ECS is a widely known OEM in computing circles, recognized for constructing motherboards, computer systems, and industrial / embedded methods for different distributors. Some of their motherboards and small form-factor PCs are marketed beneath their very own model identify – for instance, their LIVA sequence of ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) machines serves markets that aren’t instantly addressed by the Intel NUCs. At the 2020 CES, the corporate launched the LIVA Z3 Plus and LIVA Z3E UCFF machines based mostly on the Comet Lake-U processors from Intel. The Z3 Plus has 4 variants – two based mostly on Core i7 processors and one every based mostly on the i5 and i3 SKUs. ECS sampled the pre-built Core i5-based LIVA Z3 Plus providing accessible within the North American market to place via our analysis course of. This assessment takes a take a look at the efficiency and worth proposition of the product in opposition to the opposite decisions out there.
ECS Liva vs Intel NUC
A resurgence within the small kind issue PC market has been seen in the previous couple of years, thanks in no small half to ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) and gaming methods. Intel’s NUC line-up has been ruling the roost, prompting ASUS, ASRock, ECS, GIGABYTE, and Zotac to introduce their very own ‘NUC clones’. The LIVA sequence from ECS initially began off with the Atom-series CPUs in an try to create NUC net-tops. Over the years, the corporate has expanded to introduce fashions based mostly on the Core sequence and in addition experimented with small form-factor variations to breathe contemporary air into the line-up.
Towards the top of 2018, we had reviewed the LIVA Z2 and the Intel June Canyon NUC based mostly on a Gemini Lake processor with the Goldmont (Atom) structure. Fast ahead a few years, we now have the LIVA Z3 Plus going head-to-head in opposition to the Intel Frost Canyon NUCs. In the LIVA Z2 assessment, we had famous the passively cooled nature of the ECS system as a giant differentiation over the comparative Intel NUC. In the LIVA Z3 Plus, nevertheless, there’s a lot much less differentiation in comparison with the identical technology of Intel Frost Canyon NUCs. We could have extra dialogue on the comparability factors all through this assessment.
ECS has 4 CPU variants of the LIVA Z3 Plus, however solely the i5 model is offered within the North American market. This SKU makes use of the Core i5-10210U processor and comes with 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD. Disregarding the RAM and SSD, the LIVA Z3 Plus goes instantly in opposition to the NUC10i5FNK barebones within the UCFF market.
The LIVA Z3 Plus has dimensions of 117 x 128 X 35 mm in comparison with the NUC10i5FNK’s 117 x 112 x 38mm. The barely bigger footprint with a smaller Z-height permits the LIVA to sport a smooth look and still have well-spaced out I/O ports. As is typical in machines with this form-factor, the Core i5-10210U comes soldered in the principle board. It is a quad-core octa-threaded (4C/8T) processor with a nominal TDP of 15W, however able to working within the 10 – 25W vary.
The specs of our ECS LIVA Z3 Plus assessment configuration are summarized within the desk under.
| ECS LIVA Z3 Plus Specifications | |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-10210U Comet Lake-U, 4C/8T, 1.6 – 4.2GHz 14nm, 6MB L2+L3, 10-25W (15W) |
| Memory | Team Group DDR4-2666 SODIMM 19-19-19-43 @ 2666 MHz 1×4 GB |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Disk Drive(s) | kimtigo KT128GM28S3 (128 GB; M.2 SATA III 6Gbps) (Silicon Motion SM2258XT Controller) |
| Networking | Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX200 (2×2 802.11ax – 2400 Mbps) 1x Intel I219-LM Gigabit Ethernet Controller 1x Realtek RTL8111 Gigabit Ethernet Controller |
| Audio | 3.5mm Headphone Jack Capable of 5.1/7.1 digital output with HD audio bitstreaming (HDMI) |
| Miscellaneous I/O Ports | 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) Type-A 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) Type-C |
| Operating System | Retail unit is barebones, however we put in Windows 10 Enterprise x64 |
| Pricing (As… | |
