Minisforum N5 Max launch set for April 23, priced at $2,899
Minisforum’s N5 Max AI NAS is now expected to launch on April 23 , with a reported starting price of $2,899. The company shared the launch date and launch configuration directly, which includes 64GB of LPDDR5X memory, a 128GB system SSD, and pre-installed OpenClaw software. Minisforum had already introduced the N5 Max earlier this year as a local AI NAS built around AMD’s Strix Halo platform.
Source: Minisforum
The system uses AMD’s Ryzen AI Max+ 395, a 16-core, 32-thread processor with Radeon 8060S integrated graphics. The N5 Max is rated for up to 200TB total capacity , split across five SATA drive bays and five M.2 NVMe slots, though one of those SSD slots is occupied by the 128GB system disk in the launch configuration. Tom’s Hardware also lists dual 10GbE, HDMI 2.1, one front USB4 port, and two rear USB4 v2 ports with up to 80 Gbps bandwidth.
Source: Minisforum
Minisforum is pitching the N5 Max as a box for local AI tasks rather than only storage. In its March announcement, the company said OpenClaw can be used for semantic photo search, smart editing, and agent-style workflows that stay on the local machine instead of being pushed to cloud services. OpenClaw is a big thing in China, so all mini-PC makers are pushing this as a feature.
Buyers get fixed 64GB LPDDR5X-8533 memory and only a small OS drive to start with, so most of the storage budget is left to the user. If the reported April 23 release holds, the N5 Max will enter the market as one of the most powerful small NAS systems yet to use AMD’s Strix Halo platform.
Minisforum already offers three other N5 NASes, here are their specs:
| Minisforum N5 Series | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spec | N5 Max 🆕 | N5 | N5 Air | N5 Pro |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395, 16C/32T, 3.0 to 5.1 GHz | AMD Ryzen 7 255, 8C/16T, up to 4.9 GHz | AMD Ryzen 7 255, 8C/16T, up to 4.9 GHz, 45W to 55W TDP | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 370, 12C/24T, up to 5.1 GHz |
| GPU / AI | Radeon 8060S, up to 126 TOPS total AI, 50 TOPS NPU | Radeon 780M, XDNA1 | Radeon 780M, XDNA1 | Radeon 890M, NPU up to 50 TOPS |
| Memory | 64GB LPDDR5X unified memory, up to 8533 MT/s, non-upgradeable | 2x DDR5 SO-DIMM, non-ECC, up to 96GB, 5600 MT/s | 2x DDR5 SO-DIMM, non-ECC, up to 96GB, 5600 MT/s | 2x DDR5 SO-DIMM, ECC supported, up to 96GB, 5600 MT/s |
| Storage | Up to 200TB total, 5x SATA HDD bays up to 32TB each, 5x M.2 NVMe | 5x 3.5/2.5-inch SATA bays, up to 30TB each, 1x M.2 2230/2280/22110 NVMe up to 8TB, 2x U.2/M.2 2280/22110 NVMe up to 15TB each | 5x 3.5/2.5-inch SATA bays, up to 30TB each, 3x M.2 2230/2280/22110 NVMe up to 8TB each | 5x 3.5/2.5-inch SATA bays, up to 30TB each, 1x M.2 2230/2280/22110 NVMe up to 8TB, 2x U.2/M.2 2280/22110 NVMe up to 15TB each |
| Networking | 2x 10GbE | 1x 10GbE + 1x 5GbE | 1x 10GbE + 1x 5GbE | 1x 10GbE + 1x 5GbE |
| Expansion / I/O | Front USB4 40Gbps + USB 3.2 Gen2, rear 2x USB4 v2 80Gbps + USB 3.2 Gen2 + USB 2.0 + HDMI 2.1 | 2x USB4, HDMI 2.1, OCuLink, PCIe x16 slot wired as PCIe 4.0 x4 | 2x USB4, HDMI 2.1, OCuLink, PCIe x16 slot wired as PCIe 4.0 x4 | 2x USB4, HDMI 2.1, OCuLink, PCIe x16 slot wired as PCIe 4.0 x4 |
| OS storage | 128GB system disk installed | 128GB M.2 2280 optional SKU | 64GB system disk installed in SSD slot 1 | 128GB M.2 2280 optional SKU |
| Size / weight | 199 x 202.4 x 252.3 mm, 5.8 kg | 199 x 202 x 252 mm, 5 kg | 199 x 202 x 252 mm, 4 kg | 199 x 202 x 252 mm, 5 kg |
