The 'fantastically compact' GMKtec M6 Ultra is our top-rated mini PC for work and study

The GMKtec M6 Ultra is our number one mini PC pick for most people. When we tested it, we found that “once you get into the applications, running Word, Excel, browsing the internet, and watching media, this small PC runs exceptionally smoothly.”

Right now, the GMKtec M6 Ultra is $550 (was 700) at Amazon for the 32GB RAM / 1TB configuration. That's an impressive $150 saving on a mini PC we think genuinely punches above its price tag.

During our test, we noted that machines like this represent a real shift in the market: “if you want a decent Windows machine for the office, you no longer have to spend above $500.” We also liked that GMKtec kept both the RAM and SSD upgradeable, and found the cooling system did a solid job of staying quiet even under sustained load in DaVinci Resolve and light gaming.

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The Ryzen 5 7640HS is the right processor for this category of machine. It's a 6-core, 12-thread chip built on TSMC's 4nm process, and while it's not the newest silicon on the market, it remains a capable performer for everyday desktop use, light multitasking, and media work. TechPowerUp's review of this exact configuration found it “offers strong desktop performance in a compact chassis, without the premium price tag,” and noted the Radeon 760M integrated graphics — RDNA 3-based — still hold up well for casual gaming and lighter creative tasks.

The dual 2.5G Ethernet ports stand out at this price. Most mini PCs in this category ship with a single 1G port; having two 2.5G ports gives you considerably more bandwidth and the ability to connect to two separate networks simultaneously — useful for home labs, NAS setups, or anyone who wants to keep work and personal traffic on separate connections. Combined with Wi-Fi 6E, this is a genuinely well-connected machine for its size.

USB4 at 40Gbps on the front panel is another spec that's unusual to see at this price point. It supports DisplayPort Alt Mode for driving an external display and Power Delivery for charging connected devices, along with raw 40 Gbps data transfer speed — useful if you want to connect a fast external SSD or an eGPU enclosure down the line.

Both the 32GB of DDR5 RAM and the 1TB SSD are user-upgradeable, which is a genuine point in this machine's favor over sealed-chassis competitors. RAM expands up to 128GB across two SO-DIMM slots, and there's a second M.2 slot free for additional storage. For a machine at this price, having a clear upgrade path rather than a hard ceiling is worth factoring into the value calculation.

In our full GMKtec NucBox M6 Ultra review, we found the cooling system did its job well — the fans kicked in under load but stayed at a relatively low volume, even during sustained creative workloads. That's a meaningful detail for anyone planning to use this on a desk where fan noise would be distracting.

One honest caveat worth flagging: this is integrated graphics, not a dedicated GPU. It handles office work, 4K media playback, and light gaming at reduced settings comfortably, but it's not built for demanding modern titles or serious GPU-bound creative work. If gaming or GPU-accelerated tasks are the priority, you'll want a machine with discrete graphics instead.

For an everyday desktop replacement with genuinely useful connectivity and room to grow, the GMKtec M6 Ultra at $549.98 is a strong buy in this category.

See all mini PCs at Amazon.

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Bryan M. Wolfe is a staff writer at TechRadar, iMore, and wherever Future can use him. Though his passion is Apple-based products, he doesn't have a problem using Windows and Android. Bryan's a single father of a 15-year-old daughter and a puppy, Isabelle. Thanks for reading!