With a TDP of 180W, it was only a matter of time before we started to see ever more compact GeForce GTX 1080 graphics cards, since it is after all based on the third largest implementation of the “Pascal” architecture (after GP100 and GP102). The ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1080 Mini is the smallest GTX 1080 implementation to date, with its length under 20 cm, and its PCB even shorter than that. ZOTAC used the difference in lengths of the cooler and PCB to cram in the longer and wider portions of the aluminium fin-stacks.
The cooler of the ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1080 Mini features three 8 mm-thick copper heat pipes, which pass through a dense aluminium fin-stack, which is then ventilated by a pair of 100 mm fans, which appear to be different from each other. The fan in the front appears to be of a quieter, low-RPM type, while the one on the rear end is a high air-flow fan. A neat back-plate covers up the reverse side of the PCB. An LED-lit ZOTAC logo is located on the top. The card ships with factory-overclocked speeds of 1620 MHz core, 1753 MHz GPU Boost, and an untouched 10 GHz (GDDR5X-effective) memory, compared to reference speeds of 1607/1733 MHz. The card draws power from a single 8-pin PCIe power connector. Display outputs include three DisplayPorts and one each of HDMI and DVI. This design should allow ZOTAC to achieve two market positions – charge a premium for the compact size; or sell at a lower price than reference, if the competition heats up.
