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Radxa ROCK 5C vs IceWhale ZimaBoard 2

Researched, not hands-on tested.How we review ›

all judged against single-board computers at a similar price

The Radxa ROCK 5C scores 6.5/10 overall, ahead of the IceWhale ZimaBoard 2 at 6.3/10.

The Radxa ROCK 5C leads on performance and value.

The IceWhale ZimaBoard 2 leads on storage and I/O and networking.

They score the same on software support.

Radxa ROCK 5C

Radxa ROCK 5C

6.5/10verdict: good, not the best

The ROCK 5C is for homelabbers and developers who want a lot of CPU and RAM in a small board. It suits people who are happy to follow Radxa's own Debian and Android images or the third-party systems listed for it. It is a weaker fit if you want native M.2 storage.

Check price at Amazon UK (opens in a new tab, affiliate link)

Affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Details

ZimaBoard 2

IceWhale ZimaBoard 2

6.3/10verdict: good, not the best

The ZimaBoard 2 is for homelabbers who want a compact x86 board for a small NAS or Docker host. It offers an Intel N150, dual 2.5GbE and two SATA ports, with 8GB or 16GB of soldered RAM. It suits people who value low power draw and quiet running over upgradeability.

Typically about £288.89 in the UK when we researched itCheck price at Amazon UK (opens in a new tab, affiliate link)

Affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Details

Scores, criterion by criterion

CriterionWeightRadxa ROCK 5CIceWhale ZimaBoard 2
Software support30%5/105/10
Performance25%9/107/10
Storage15%5/107/10
I/O and networking15%6/108/10
Value15%7/105/10
Overall6.5/106.3/10

Specifications

SpecRadxa ROCK 5CIceWhale ZimaBoard 2
Processor (SoC)Rockchip RK3588S2Intel N150 (4 cores, 4 threads, up to 3.6GHz)
Memory4GB, 8GB, 16GB or 32GB; V1.1 uses LPDDR4X, V2.1 uses LPDDR58GB (832) or 16GB (1664) LPDDR5 4800 MHz, soldered and not upgradable
Storage options1x eMMC connector, 1x microSD card slot, no SPI flash; no native M.2 slot; PCIe 2.1 1-lane via FPC connector32GB (832) or 64GB (1664) onboard eMMC; two SATA 6Gbps ports
NetworkingGigabit Ethernet (PoE via optional HAT), WiFi 6, BT 5.4 with external antenna connectorDual 2.5GbE
GPIO40-pin header, Raspberry Pi-style layout, 3.3V logic, up to 27 GPIOnot listed
Video outputs1x HDMI 2.1 up to 8K, 1x MIPI DSI up to 2KOne Mini DisplayPort 1.4, up to 4K at 60Hz
Power input5V via USB Type-C; at least 10W recommended, 25W with full USB and PCIe load12V DC barrel input, 60W adapter

Strengths and weaknesses

Radxa ROCK 5C

  • + Eight-core RK3588S2 with 6 TOPS NPU
  • + RAM options from 4GB up to 32GB
  • + Raspberry Pi-style 40-pin header
  • − No native M.2 slot; microSD bottlenecks storage
  • − No power supply in the box
  • − PCIe drive stays powered when board is off

Skip it if:

  • Buyers who want a native M.2 NVMe slot on the board
  • Buyers who want a power supply included in the box
Read the full Radxa ROCK 5C review ›

IceWhale ZimaBoard 2

  • + Dual 2.5GbE with about 275 to 280 MB/s reported real-world
  • + Low idle power draw, and silent without the fan
  • + Two SATA 6Gbps ports plus a PCIe 3.0 x2 lane
  • − RAM and eMMC are soldered and cannot be upgraded
  • − Throttling and 90s C package temperatures in passive tests
  • − UK buyers can only pay in US dollars on Zima's store

Skip it if:

  • Buyers who want to upgrade RAM or onboard storage later
  • Anyone planning sustained heavy load with passive cooling
  • Projects that need a Raspberry Pi-style GPIO header
Read the full IceWhale ZimaBoard 2 review ›

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