supply design for eliminating bulky external bricks and noted the ECC memory support as a meaningful feature for home lab and professional users. “Having two extra slots where you can go and customize this, it just gives you so much flexibility that to me that’s like a total game changer in a mini PC.”

TechRadar: a GPU and networking gear to reach full potential

According to TechRadar, the MS-02 Ultra represents “the link between the Mini PC and the Desktop.” Their review praised the performance for its size and the feature set of the 285HX processor, while noting that reaching the system’s full potential requires significant additional investment in components like a discrete GPU and high-speed networking infrastructure. The slide-out internal chassis design earned particular praise for making component installation and upgrades straightforward.

Three half-height PCIe cards, in the ServeTheHome written review

ServeTheHome’s written review designated the MS-02 Ultra as “Intel’s new home lab king,” emphasizing its modular design that allows for significant customization. They highlighted the support for three vertical half-height PCIe expansion cards and the dual 25GbE SFP28 ports powered by Intel E810 controllers. The review noted that while the system is significantly larger than its predecessor at nearly three times the volume of the MS-01, the additional space is put to use for features the smaller box could not fit.

Customer Reviews

Across 3 ratings on Amazon, the MINISFORUM MS-02 Ultra averages 4.2 stars, an early and small sample. The distribution is split: most of those ratings sit at five stars while roughly a third land at three, and only one written review is available so far.

That single review, from a verified buyer named Kyle, praises the build and connectivity while flagging a limitation for anyone planning to run it as a virtualization host. Kyle wrote that “Construction quality is top notch and the port selection is great,” but added that “There is also a iommu quirk with this model cpu that causes challenges for virtualization and using this device as a hypervisor,” and reported that a 25-gigabit SFP/NVMe storage card “causes performance issues when connected, even when nothing is plugged/slotted in.” His summary, “The PC is great but componets are flawed,” is worth weighing if a mini-server build with heavy PCIe expansion is your goal. Read more owner reviews on Amazon.

Match the build to the network you have

The PCIe 5.0 x16 slot takes a low-profile desktop GPU on the internal 350W supply, and the 285HX build is the only one that carries the dual 25GbE SFP28 ports, four M.2 slots, and ECC support for up to 256GB of DDR5. Home lab and AI development work that needs that networking or that memory ceiling starts at the 285HX and nowhere lower in the range. A machine this capable also makes a strong base for an offline AI survival computer.

The 275HX and 235HX builds fall back to a 10GbE and a 2.5GbE port with two M.2 slots, which covers a fast home network and stops well short of the SFP28 fabric. At 7.6 lbs the whole machine is heavier and larger than a typical mini PC, and the GPU, the NVMe drives, and the SFP28 optics are all separate purchases. Buyers who want compact size and simplicity are better served by the MS-01 or an AMD-based alternative.

The Mini PC Comparison Chart lines the MS-02 Ultra up against the MS-01 and other boxes with PCIe slots.

Frequently Asked Questions