- Minisforum N5 Pro is unlike anything I’ve seen before: a powerful mini PC and expansive NAS
- It has a 10Gb + 5Gb LAN not unlike the MS01 I covered a while back
- Add in an OCuLink port and a PCIe x16 slot and you’ve got a pretty capable workstation PC
One of my favorite mini PC makers, Minisforum, best known for its compact workstation systems like the MS-01 and MS-A1, is expanding into the NAS market with the introduction of the N5 Pro, a 5-bay desktop NAS designed for performance and scalability.
NASCompares, which went hands on with Minisforum’s new device at CES 2025, says the N5 Pro is the first of three planned NAS devices expected to launch this year.
The N5 Pro is powered by an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 370 (Strix Point) processor, equipped with 12 cores and 24 threads, running at a base clock of 3.5 GHz and capable of boosting up to 5.2 GHz. Built on AMD’s Zen 5 architecture, the processor includes an integrated AI engine delivering 50 INT8 TOPS for enhanced data processing. The NAS supports up to 96GB of DDR5 ECC memory across two slots, providing the sort of reliable error correction commonly found in enterprise solutions.
Modular motherboard
As you’d expect, storage options are extensive, with five hot-swappable SATA bays supporting up to 22TB drives each, suitable for both hard drives and SATA SSDs. The device also features three M.2 NVMe slots – one PCIe 4.0 x2 and two PCIe 4.0 x1 – along with U.2 SSD support for expanded capacity and faster performance. RAID configurations are software-driven, with compatibility for platforms such as TrueNAS and Unraid.
One particularly welcome touch is the N5 Pro’s modular motherboard, which can be removed with a simple button press. This approach, which follows Minisforum’s design for the MS-01 workstation, simplifies upgrades and maintenance, making it easier for users to access and replace memory modules, storage, and PCIe expansion cards.
The N5 Pro offers a solid range of connectivity options, including a 10Gbps Ethernet port and a 5Gbps Ethernet port for dual high-speed wired connections. Additional ports include three USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A ports, one internal USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A port, a USB 2.0 port, and two USB4 Type-C ports with 40Gbps transfer speeds. The system also supports an HDMI 2.0 output, two USB-C ports with DisplayPort 2.0 Alt Mode, and a 3.5mm audio jack.
Expansion options are further boosted with a PCIe 4.0 x16 slot (operating at x4 bandwidth) and an OCuLink 4i port, allowing for external GPU support or additional storage.
With its powerful hardware, flexible storage options, and Minisforum’s usual clever, user-friendly design, the Minisforum N5 Pro is unquestionably a versatile NAS choice for both home and professional environments. Pricing and availability have not yet been revealed, but it should be available soon.
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waynewilliams@onmail.com (Wayne Williams)
