Minisforum UM790 Pro vs Minisforum UM690
| Field | Minisforum UM790 Pro | Minisforum UM690 |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS | AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX |
| Cores | 8C / 16T | 8C / 16T |
| Form factor | Mini PC | 0.6 L mini-PC |
| Measured idle power | 25–45 W idle wall-measured · Wall measurement (buyer's-guide aggregate) · source · 2025 | ~8–10 W idle wall-measured · Wall meter · source · 2023-03-05 |
| ECC memory | No (consumer Ryzen 7940HS; DDR5 SODIMM, non-ECC) source · 2025 | No cited source — left blank. |
| NIC chipset | Not independently confirmed. | Intel I225-V 2.5GbE source · 2023-02-03 |
| RAM ceiling | 96 GB (2× DDR5 SODIMM) source · 2025 | 64 GB (2× DDR5-4800 SODIMM) source · 2023-02-03 |
| IOMMU / passthrough | Has Oculink for an external eGPU (cleaner than iGPU passthrough). RDNA3 780M iGPU passthrough hits the AMD reset bug. source · 2025 | Proxmox install needs a GRUB edit (initcall_blacklist=sysfb_init) due to the Radeon 680M; iGPU passthrough reported working only with specific vBIOS files and vfio device IDs. source · 2023 |
| AMD reset bug | RDNA3 (Navi-class) iGPU is subject to the AMD reset bug; Proxmox wiki: AMD Navi 5xxx/6xxx suffer the reset bug and need extra effort, may not be fully stable. vendor-reset may or may not cover newer APUs. source · 2025 | Radeon 680M (Rembrandt RDNA2) is subject to the AMD GPU reset bug — the card can only be used once per host power-on; the vendor-reset DKMS module is the standard workaround. source · 2020-11-22 |
| Price band | $500–650 | $500–700 |
| Proxmox fit (editorial) | good — Most compute + 96 GB RAM here, but 25–45 W idle is the price. Use Oculink eGPU rather than fighting iGPU passthrough. | good — ~8–10 W idle with a solid Intel i225-V 2.5GbE makes a capable Proxmox node, but 680M iGPU passthrough is tricky (GRUB workaround) and hits the AMD reset bug needing vendor-reset. |
| Where to buy | Amazon Newegg eBay | Amazon Newegg eBay |
Frequently asked questions
Does the Minisforum UM790 Pro or the Minisforum UM690 use less idle power?
The Minisforum UM790 Pro idles at 25–45 W idle (wall-measured); the Minisforum UM690 idles at ~8–10 W idle (wall-measured). On the cited lower-bound figures, the Minisforum UM690 draws less. Idle varies with OS, 120 V vs 240 V mains and power tuning, so treat these as the third-party measured numbers, not a guarantee for your exact unit.
Minisforum UM790 Pro vs Minisforum UM690: which has the better NIC for Proxmox?
Minisforum UM790 Pro NIC: not independently confirmed. Minisforum UM690 NIC: Intel I225-V 2.5GbE (rated caution). Intel i226 is the chipset to want; i225 has a documented dropout history and Realtek RTL8125 works on Linux/Proxmox but not VMware ESXi. Confirm the silicon on the unit you receive with lspci -nn.
Which is the better homelab / Proxmox box, the Minisforum UM790 Pro or the Minisforum UM690?
Minisforum UM790 Pro: Most compute + 96 GB RAM here, but 25–45 W idle is the price. Use Oculink eGPU rather than fighting iGPU passthrough. Minisforum UM690: ~8–10 W idle with a solid Intel i225-V 2.5GbE makes a capable Proxmox node, but 680M iGPU passthrough is tricky (GRUB workaround) and hits the AMD reset bug needing vendor-reset. These are our editorial verdicts derived from the cited fields above — not a spec.
Cited public information, not purchasing advice. Idle draw depends on OS, mains voltage (120 V vs 240 V) and power tuning (powertop); onboard NIC silicon can differ between production batches of the same model — confirm with
lspci -nn before relying on a NIC or passthrough claim. Full per-model detail and every source on the model pages.