Blackview MP80 mini PC review: A super-small office PC featuring Intel N95 within an 0.285-litre case

We recently tested another Blackview mini PC, namely the MP200 – but the release of the MP80 marks the manufacturer’s newest tiny device. Its compactness is a clear advantage of the Blackview MP80. In turn, you do have to make a few compromises when it comes to performance.

Even so, the device is fitted with a relatively modern SoC, the Intel N95 . The SoC, which was presented in January this year, features four native cores and is based on Intel’s Alder Lake architecture. The PC is also fitted with 16 GB RAM and a 512-GB SSD.

This configuration costs around US$270, which is acceptable. For US$20 less, you can get the Blackview MP80 with 12 GB RAM and a 256-GB SSD. Still, we would recommend going for our test configuration.

We welcome the decision to use DDR5 RAM, as the SoC should much better access its full potential than if it were to use the slower DDR4 RAM. We will see later whether this was a success for the manufacturer. In this review, we will be comparing the Blackview MP80 with well-known competitors which we have also taken a closer look at.

You can find a list of the comparison devices in the following overview. The Blackview MP80 only takes up an 87. 7 × 87.

7 millimetre space and the compact office PC’s height is 37 millimetres. The manufacturer has mostly relied on plastic for the device’s build. This is okay and justified considering the price.

Its build quality is good – we didn’t see any notable gaps on our test sample. The lighting strip on the bottom is a real highlight of the Blackview MP80. This makes the PC a real eye-catcher and illuminates the device subtly from the bottom.

We don’t find the lighting to be too brash. If you don’t want to place the mini PC on your desk, then you also have the option to attach the MP80 to the back of a monitor via a VESA mount. Everything you need to do so is included.

The Blackview MP80’s selection of external ports reminds us a lot of the Ace Magician T8Pro . Their number and arrangements are practically identical. This means the MP80 has three USB-A ports and three HDMI ports, each on both sides of the device.

On the back, there are two LAN sockets and this is also where the power connection is housed. Blackview has installed a wireless module from Realtek into the MP80. In our test, the WLAN module achieved solid transfer rates.

In direct comparison to the Ace Magician T8Pro , we noted considerably better send rates on our test sample. The installed module cannot make use of the more modern 6-GHz frequency area. This means our measurements were limited to 5 GHz.

We used the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000 as a test router for our measurements. The PC features two RJ45 sockets on the back which each offer Gbit speeds – two of these sockets being present is not always standard on mini PCs. The mini PC comes with a 30-watt power supply, an HDMI cable as well as a montage kit for the VESA montage.

It isn’t the easiest to perform maintenance work on the Blackview MP80. If you want to clean the fans, then you will need to almost entirely disassemble the device. This requires you to remove the screws on the bottom which are located beneath the rubber feet.

Then, you have to unscrew some more screws and take apart the small plate which is used for the lighting. All this is also required if you simply want to replace the SSD or WLAN module. An additional SSD cannot be installed.

The RAM is soldered on and, as a result, can’t be expanded. The Intel Pentium N95 is a frugal SoC which offers decent performance for simple office tasks. With the help of its fast DDR5 RAM, the SoC can offer optimum performance.

Its 16 GB RAM is quite generous. Alternatively, you can find the Blackview MP80 with 12 GB RAM. We performed all performance tests using the energy profile Maximum Performance .

Deviating energy-saving plans were only used for the power consumption measurements as well as the noise emission measurements. More details about our test criteria can be found here . The Intel N95 is based on Intel Alder Lake and features four native cores.

You unfortunately have to forgo hyper-threading, meaning only four threads can be processed at once. The same SoC can also be found in the Bosgame N95 or the NiPoGi GK3Plus . In contrast to the Blackview MP80, their versions of the SoC only rely on DDR4 RAM.

The DDR5 option which is installed into the Blackview MP80 is the better option. Although, we still had to adjust the RAM speed in the BIOS. Ex works, the RAM only ran at 3,200 MT/s.

According to the technical data, the Intel 95 can be run with DDR5 and at 4,800 MT/s. In our test, we noted slightly better performance over the competitors with the same SoC. The advantage of the faster RAM isn’t terribly big.

Even so, Blackview didn’t limit its power consumption noticeably. Both PL1 and PL2 are set at 15 watts. The Bosgame N95’s PL2 value is even set at 35 watts but this wasn’t fully taken advantage of in the test.

During the RAM tests, our test sample benefitted slightly from its faster DDR5 RAM. In comparison, the Blackview MP80 wasn’t able to noticeably set itself apart from the competition. We would have expected a slightly bigger boost due to the DDR5 RAM.

You can find further processor benchmarks here . The Cinebench R15 multi loop can give us our first look at how well the installed cooling unit performs. You can see in the telemetry data that the Intel 95 didn’t fully take advantage of its 15-watt power limit.

The SoC ran within an acceptable temperature window with a maximum of 77 °C. In comparison, our test sample came just behind the Bosgame N95 . The Newsmay S2-B560 delivered overall better multi-core performance thanks to its installed 6-core processor.

