The Beelink S12 Pro is an affordable alternative to our favorite Beelink SEi12 Mini PC, offering the same trendsetting design and performance, but at a more affordable price. We’ve reviewed the best Mini PC units, and the issue has always been that most of them aren’t especially cheap solutions due to the meticulous engineering often deployed.
Beelink offers some of the best Mini PCs that compete with the Intel NUCs, but most of these units have always been priced in the $500 plus price range. With the S12 Pro, you get an affordable Mini PC with a timeless design, decent port selection, and solid performance for under $220. That’s quite remarkable considering that Mini PCs in this price range either have gaudy designs or fail terribly when it comes to performance.
With the Beelink S12 Pro, you’re getting an affordable Mini PC that looks as premium as its high-spec siblings, performs better than most competing minis, but won’t break your bank. It boasts a 12th Gen Intel N100 processor, 16GB RAM, and 500GB SSD storage, which makes it ideal for the home office.
If all you need is a classy small system for daily tasks at home or office (or even AI), the Beelink S12 Pro is the machine for you; but you don’t have to pay a premium for the privilege.
About the Beelink S12 Pro
- CPU: Intel Alder Lake- N100
- GPU: Intel UHD Graphics & 4K
- RAM: 16GB DDR4
- Storage: 500GB SSD
- Networking: WiFi, Bluetooth 5.2
- OS: Windows 11 Pro (pre-installed)
- Weight: 1.52 pounds
- Dimensions: 4.53 x 4.02 x 1.61 inches
Design & Features
The Beelink S12 Pro has a sleek and compact design, inspired by the classic Intel NUC design. It’s not easy to tell it apart from its more expensive siblings since it bears the same roughened faux texture on the top and the blue color profile is a standout. It arrives in a basic cardboard box, which provides adequate protection during shipment. In the box, there’s the Mini PC along with a user manual, 2 x HDMI cables, a VESA bracket, and a power adapter.
On the front, you’ll find a power button, a status LED, a reset button, an audio in/out jack, and two USB 3.2 Type-A ports (10Gbps). Around the back, there are two USB A 3.2 ports, Gigabit Ethernet, two HDMI ports, a Kensington lock, and a barrel plug for power.
The inside of the S12 Pro has a Wi-Fi adapter (two antennas), a 500GB M.2 SSD, and 16GB RAM pre-installed. All these can be upgraded, should you need to make them more powerful to fit your needs.
To access the Mini PC’s interiors, you just remove four screws on the underside. Here is where you start to notice some design flaws. Normally, you’d have access to the memory slots and the storage, but on the S12 Pro, you only have one way to add a 2.5-inch SATA drive. To access the memory and M.2 slot, you need to remove more screws and some care when handling ribbon cables on the inside.
Still, memory upgrades are pretty straightforward, as you only need to just remove the modules and replace them with the desired ones of the same specification. Since there is only one slot, upgrading the M.2 drive is fairly problematic as you’ll require a USB caddy.
Another issue worth mentioning is that a thermal strip is placed over the NVMe drive and that brings it into contact with the internal wall that separates the motherboard from the outer SATA tray. That wall is made of plastic, so it will not absorb heat as it’s an insulator.
Even with these gripes, the Beelink S12 Pro is a nicely crafted NUC that exemplifies the high-quality devices that Beelink is now offering in its latest range of Mini PCs.
Performance
The Beelink S12 Pro provides decent performance for its size and price, thanks to a 12th Gen Alder Lake N100 processor, 16GB DDR4 RAM, and 500GB SSD. The Intel Processor N100 is an entry-level mobile CPU designed for thin and light laptops, more reason it’s being used on even Mini PCs.
It was released in 2023 and doesn’t offer performance cores and 4 of the 8 cores are efficient cores (E-cores), it also doesn’t support Hyperthreading but it clocks with 1 to 3.4GHz. This level of E-core performance should be at par with the older Core i7-6700HQ or thereabout. It’s not the best chip for gaming, but makes for a very good productivity machine, to drive your daily needs and other video-related tasks.
If you sometimes need to multitask at home or the office, the Beelink S12 Pro is certainly up to it. As configured, it can deliver commendable performance in all types of tasks, from basic photo editing to steaming and word processing. And with 4K resolution support, with a display such as the Samsung UR59C 4K monitor, you can enjoy your favorite movies and shows in all their high-definition glory.
The Beelink S12 Pro comes fully equipped with Windows 11 and reliable drivers that make using and upgrading the Windows system easy. Plus, the internal wireless adapter offers superior network connectivity. Also added is an ultra-fast Realtek Gigabit Ethernet port which produces impressive speeds.
Overall, the Beelink S12 Pro offers good performance and user experience for its size and price. While there are more powerful Mini PCs around including the Beelink SEi12, the more affordable S12 Pro has efficient hardware, good connectivity, and quiet operation making it a reliable choice for those who need a compact and efficient machine for basic tasks. However, its limited graphics performance, upgradability options, and lack of AVI codec support may be a deal-breaker for some users.
Should you buy the Beelink S12 Pro?
Yes, if you need an affordable Mini PC for basic home-office use
The Beelink S12 Pro is an affordable powerhouse in a tiny package. It offers great performance for the price, and you can pair it with any monitor you want. However, anyone who wants to go higher in performance or gaming might have to spend more for a machine with a dedicated GPU and better hardware. But for simple tasks at home or office, this is a machine that punches above its price and you don’t have to break the bank.
All of that said, the Beelink S12 Pro is a fantastic machine for anyone who likes tiny PCs, and it’s more robust, a more affordable alternative to something like the Mac Mini. It’s reasonably priced compared to DIY alternatives, it looks cool, and while it may be a niche desktop PC, Mini PC enthusiasts who need some capability should consider it over a traditional small form factor (SFF) PC.
Recommended Configuration
Beelink Mini PC, AMD Ryzen 5 5560U (6C/12T up to 4.0Ghz), 16G DDR4 500GB M.2 2280 NVMe SSD, SER5 Mini Desktop Computer 4K@60Hz Output HDMI2.0/DP/Type-C/WiFi 6/BT5.2/USB3.2/HTPC/Gaming/Home/Office
The Review
Beelink S12 Pro
The Beelink S12 Pro Mini PC is affordable, flexible, and looks cool. It’s perfect as a home-office PC as it packs enough power to complete most tasks, and with 4K support, it’s ready for entertainment.
PROS
- Sleek compact design
- Powerful performance for the price
- Runs very quietly
- Good connectivity
CONS
- Limited upgradability
- Only one DIMM slot
Review Breakdown
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ARS SCORE
