Console-style mini PC: Thor Zone Tetra coming in 2025

With Mjolnir, Thor Zone landed a hit on Kickstarter in 2019: The small form factor case (SFF) reached its funding goal in just six minutes. They perfected Mjolnir's design with the Nanoq in early 2024. With the Tetra, they are now venturing into a housing in the shape of a games console.

Like the Nanoq, the shell of the Tetra consists of a single part. The manufacturer has not yet revealed what material it is made of. However, it can be assumed that, like the Nanoq, it is made of aluminium. The housing comes as a Tetra S with a volume of 8.8 litres and as a Tetra R with 12.3 litres. Exact dimensions are not yet known.

Due to the limited space available, only Mini-ITX mainboards fit in both versions. They accept SFX or SFX-L power supply units. There is no space for data carriers, which is why you have to rely entirely on M.2 SSDs.

Of course, not every graphics card fits into a Tetra S and R. However, the manufacturer lists various models. It shows that even the small version fits an RTX 4090 FE. Some custom models such as the RTX 4090 TUF Gaming OC even fit into the Tetra R. In terms of specific dimensions, the Tetra S fits graphics cards with a maximum length of 307 millimetres and a maximum width of 68 millimetres. The Tetra R is 353 and 83 millimetres respectively.

In contrast to the Nanoq, the Tetra can only be cooled with air. The maximum height of the fan is 70 millimetres for the Tetra R and 54 millimetres for the Tetra S. The Tetra R can also be cooled with a 120-millimetre fan and the Tetra S with two 60-millimetre fans.

The Tetra S and R will go on sale in Q1 2025 - initially exclusively on the Thor Zone website. The price is not yet clear. But if the Nanoq provides any indication of the price, it is likely to be a big one. There is currently a sales window for the Nanoq - I have also ordered one to test. The basic version of the small variant costs 319 euros. If you choose all the options, it's over 600 euros. I think both Tetra housings will be in a similar league.

Personally, I'm really looking forward to the case. I will probably get one for testing. According to reviews, the quality of the Nanoq is exceptionally good. As a fan of fine and well-made materials, I absolutely have to get one.