Its good CPU performance also resulted in good system performance results. During PCMark 10, this was enough for the PC to secure itself second place – although, during Crossmark, the Bosgame N95 was slightly faster and pushed the Blackview MP80 into third place. Considering its DDR5 RAM, we were a little underwhelmed by the mini PC’s RAM test results.

At the same time, compared to the Bosgame N95 and the NiPoGi GK3Plus , our test sample did much better. Even so, we expected better results. In order to make sure there weren’t any mistakes in our test, we ran it a few times more.

The results were always the same. The Blackview MP80 showed excellent results in the documented latencies. We didn’t measure any increased latencies while opening multiple tabs in Edge, playing our 4K test video or running Prime95.

This means the Blackview MP80 is perfectly suited for video streaming. The Blackview MP80 is fitted with a 512-GB SSD from Netac. Although, the installed model only offers SATA speeds – but this is sufficient.

Of course, compared to the NVMe model within the Newsmay S2-B560 , the installed model couldn’t keep up during the benchmarks. Working on the Blackview PC generally feels effortless. Even starting up the system doesn’t take long and you can quickly begin your work.

We have nothing to complain about its storage size: 512 GB is more than enough for an office device. You can’t install an additional storage device – if you require more storage, then you will have to swap out the existing one. You just have to take into account its build height, as only M.

2 SSDs with a length of 42 millimetres can fit into the case. For further comparisons and benchmarks, take a look at our comparison table . An Intel UHD Graphics with 16 EUs is installed into the Blackview PC.

As a part of the Intel N95 SoC, this iGPU can only deliver limited 3D performance. As a result of its slightly faster RAM, our test sample delivered slightly better 3D performance than both of the other comparison devices with the same processor. Even so, the Blackview MP80 had to make do with third place.

Further Intel UHD Graphics benchmarks can be found here . The Blackview MP8 isn’t suitable as a gaming solution. We only sometimes achieved playable frame rates – and only on older games with the lowest resolution/detail settings.

You can achieve noticeably better performance with mini PCs which feature the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX , for example. This would include the Geekom AS 6 , the Morefine M600 or the Ace Magican AM08 Pro . The installed cooling system is very compact and is the same as in the Ace Magician T8Pro.

In idle mode, the Blackview MP80 runs extremely quietly and can barely be heard. Even under slight load, we only measured 32. 3 dB(A), which is also great.

Only the stress test led the device to be audible and we measured a peak of just over 36 dB(A). Subjectively, the PC sounds a bit louder than quite a few of its competitors, although this is still far from being an annoying sound level. The Bosgame N95 shows how quietly a PC can run under load.

At the same time, this device benefits from a considerably larger cooling unit. The Newsmay AC8 is cooled passively, which is why it is listed without any values. Under load, the Blackview’s case doesn’t really heat up.

We only measured higher temperatures around the area of the fan outlet on the back of the device. This is a slightly different picture when it comes to the processor itself – we noted a maximum of 90 °C during the stress test with Prime95. This is still fine and nothing to worry about.

Its highest temperature was only achieved right after the start, where the SoC was still granted a maximum Turbo of up to 3. 4 GHz. In the further course, the temperature then levelled off at 76 °C.

Low power consumption is one of the big advantages of mini-PCs. In principle, the Blackview MP80 can also excel here. The device is extremely frugal with a consumption of only 4.

9 to 7. 3 watts in idle mode. Under average load, the measuring device also showed a nice low rate of only 20.

6 watts. However, it consumed a peak of over 26 watts for a short time, which the power supply was able to handle well. At 30 watts, it is sufficiently dimensioned.

Compared to the Bosgame N95 , our test sample lost out mainly in idle mode, which resulted in the relatively large gap. Nevertheless, the Blackview MP80 has no need to hide, because this mini-PC is also one of the most frugal ones, as confirmed by its results. The test results would have been a bit better if the manufacturer had omitted the PC’s lighting.

If you are on the hunt for a mini PC, you are likely doing so for very specific reasons, as these compact PCs certainly aren’t made for every purpose. In turn, most of these devices have mastered everyday office work, surfing the web and playing back video – the same can be said for the Blackview MP80. Based on Intel 95, the PC is fitted with a relatively modern SoC – although, the Intel N100 or Intel N200 could also have been suitable alternatives.

In our test, the SoC still managed to deliver solid performance, leaving the previous Intel 95 devices in the dust. We suspect that the DDR5 RAM makes all the difference, as the Bosgame N95 and the NiPoGi GK3Plus have to make do with DDR4 RAM. The Blackview MP80, together with its Intel N95 and DDR5 RAM, offers good everyday performance.

We have nothing to criticize about its design. If anything, we would like to have had the option to disable the lighting. Some positives include its three HDMI outputs which are present despite its compact build.

The same can be said for the two LAN slots. Not many devices of this size have this to offer. You do have to make do with a few compromises, as there isn’t unlimited space within this PC.

As a result, it isn’t surprising to see that there is only space for one SSD and the RAM is soldered on. The latter is another reason to go for the 16-GB model. In our eyes, the installed wireless module is worthy of criticism.

We would prefer to have seen a modern and, above all else, future-proof Wi-Fi 6E module. Currently, the Blackview MP80 can be bought directly from the manufacturer which has some great offers. At the moment, you can get our test device for US$229.

99 instead of US$269. 99.