The MSI Trident Three eighth might be probably the most console-like mini PC I’ve ever laid eyes on. Measuring 346x323x72mm, it’s roughly the identical measurement as an unique Xbox One, and will be laid down on its facet when you don’t fancy standing it vertically with its accompanying base. That’s fairly helpful when you’re after a PC that may sit neatly inside a TV stand, though its sharp ‘gamer’ angles and slash of RGB lighting not far away by the facility button will most likely make the remainder of your family cringe a bit each time they clap eyes on it.
Still, with one among Intel’s 8th Gen Coffee Lake CPUs (therefore the titular eighth) packed inside – the three.2GHz Intel Core i7-8700, to be exact – in addition to 16GB of RAM and a 6GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 graphics card, it’s a bit simpler to forgive its shouty design. Is the Trident Three a greater use of your cash than the Zotac ZBox Magnus? Let’s discover out.
I have to admit, UK Trident hunters get a fairly bum deal on this respect. While there are many different configurations on the market that function older (and due to this fact cheaper) seventh Gen Intel processors, this specific model will set you again £1400. That’s most likely solely a bit greater than you’d usually anticipate to pay for a full-sized PC of this sort of calibre, however when these within the US can get precisely the identical spec for $1276 (with a mouse and keyboard thrown in as properly, no much less), the UK model seems to be downright extortionate by comparability – particularly when it’s probably not equipped for upgrading with higher components additional down the road just like the (at time of writing) £925 GTX 1070-powered ZBox Magnus.
From the outset, then, the Trident Three is quite on the again foot a bit, particularly when you occur to dwell within the UK. Thankfully, its US configuration presents a way more tempting prospect for would-be mini PC homeowners, for not solely does the equal GTX 1060 ZBox Magnus cost more than this specific Trident 3, but it surely additionally solely comes with a lesser Core i5-7500T processor.
The Trident Three comes with a number of helpful ports on the entrance, together with two USB3, one USB-C, separate headphone and microphone jacks, and even an HDMI output for VR headsets
Indeed, paired with a Core i7-8700, the Trident 3’s 6GB GTX 1060 carried out admirably in my benchmarking checks, comfortably hitting 60fps on most video games at 1920×1080 on their highest settings, and solely requiring a few alterations once I raised the decision to 2560×1440.
As ever, Doom and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus had been the slickest video games on present, settling in round a straightforward 120fps on their respective Ultra and Mein Leben settings at 1080p, and a really easy 65-80fps at 1440p. Hitman didn’t want any changes once I modified decision both, with Agent 47 slipping by means of the crowds at a snug 75fps common on Ultra at 1080p, and a nonetheless extremely playable common of 53fps with the identical settings at 1440p.
The Trident Three had a fairly good go at tackling Rise of the Tomb Raider‘s demanding anti-aliasing options, too. Normally, I have to drop it down to the lowest FXAA setting to get anywhere near 60fps on Very High at 1080p, but the Trident managed an impressive 66fps average on the next AA setting up, SMAA. Sadly, Very High proved a little too much for the Trident 3 at 1440p, even with FXAA enabled, but a combination of High and SMAA saw Lara clamber around the game’s densely packed environments at a easy 51fps.
Elsewhere, nonetheless, you’re most likely going to must accept Medium settings at 1440p if sustaining a flawless 60fps is especially essential to you. I used to be nonetheless in a position to get a minimum of 40fps on max settings at this decision with the remainder of my testing suite, however Medium positively proved to be probably the most comfy setting for getting that elusive 60fps.
As properly because the show outputs on the graphics card, you additionally get one other two VR-orientated HDMI outputs, 4 USB2 ports, one USB3, Ethernet and three extra audio jacks.
In Middle-earth: Shadow of War, as an example, the Trident Three produced a silky easy common of 58fps in the course of the recreation’s inside benchmark on Ultra at 1080p, however may solely handle 39fps once I tried the identical setting once more at 1440p. That’s nonetheless fairly first rate for such a small machine, however even High solely noticed an enchancment of round an additional ten frames or so. On Medium, nonetheless, the body price shot as much as very nice 66fps.
