GMKtec NucBox K8 Plus Review

Overview

The GMKtec NucBox K8 Plus is the mini PC most people should buy first when they want a small box that runs SteamOS-style gaming without regrets. It takes the Ryzen 7 8845HS — an eight-core, sixteen-thread Hawk Point chip with Radeon 780M graphics — wraps it in a metal-and-plastic chassis roughly the size of a sandwich, and sells it at a price that undercuts most brand-name competitors with the same silicon. In a market flooded with near-identical 8845HS boxes, the K8 Plus separates itself on two fronts: an OCuLink port for external GPU expansion, and a cooling tune that TechRadar described as delivering far more power than the price suggests.

For GamepadSquire readers specifically, this is one of the best-documented platforms for Bazzite, the SteamOS-like operating system that turns any mini PC into a console. The 8845HS appears constantly in Bazzite install threads and handheld conversions, which means the rough edges have been sanded down by the community. It is not a 4K gaming machine — the Radeon 780M is an integrated GPU, and it performs like one — but for 1080p gaming at console-quality settings, emulation through Switch and PS3, and a living-room Steam library, it hits a value sweet spot that dedicated gaming consoles cannot match on flexibility.

The context for buying one in 2026 is complicated by the memory crisis. DDR5 and NVMe prices have surged since late 2025, and mini PC pricing has swung violently as a result. The K8 Plus launched at a $469–$499 street price for the 32GB/1TB configuration; through 2026 that same configuration has been listed as high as the mid-$900s. Anyone buying today should treat the list price as a moving target and check the current number before judging the value proposition.

Build Quality and Design

The K8 Plus measures approximately 135 × 135 × 45 mm — about 0.8 liters — and weighs in the neighborhood of 600 grams with its metal top plate and plastic base. GMKtec redesigned the original K8 for the Plus model, replacing the glossy plastic lid with a CNC-machined aluminum top that doubles as the primary heatsink surface. The change is not just cosmetic: owner feedback consistently credits the metal lid and the larger fan beneath it with keeping the 8845HS running at full 65W–70W boost clocks where cheaper 8845HS boxes throttle back.

Port selection is where the K8 Plus punches above its price class. The rear panel carries dual HDMI 2.1 outputs, dual 2.5GbE Ethernet ports (an Intel controller, not a cheaper Realtek), two USB-A ports, and the headline feature: an OCuLink SFF-8611 port capable of roughly 64 Gbps of PCIe 4.0 throughput. The front adds USB4 (full 40Gbps, USB-PD and DisplayPort Alt Mode), two more USB-A ports, and a 3.5mm audio jack with microphone support — a genuine rarity on mini PCs, and one that makes the box more useful for couch gaming voice chat without a headset dongle.

The compromises are conventional for the category. The bottom shell is still plastic, the power button sits on the side rather than the top, and the external 120W power brick is a generic unit. TechRadar's review of the platform noted that the build could stand less plastic and paint; that criticism applies less forcefully to the Plus redesign than to the original K8, but the chassis still feels like what it is — a value-first product.

Key Features

• Ryzen 7 8845HS (8C/16T, up to 5.1GHz) with Radeon 780M integrated graphics (12 RDNA3 CUs) — the highest-clocked mainstream mini PC APU of its generation
• OCuLink port for external GPU enclosures — a future-proofing option almost never found at this price
• USB4 (40Gbps) with Power Delivery and DisplayPort Alt Mode on the front panel
• Dual Intel 2.5GbE Ethernet ports for NAS, streaming, and dual-homing setups
• Dual SODIMM DDR5-5600 slots (32GB standard) and dual M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 slots — fully user-serviceable
• 70W performance mode selectable in BIOS alongside quieter standard tuning
• VESA mount included for hiding the unit behind a monitor or TV
• Officially supports Windows 11; community-supported for Bazzite, ChimeraOS, and mainstream Linux distributions

Performance

The 8845HS is the K8 Plus's whole argument. In multi-core workloads it trades blows with desktop chips two tiers up the stack, and the Radeon 780M remains the strongest commonly-available integrated GPU in mini PCs short of the Strix Halo class. Real-world results gathered from owner reports and published testing line up consistently:

• Esports titles (Rocket League, CS2, Valorant, Fortnite performance mode): well beyond 100fps at 1080p, with headroom for high-refresh displays
• Modern AAA at 1080p medium (Cyberpunk 2077, Elden Ring, Baldur's Gate 3): 40–60fps, with FSR 2 pushing several titles to locked 60
• Emulation: GameCube, Wii, and Switch at full speed via Dolphin and Ryujinx; PS3 emulation playable in most titles on RPCS3 — the 8-core CPU handles the emulation overhead that starves lesser mini PCs
• Media: dual HDMI 2.1 outputs drive 4K120 or 8K60 displays; AV1 decode is hardware-supported

Thermals are the persistent asterisk. In 70W performance mode the fan is clearly audible under sustained load — fine behind a TV, less fine on a quiet desk. GMKtec's firmware offers lower-power modes that trade roughly 10–15% performance for a much quieter profile, and most owners settle there. A small minority of Amazon reviewers describe units running hot or arriving with loose heatsink paste, which appears to be quality-control variance rather than a design flaw; GMKtec's support has a mixed but generally responsive reputation in r/MiniPCs threads.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Best-in-class CPU performance per dollar in its generation — the 8845HS at this price outmuscles most rivals
• OCuLink and USB4 give it an upgrade path (eGPU) that almost no competitor at the price offers
• Fully user-upgradeable: two SODIMM slots, two M.2 slots, no soldered memory
• Mature Bazzite/Linux support — one of the most community-documented mini PC platforms
• Dual 2.5GbE plus front USB4 and mic-capable audio jack is a port layout that covers nearly every living-room use case

Cons:

• Integrated GPU ceiling: 1080p medium settings is the realistic AAA envelope, and ray tracing is off the table
• Memory-crisis pricing volatility — street prices have swung by hundreds of dollars through 2026
• Audible fan noise in performance mode under sustained load
• Plastic lower chassis and generic power brick feel a step behind the aluminum lid
• Some QC variance reported (thermals, paste application) requiring a support ticket

Who Should Buy This

The K8 Plus is the right pick for a buyer building a console-style living-room gaming PC on a budget: pair it with Bazzite, a Bluetooth controller, and a 1080p or 1440p TV and it behaves like a Steam Machine that also runs desktop Linux. It is equally strong as an emulation box — the 8-core CPU comfortably handles Switch and PS3 emulation. Skip it if the goal is 4K AAA gaming at high settings (that requires discrete GPU money) or if silence at any cost is the priority.

Alternatives to Consider

• Beelink SER9 — Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 with the stronger Radeon 890M; meaningfully faster GPU and CPU for roughly $300 more, at the cost of soldered memory
• Minisforum HX99G — pairs a Ryzen 9 6900HX with a true discrete RX 6600M; better 1080p-ultra frame rates but a larger chassis and older CPU platform
• Valve Steam Machine — the official $1,049 console experience with SteamOS out of the box, if you can win a reservation lottery and accept fixed, non-upgradeable hardware

Verdict

The GMKtec NucBox K8 Plus is the value anchor of the mini PC gaming world: the fastest commonly-available APU of its generation, an unusually complete port layout, and an upgrade path (RAM, storage, OCuLink eGPU) that nothing else at the price matches. Its weaknesses — integrated-GPU performance ceiling and noisy performance mode — are inherent to the category, not execution failures. Score it against what it claims to be, and it wins decisively. 8/10 — Excellent value; the default first pick for a DIY Steam Machine.