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XDO Pantera Pico mini PC: Compact and portable with a range of mini accessories
XDO Pantera Pico mini PC
pros and cons
- Available in seven colour schemes
- Quiet fan
- Aluminium CNC body
- Power light could be intrusive in dimly lit environments
The Pantera Pico mini PC from XDO is obviously designed for portability. Not only light and compact, this PC comes with its own zipped carry case which has room for the extra cables you might need.
The Pantera Pico PC has an impressive spec. Inside its 60 x 60 x 50mm dimensions there is an Intel J4125 Gemini Lake quad core CPU running at up to 2.7Ghz.
The Pantera Pico comes with either 4 or 8GB of LPDDR4 memory and storage options of either 64/256 or 512GB of storage. It has an Intel UHD graphics 600 card running at up to 750MHz. It weighs 177 grams.
There are three ports on the front of the Pico PC along with the power switch. It has a TF card slot which supports either SSD or Micro SD expansion card, and two USB type-3.0 slots.
At the rear of the Pico, there is a USB 2.0, USB 3.0 and a full sized HDMI port. There is also a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Gallery: XDO Pantera Pico PC
You can run the Pico PC using a battery that will supply 18W power over 12V USB type-C so you are not tied to mains electricity power. XDO offers battery power packs as an optional extra to purchase.
The Pico PC is well-built with an aluminium CNC body and looks sturdy and strong. Instead of rubber feet on the base of the PC, there is a non-slip border to ensure that the PC stays securely on the desk.
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There is no wobbling if you lose a rubber foot, and no opportunity to trap cake crumbs under the body of the PC.
In the box, there is the Pantera Pico mini PC and USB type-C power adapter. There is also a quick start guide for the PC.
Initially, you need to plug in a USB keyboard and mouse, and HDMI screen to configure the Wi-Fi connections to the peripherals. Once all Wi-Fi connections have been made, you can dispense with the wired connections.
The PC comes preinstalled with Windows 10 Home, but it will also support a Linux Ubuntu installation, and Windows 11 when it is launched. Furthermore, you do not need to step through the install program but can start work straight away.
When the power switch is turned on, the top of the PC shows a blue LED light. The fan grilles (the fan runs at up to 9500 rpm) are at the front and rear of the Pico unit. In use, the fan is really quiet and is hardly noticeable.
It was hard to find any issues with the Pico PC – although I did become irritated with its blue light in dimly lit rooms. In daylight, I didn't notice the light at all.
The Pico comes in several colours: black, blue, grey, red, purple, pink and gold – a change from the usual black PC components. This is a nice looking mini PC.
There are a lot of mini accessories coming soon too on the XDO website from keyboards and mini-mice, to hubs and adapters.
There are even several carry cases too – from the mini case, to the case that holds all of your peripherals – including the Pico projector launching in September.
The XDO Pantera Pico PC retails at $219 but you can get it on Super Early Bird on Kickstarter for under $150.
If you prefer your tech streamlined and unobtrusive the XDO Pantera Pico PC would be a nice addition to your home computing set up.
Pair it up with a Wi-Fi keyboard like the Vissles mechanical keyboard, and a portable monitor like the GMKTec 4k monitor, and you'll have everything you need for your home or office entertainment.