Maxtang FP750 review | TechRadar
30 seconds review
Maxtang is a well-known brand for embedded PC solutions, but is now more active in producing mini PCs. Its Maxtang FP750 uses the latest AMD mobile chips to provide a compact and powerful system in a classic NUC molding plant.
Available in Space Gray and Pearl White, and with a variety of processor, memory, and storage configurations to choose from, the low entry-level cost makes even the high-end models affordable.
The expected trade-off here is that this is a device that’s unabashedly designed for the price, so don’t expect fancy stuff like a metal casing. The exterior of the FP750 is entirely plastic.
Thankfully, the interior is packed with genuinely useful parts, elevating the FP750 into a capable desktop replacement and a true workhorse.
My review system came with an AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS, a twelve-core processor with an integrated GPU that was originally designed for laptops. As a result, it can run for long periods of time without excessive fan noise while providing enough power for typical Office tasks.
Does it have the ability to be one of our best mini pc?
Maybe. The mini computer market is becoming an increasingly active area, with buyers often looking for something unique or unusual. The FP750 doesn’t meet these criteria, but it provides a good option for individuals or businesses who want a work-from-home system at an affordable price.
What’s not ideal is the availability of certain variants, such as the review model, which seems hard to get right now.
Maxtang FP750: price and availability
- how much does it cost? From $250/£204
- When will it be released? Now available
- Where can you get it? AliExpress, Amazon and directly from the manufacturer
I realize that tracking cost information for this product can be a challenge. Even to me, the author of this comment, this is confusing.
On the Maxtang website, there are multiple models of FP750, using Ryzen 9 6900HX, Ryzen 7 8845HS, 7850HS and Ryzen 5 6600H.
As you might expect, the Ryzen 5 6600H machine is the cheapest and the Ryzen 9 6900HX is the most expensive.
Unless you find these products in the official Maxtang store on AliExpress, only the Ryzen 5 6600H and Ryzen 9 6900HX models are listed.
Both processor options are available in two colors, are barebones with no memory or storage, and come in different memory sizes and storage capacities.
The cheapest Ryzen 5 6600H costs just $250 barebone and $396 with 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. The cheapest Ryzen 9 barebone option is priced at $299, while the option with 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage is priced at $460.
UK pricing puts Ryzen 5 at just £204 for the barebones model and £321 for the fully loaded model, while Ryzen 9 will cost £244 for the unloaded model and £374 for the fully loaded model.
The cheapest models with 16GB RAM and 512GB of storage per machine are around £100/$100 more expensive than the barebone machines and come with Windows 11 Pro pre-installed.
superior Max Down On the website, the Ryzen 7 8845HS sells for $619 to $649, but these are padded systems and there are no barebone options.
The only place we found review-spec processors was on Amazon.com, where a barebones machine with no memory or storage went for $499.
Maxtang FP750: Specifications
| thing | Specification |
|---|---|
| CPU: | AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (8 cores, 16 threads) |
| Graphics processor: | Radeon 780M |
| Memory: | 32GB DDR5-5600 (2800 MHz) (16GB x 2) expandable to 64GB |
| Storage: | 1TB M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4 |
| expansion: | 1 x M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4 |
| port: | 1x USB 4.0 Type-C, 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C, 1x USB 2.0, 1x HDMI 2.0, 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 1x 3.5mm CTIA |
| networking: | 1 2.5GbE LAN, WiFi 6e, Bluetooth 5.2 |
| operating system: | Windows 11 Pro (preinstalled) |
| Base power: | 35W-54W (configurable) |
| power supply: | 19V 6.32A 120.08W |
| aspect: | 127×135×55 (mm) |
Maxtang FP750: Design
- plastic structure
- It’s relatively easy to get inside
- Dual M.2 2280
There are complex ways to make mini computers, and there’s Maxtang’s FP750 method. It’s a simple plastic box with air drawn in from the bottom through perforations arranged in a hexagonal pattern. After the internal components cool, it drains out the top through the slots around the cover and the rear above the I/O area.
The lack of any metal is a bit disconcerting, and there’s also the question of how the look of this device might be affected in an office environment.
The technology inside is accessed by removing the underside, which is held in place by four screws hidden under rubber feet. The foot will never be the same after the adhesive is removed, so you should plan to only do it once if possible.
Why the screws can’t get through the feet that stay in place, or are just not hidden by the feet, is a mystery. However, we hope mini PC manufacturers stop this practice.
However, once you remove the legs and unscrew the screws, you have full access to the internals, including the DDR5 memory and M.2 slots.
In my review unit, there were two Crucial brand 16GB DDR5 modules with a capacity of 32GB. If you need more RAM, you can remove it and replace it with a larger SODIMM.
Matang quotes a maximum memory of 64GB, but even though 128GB modules aren’t widely available yet, the Ryzen 7 8845HS can handle up to 256GB. Unfortunately I don’t have any 48GB DDR5 modules on hand to see if these two slots can support 96GB, but it’s certainly possible.
For me, the best aspect of the interior is that the NUC has two 2280 NVMe M.2 slots, one of which is already occupied by a 1TB boot drive. With two slots, it’s easier to put the new SSD in place and clone the contents from the original module.
Technically speaking, the WiFi module occupies the third M2. If you’re ready to ditch WiFi, there’s another M.2 2230, which can be had with a small SSD drive.
The pre-installed drive has a heatsink, and given the relatively small space and limited cooling, we recommend only using NVMe drives with a heatsink.
Overall, aside from the hidden screws under the feet, the FP750’s layout and internal design are nice, and the pearlescent white we got is certainly a departure from the normal colors these computers usually come in.
