Top 5 Mini Laptops of Late Summer 2022: Modularity, Portability, and Performance

Laptops are an essential tool for many in the IT industry. In most cases, wherever your laptop is, that’s your workspace. Of course, the size of the device, its performance, and other criteria play a big role. In some situations, portability is a huge advantage, and this roundup features compact devices that fit the bill. Most of these are little-known, and some are modular, which is highly valued by many users. Let’s take a look at these devices.

OneMix 4S

The Chinese company One Notebook mainly produces portable gaming devices. Now, the brand has decided to try something new and launched a pilot project in the form of laptops. The first model is the OneMix 4S, a convertible laptop with a 10.1-inch display that can be rotated 360 degrees to turn it into a tablet. Despite its size, it’s quite powerful, featuring a 12th Gen Intel Core processor.

For reference, the previous One Mix 4 model used an Intel Core i5-1130G7 (Tiger Lake), but the 4S is equipped with Intel Alder Lake, making it both high-performing and energy-efficient. The device has a touchscreen, comes with a stylus, a backlit keyboard, and a trackpad. Ports include HDMI, USB-C, and a 3.5mm audio jack. Weighing just 770 grams, it’s easy to take anywhere, whether on a business trip or to the office.

Unfortunately, the price hasn’t been announced yet, but the mini laptop is expected to go on sale by the end of 2022.

MNT Pocket Reform

This is a more specialized device aimed at tech enthusiasts and their unique needs. It’s modular, and its production was funded through a crowdfunding campaign launched two years ago. The device is truly unique. Besides its modularity, it’s also very compact, with a 7-inch screen. The developers equipped it with an ortholinear keyboard.

The core of the device is a removable System-on-Module (SOM) that includes both the processor and memory. The standard module features a quad-core NXP i.MX8M Plus processor running at 1.8 GHz, Vivante GC7000UL graphics, and a neural module. Other available options include:

• NXP Layerscape LS1028A chip with 2 ARM Cortex-A72 cores, Vivante GC7000UL graphics, and 8GB or 16GB DDR4 RAM.
• Raspberry Pi CM4 with 4 ARM Cortex-A72 cores, VideoCore graphics, 8GB DDR4 RAM (and adapter).
• Pine64 SOQuartz RK3566 with 4 ARM Cortex-A55 cores, Mali-G52 graphics, 8GB RAM (and adapter).
• AMD/Xilinx Kintex-7 FPGA (supports RISC-V and other architectures).

Importantly, the modules are compatible with the full-size MNT Reform, so if you already have a module for the 12.5-inch device, it will work with this mini version and vice versa.

The device measures 200 x 126 x 45 mm, has a mono speaker, microphone, two USB Type-C ports, an HDMI port (4K compatible), and an Ethernet port. For storage, it uses 128GB eMMC, and there’s an M.2 slot for PCIe NVMe SSDs up to 2TB. The battery capacity is 8000 mAh.

The device is compatible with Debian, Arch, Ubuntu, as well as Plan 9 and Genode.

GPD Win Max 2

This is a gaming laptop, though a very small one. It’s not a console, but due to its 10.1-inch screen, it’s not ideal for long work sessions. Inside, you’ll find either an Intel Core i7-1260P Alder Lake or an AMD Ryzen 7 6800U with Radeon 680M graphics.

The device supports up to 32GB of RAM, has slots for two SSDs, a full (albeit small) QWERTY keyboard, built-in gaming controllers, and a touchscreen. The release date is still unclear, but it’s expected by the end of this year or early next year.

The body is very compact at 227 x 160 x 23 mm, slightly larger than the previous model, which had a 1920×1200 pixel screen. The display is touch-enabled, and the touchscreen can also be used for gaming. Both Intel and AMD versions come with 16 to 32GB RAM and 1 or 2TB SSDs for fast game loading and smooth system performance.

There’s also a memory card slot and a built-in camera. The device features four speakers, a built-in fan, and a backlit keyboard. The body is made from an aluminum-magnesium alloy, making it sturdy. Controls include a D-pad, X, Y, A, and B buttons, vibration motors, and a gyroscope for motion tracking. There are also two customizable buttons on the body for quick access to specific functions.

The price is still unknown, but it’s expected to be quite high, as compact yet powerful devices have always been expensive.

Chonky Palmtop

This is a miniature PC that can’t really be called a desktop or a laptop. It features an ergonomic keyboard similar to the Corne Keyboard, a display, and a battery. The system can be folded for transport, making it easy to work in new locations.

The keyboard uses a sliding mechanism for easy folding and is a split mechanical keyboard, making it quite comfortable. The case is 3D-printed, and the device is based on a Raspberry Pi 4, so it’s not particularly powerful. The screen is a 7-inch touchscreen. Overall, this is more of a “because I can” project than a serious work tool. However, with further development, it could become suitable for work tasks.

GPD Pocket 3

Finally, here’s another modular laptop that’s very compact. The screen measures just 8 inches, so it’s almost pocket-sized. It opens up to 180 degrees and features full-size HDMI and Ethernet ports. If desired, you can swap one port for another, as the developers made them modular. One of the USB-A ports can be replaced, for example, with an RS-232 port, which is useful in many scenarios.

There’s also a card reader module that supports data transfer speeds of 160MB/s (read) and 90MB/s (write). Modules are easy to swap—just two screws hold them in place, and they connect via USB, so no reboot is needed.

In addition to USB-A and RS-232 modules, a KVM module is also available. While the device itself can’t be upgraded, its functionality can be changed and expanded. The developers are working on new module types, so more features are expected soon.

This is one of the few devices in this roundup that’s already available for purchase. On Aliexpress, it sells for about $800, and modules are available for $35 each. For such a unique laptop, that’s a reasonable price.