The similar goes for The Witcher III. Here, the digital camera was too jerky on something above Medium at 1440p, which noticed Geralt slicing and dicing drowners at a tough common of 50-60fps. Even Ultra at 1080p proved a bit uneven for the Trident 3, all advised, as right here the body price settled between 45-50fps. Instead, I discovered High to be the smoothest at this decision, the place it maintained a gradual 60fps all through.
The ever-taxing Assassin’s Creed Origins was additionally its most agreeable on Medium at 1440p, producing a secure common of 55fps in its inside benchmark. That stated, when you don’t thoughts one thing nearer to 50fps, High will do you simply advantageous at this decision, as I solely noticed a drop of 6fps once I ran the benchmark a second time. For these enjoying at 1080p, Very High is the quickest path to 60fps, however once more, you can most likely handle on Ultra when you don’t thoughts dropping a few frames total.
Total War: Warhammer II required a good bit of tweaking to get one of the best body charges as properly, however nothing too drastic. At 1080p, Ultra noticed a really playable common of 47fps in battles and 53fps over on the marketing campaign map, however kicking it right down to High pushed each these figures properly past the 60fps mark, protecting issues good and easy even when the digital camera was pushed proper up in opposition to the scaly nostrils of a snarling Lizardman. High continued to provide regular outcomes at 1440p as properly – round 43fps in battles and 53fps on the map – however Medium as soon as once more offered the smoothest expertise, with a mean of 55fps in battle and 63fps when hovering around the map.
The solely recreation the Trident Three actually struggled with at 1440p was Final Fantasy XV. It coped brilliantly with the decision set to 1080p, producing a easy 55-60fps on Highest with all of Nvidia’s fancy results turned off and between 45-50fps with TurfEffects and HairWorks enabled, however even turning issues right down to Average at 1440p solely garnered a mean of 45-50fps with every part turned off and between 40-45fps once I switched on TurfEffects and HairWorks. That’s nonetheless greater than quick sufficient for comfy play, after all, however 60fps purists could need to think about choosing a beefier graphics card specification if these types of speeds aren’t ok for you.
Still, on the entire, the Trident Three is a really succesful gaming machine, and in comparison with different small GTX 1060 builds I’ve examined such because the Zotac MEK1, it’s additionally one of many quickest, pulling forward of the MEK1 by round 5fps in nearly each recreation on check, no matter graphics settings and determination.
That’s most likely down, partly, to the Trident 3’s superior 3.2GHz Intel Core i7-8700 processor. One of probably the most highly effective CPUs out there at present, the Core i7-8700 tore by means of my Cinebench R15 and Geekbench four benchmarks, surpassing the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X‘s single core performance by 5% in the former and 13% in the latter. It didn’t achieve this properly on multicore efficiency, all advised, coming in 27% slower than the Ryzen 7 2700X in Cinebench and 15% slower in Geekbench, however this has all the time been an space the place Intel has struggled in comparison with their AMD counterparts.
I also needs to notice, although, that as highly effective because the Core i7-8700 sounds on paper, it really produced nigh-on similar ends in each checks to the Core i5-8600Okay I’ve inside my very own full-sized PC. This is probably going because of the Trident 3’s significantly tighter cooling constraints – I’ve received an enormous be quiet! BK009 Pure Rock cooler caught on my CPU – but it surely’s price mentioning that you simply’re most likely not getting the complete whack of what the Core i7-8700 would in any other case be able to in a bigger, airier case.
Of course, you’ll seemingly discover comparable bottlenecks with each sort of processor you bung inside a tiny PC like this, so any potential efficiency hitches are all relative to the scale of the factor you’re really shopping for. After all, it’s gaming efficiency that basically issues right here, and as I discussed above, the Trident Three is nearly actually one of many extra succesful GTX 1060 machines I’ve examined up to now.
Its bigger measurement additionally does one essential factor the smaller ZBox Magnus doesn’t, and that’s present sufficient room for each a pleasant, nippy SSD and a high-capacity HDD.
It’s only a disgrace in regards to the value. In the UK, you’re nearly actually higher off getting the Zbox Magnus ER51070 when you’re after a small mini PC, because it each takes up much less room and packs a larger graphical punch for much less cash. In the US, although, it’s most likely one of many higher worth GTX 1060 mini PCs round, notably when you go for the mouse and keyboard bundle as properly. If you and the remainder of your family can abdomen its chiseled slab-like design, it gained’t disappoint.