Maxtang FP750: Features
- AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (8 cores, 16 threads)
- 20 PCIe lanes
- Radeon 780M
The AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS features 8 cores and 16 threads with a configurable power range from 35W to 54W, which can be tailored to specific application needs. Power tuning in this case is more about thermal management than it is in laptops focused on battery conservation.
This Zen 4 architecture utilizes an efficient 4nm FinFET manufacturing process, allowing it to run quietly or deliver impressive performance.
While Intel has transitioned to using three different core types in its Ultra processors, AMD has maintained its established eight-core approach, with all cores equipped with hyper-threading capabilities. Progress lies not in the overall architecture but in maximizing the potential of each core. The 8845HS is equipped with enough cache and clock variability to perform a variety of tasks, and there are 20 PCIe 4.0 lanes for connecting external I/O without running into bandwidth issues.
Typically, mini PCs lack the physical space to accommodate all the ports that the system may support, but that’s not an issue with this system. There are unused I/O locations, and only a single LAN port is supported, whereas many alternatives have two.
It also lacks the OCuLink port we saw on the GMKtec NucBox K7 and K7 Pro, but it does have a USB 4.0 for external GPU connectivity.
However, one significant shortcoming of the platform is the Radeon 780M, which limits the FP750s’ suitability as a gaming system. For an integrated GPU, the 780M is not bad, but Intel has surpassed AMD with the ARC series of GPUs, and the switch from 680M to 780M is very disappointing.
Overall, the system’s performance exceeds the needs of the typical home or office user and is much closer to desktop-class functionality. This makes it more suitable for small server roles or power users who want to easily move their desktop systems around.
A mounting plate is included in the box for attaching the FP750 to the rear of the monitor, which is a great way to run the system on its own if you don’t need regular access to the ports.
Maxtang FP750: Performance
| mini computer | Header Cell – Column 1 | McStang FP750 | GMKTec NucBox M7 Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | Row 0 – Cell 1 | AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS | AMD Ryzen 9 PRO 6950H |
| core/thread | Row 1 – Cell 1 | 8C 16T | 8C 16T |
| Memory | Row 2 – Cell 1 | 32GB DDR5 (2x16GB) | 32GB DDR5 (2x16GB) |
| storage | Row 3 – Cell 1 | 1TB NVMe Kingston SNV2S | 1TB |
| graphics | Row 4 – Cell 1 | Radeon 780M | Radeon 680M |
| 3DMark | wild animals | 18696 | 15703 |
| Row 6 – Cell 0 | fire strike | 7924 | 7036 |
| Row 7 – Cell 0 | time spy | 3373 | 2811 |
| Row 8 – Cell 0 | steel titular lieutenant | 2937 | 2497 |
| CineBench24 | single | 104 | 94 |
| Row 10 – Cell 0 | many | Chapter 858 | Chapter 772 |
| Row 11 – Cell 0 | ratio | 8.27 | 8.23 |
| GeekBench 6 | single | 2621 | 2167 |
| Row 13 – Cell 0 | many | 12207 | 10454 |
| Row 14 – Cell 0 | OpenCL | 30649 | 29730 |
| Row 15 – Cell 0 | Vulcan | 34291 | 30797 |
| crystal plate | Read MB/sec | 3781 | 3544 |
| Row 17 – Cell 0 | Write MB/sec | 2644 | 2145 |
| PCMark 10 | office | 6889 | 7064 |
| Wei | Row 19 – Cell 1 | 8.2 | 8.2 |
| mini computer | Row 20 – Cell 1 | McStang FP750 | GMKTec NucBox M7 Pro |
| CPU | Row 21 – Cell 1 | AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS | AMD Ryzen 9 PRO 6950H |
| core/thread | Row 22 – Cell 1 | 8C 16T | 8C 16T |
The FP750 benchmark gave me a good idea of ​​how much better the Ryzen 8000 series is compared to the 6000 series. Because in most tests, the FP750 and its Ryzen 7 8845HS outperform the Ryzen 9 6950H used in the GMKTec NucBox M7 Pro.
The difference is usually around 10%, which shows that at every stage of the development of Ryzen mobile processors, AMD has managed to find some significant improvements.
The only real disappointment in these numbers is that neither Maxtang nor GMKtec put NVMe drives in these systems that can properly utilize the Gen 4 M.2 slot bandwidth.
While the Kingston SNV2S used in my review machine is a PCIe 4.0 form factor drive, alternatives like the WD SN850X can double read and write speeds.
Maxtang could argue that the heat generated by a high-performance drive might be too much in a NUC enclosure, but I suspect the choice of the Kingston SNV2S was primarily based on price.
Maxtang FP750: Verdict
The Maxtang FP750 has some drawbacks, such as if you need a different port (such as Thunderbolt or OCuLink), but nothing that makes it unusable. I’ve seen a lot of metal cases lately, and this one is plastic, but unless your office colleagues are throwing systems at each other, it’ll probably survive long enough to justify the investment.
I find it annoying that the screws are hidden underfoot, but most minis won’t be upgraded more than once in their lifetime, and glue is easy to come by.
The only real issue with the Maxtang FP750 is the availability of the review model, which has the high-performance Ryzen 7 8845HS inside. Other, less impressive models are easier to find, and the Ryzen 5 barebones are great value for those with an M.2 drive and some DDR5 SODIMMs to spare.
In short, there’s nothing outstanding about this Mini PC, but again, Maxtang didn’t make anything horribly wrong.
Should you buy the Maxtang FP750?
| value | Excellent specs and in line with the asking price | 4/5 |
| design | Once you take your feet off, it’s easy to get in and upgrade. | 4/5 |
| feature | Dual M.2 slots and powerful processor options. | 4/5 |
| Performance | Faster than 6000 series Ryzen 9 | 4/5 |
| Comprehensive | An affordable system that’s powerful enough for most jobs. | 4/5 |
