ECS LIVA Z Fanless Dual-LAN Apollo Lake UCFF PC Review

Final Words

The ECS LIVA Z provided us with the opportunity to take a first look at the performance of a passively-cooled
mini-PC based on the Intel Apollo Lake platform. Compared to the previous LIVA units, the Z family (they also have a Kaby Lake-based LIVA Z Plus in the pipeline) has moved on from providing systems with extremely small footprints. The boards are slightly larger than the traditional NUCs (115 x 111mm, as compared to 101.6 x 101.6mm). Fortunately, the larger footprint has enabled ECS to put in dual LAN ports in all the models. Dual LAN ports usually lend themselves to network appliances (x86 routers, firewalls, and the like). However, both ports in the LIVA Z are backed by Realtek controllers. Intel controllers deliver better performance and are more widely supported in the x86-based networking appliance OS market. Therefore, we wouldn't advise the usage of the LIVA Z solely as a network appliance (where performance might be important). That said, the availability of three high-performance network interfaces (2x GbE LAN and 1x 1x1 802.11ac WLAN) can lend itself to some specific use-cases.

The fanless nature makes the system suitable for certain HTPC workloads. The LIVA Z fulfills all the basic necessities - 4K output (with 4Kp60 supported on the mini-DP port) and full hardware decode for 4Kp60 content in a variety of codecs. That said, it is not a 4K OTT box because it lacks the necessary DRM capabilities as well as a HDCP 2.2-capable HDMI 2.0 port necessary for Netflix 4K (currently available only on select Kaby Lake systems).

On the price front, the ECS LIVA Z is a winner. $180 delivers a system ready for OS installation, while $220 fetches a ready-to-go system with Windows 10 Home x64 pre-installed. The overall performance benefits are a step up from similarly priced Bay Trail and Braswell systems.

The I/O and industrial design are pleasing to the eye. On the motherboard front, we would like to have support for the installation of a M.2 2280 SSD (currently, the choices for M.2 2242 SSDs supported by the LIVA Z are limited). Based on our market research, the ADATA SP600 presents the best balance of cost (128GB at $70) and flash quality (2D MLC). The JMicron controller is not going to create benchmark records, but, the performance is a good match for the typical LIVA Z use-cases.

A 6W TDP SoC doesn't stress the thermal design aspect too much. Therefore, the usage of an all-plastic chassis is excusable in this fanless PC. However, we believe the chassis design could be altered for better airflow and convective cooling. In terms of storage, I have always been critical of 32GB drives as primary OS drives. The unit also ships with only a single DDR3L SODIMM slot occupied. It would be an interesting exercise to determine if operation in dual-channel mode delivers any tangible performance benefits. Thankfully, ECS has provided the option to use a SSD for the boot drive. Users can also install a second SODIMM - however, it is recommended that sticks from a dual SODIMM kit be used for this purpose.

One of the issues I encountered while performing the OS installation was that the UEFI BIOS would not allow for booting from a USB installation drive with a MBR partition. Setting the BIOS to legacy mode allowed MBR keys to boot, but, wouldn't allow installation to the eMMC partition. We resolved the issue by using a Windows installation USB key formatted with the GPT option.

Coming to the business end of the review, we can say that, taken standalone, the ECS LIVA ZN33 more than delivers $180 worth of computing performance. It also manages to keep thermals under limit for consumer workloads. Features such as the Type-C USB 3.0 port and 802.11ac Wi-Fi are welcome changes compared to the first-generation Bay Trail-based LIVA units. The idle and load power consumption profiles of the LIVA Z are excellent and continue the tradition of the LIVA PCs being one of the most power-efficient lineups in the market. The LIVA Z has no show-stopping drawbacks. Based on the workloads, it is definitely an option to consider.