 OMG. I have been asking for something like this since CES 2014. I mean, not quite like this. More on that later. But Zotac's still a lot closer to my vision for the ultimate compact PC than anyone else's. This is the Magnus EN980, Zotac's most powerful mini PC yet, boasting a Core i5 quad-core processor, a full-fat GTX 980 graphics core with 4 gigs of VRAM, and liquid cooling, all in the size of a shoebox. Massdrop is featuring the White Fox keyboard. It's available in four-plate layouts and comes complete with Cherry-compatible keycaps. Check it and other drops out at the link in the video description. So let's start with a look at this puppy physically. The design of the EN980 reminds me more of Zotac's Pico PI320 micro PC than of the similarly named EN970. The bottom is white. Maybe this was borrowed from the SN970 steam machine, with small vents around the outside edges and a couple of product information stickers adorning it. The top is a white plastic honeycomb with a tighter powder blue mesh behind it that gives it a distinctive, if not particularly high-performance look, and all of the sides are constructed from thick blasted anodized aluminum. At the front you'll be greeted by a power button, an SDX-C reader, two USB 3.1 ports, one Type-A and another Type-C, and two audio jacks for headphones and microphone, which regrettably aren't replicated on the back. A frustrating thing for people who use standalone speakers, not headphones, and want their desk to look clean. Also on the back you'll be greeted by two Wi-Fi antennas, two gigabit ethernet connections, two each of HDMI 1.4 and DisplayPort 1.2 video outputs, four USB 3.0 ports. Thank goodness, I thought we were going to have two of everything. And, damn it, it happened again. Two DC inputs. What? Yes, my friends, the Magnus EN980 includes not one, but two 180 watt power bricks to provide enough juice for the shockingly powerful hardware that it carries within its gut. Let's go through that then, shall we? At its heart is a desktop Core i5 6400 2.7 GHz Skylake quad-core that turbos up to 3.3 GHz, and a desktop-grade MXM form factor Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 with 4 gigs of VRAM. They're installed on a completely custom motherboard with support for a single M.2 SSD, a single 2.5 inch SSD or hard drive, and up to two SODIMM slots for DDR3L memory that offer official support for up to 16 gigs of RAM total, but that I tested with our intelligent memory modules and found will actually work just fine with up to 32 gigs if you can get your hands on 16 gig sticks. So why then external power supplies? Well, there are two things I've ignored so far. Number one is the Magnus EN980's size. At a mere 5.85 liters, it is smaller than the Dancase A4 SFX by about 20%, and it's even smaller than the MSI Vortex. And while it doesn't have two graphics cards like the Vortex, number two is that it has a freaking water cooler inside. OMG, right? Now some configurations of the Magnus will come with RAM and drives and an operating system pre-installed, while others like mine will just have empty bays. There's great news, though. They are astonishingly easy to get at. I was about to get started, realized I didn't have a screwdriver, ran downstairs for my trusty iFixit kit, then ran back upstairs only to realize that the rubber feet on the bottom of the case are thumb screws, and everything is right there. Brilliant. This does raise some questions about airflow and dust accumulation, however, because I actually don't see how those bottom vents are really going everywhere, and every panel other than the top and above the I.O. on the rear is solid metal. Let's dig deeper. The front and rear panels come off with a handful of Phillips screws to reveal really no further insight about where ZOTAC expects cooling for components like the SSD and the motherboard chipset to come from, but we do get a much better look at the liquid cooler. They actually managed to cram a full-sized 120 millimeter radiator and 25 mil thick fan, along with a vibration dampened low-profile pump, a reservoir, that's an odd one, most pre-sealed units forgo this, and custom cooling blocks for both the CPU and GPU. This was an expensive product to develop, I will tell you that much. But so was this monstrosity in all likelihood, so cost clearly won't save a bad idea. Let's find out if the EN980 was a bad idea. First up is thermals. Surprisingly, likely due to their inexperience dealing with those little wannabe toasters we call enthusiast graphics cards, even large multinational companies can screw up cooling, even in a mid-tower that's several times the size of this guy. But whether it's thanks to ZOTAC's experience building video cards or building mini PCs, the EN980 not only avoids thermal throttling, even after a prolonged synthetic stress test, it manages to keep both the CPU and GPU under 70 degrees, not to mention the SSD as well within reason, and stay as quiet as a full-size tower with good coolers installed. Definitely suitable for use in any space, provided you've got ample breathing room above the top exhaust. So given that then, these benchmarks shouldn't come as any surprise. I mean, yes, the GTX 1080 is out, but the GTX 980 is no slouch, and when it's not being thermally limited, is going to be able to fully stretch its legs. Now, of course, our performance testing doesn't include any real VR titles. I'm sorry about that. Luke is actually working on a video about some of the challenges associated with VR benching. But in the meantime, I can personally vouch for the GTX 980's viability as a VR card, given that that's what I run in the living room Vive setup that I was showing off on Instagram a couple of weeks ago. Which leads us to the answer to the question I posed a couple of minutes ago. Was the EN980 a bad idea? A super tiny VR-capable gaming PC with liquid cooling, and the thing I've been asking for, external power supply, perfect for the living room where I suspect a lot of people's VR setups are going to end up, where quiet operation and sleek looks are huge factors. Seems pretty awesome to me. But there are a couple of oversights that I'd like to see corrected next time as well. Because let's face it, in a bare-bones configuration, this is a $1,600 US dollar product. I mean, holy actual math, Batman. Number one is minor. HDMI 1.4, guys, really? I mean, okay, yes, I can use this $25 Club 3D adapter to convert DisplayPort to HDMI 2, but I shouldn't have to. Number two, on the other hand, is pretty significant. The Magnus EN980 is not user-upgradable outside of the drives and RAM. Zotac tells me that it's very difficult to take apart and that the user's warranty will be voided. I mean, honestly, I don't mind locking in the CPU, but quick connect fittings and a commitment to make upgraded graphics card kits available would take this thing from very difficult to recommend, like the MSI Vortex, to a much more reasonable long-term solution for ballers like the MSI GT80 Titan. With that said, value calculations aside, this is one of the coolest PCs that I've ever laid my hands on, and I'm in awe of what Zotac has achieved here. Great job, you guys. And great job to Phoenix, who we've partnered with again to give away five... Well, this looks like six. But apparently five of their newly launched Vitesse gaming mice. Some of the features of this mouse include its Avago 3310 optical sensor, its ergonomic design... I can imagine a mouse with no ergonomic design, that'd be terrible. Its 90 gram weight, if you don't include the cable, its Omron switches on the fly, DPI adjustments, a maximum DPI of 5,000 DPI units, which is DPI, and LED indicators to display what DPI setting you're at. Also, for one lucky winner, we'll be giving away an entire gaming suite of Phoenix products, which is pretty sweet, if you think about it. That'll include one Vitesse mouse, I guess that's where the other one comes in, oops, one Demora mouse pad, one Aria headset, and one Autor keyboard. You can enter by following Phoenix over on Twitter, and checking out the link to our community forum in the video description. So thanks for watching, guys. If this video sucked, you know what to do. But if it was awesome, get subscribed, hit the like button, or check out the link to where to buy the stuff that we featured at Amazon in the video description. Also linked in the description is our merch store, which has cool shirts like this one, and our community forum, which you should totally, totally join. Now that you're done doing all that stuff, you're probably wondering what to watch next. So click that little button in the top right corner to check out our latest video over on Channel Superfun.