Okay, so imagine something that looks like a desktop PC but isn’t quite one. It is smaller, quieter, and runs cooler than your standard desktop, but again, it isn’t one. That’s because it packs a laptop-grade processor. But you still get most desktop advantages, like most upgradability options and an impressive level of performance. Sounds intriguing, right?
Well, that’s the ASUS V500 Mini Tower. Yes, tower. Not a Mini PC, but a tower. It’s much smaller than a mATX SFF build, however, and it uses Intel’s 13th-gen laptop CPUs. Does that make it a bad deal or an underpowered machine? Well, not really. In fact, it’s quite an interesting story with this one. Hop on with me on this journey to take a deeper look at this unique system and try and figure out who the ASUS V500 Mini Tower is meant for.
Table of Contents
What the ASUS V500 Offers
Starting off with the design, it features a 15L chassis that’s a bit shorter but noticeably wider than a PlayStation 5, just to give a clearer idea of its footprint. However, it’s still smaller than most mATX builds out there, and much smaller than your average tower PCs built to accommodate ATX motherboards.
There’s a handful of I/O options up front, including a USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 port coupled with dual USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports. Overseas, the same PC sells with an SD card reader and a smart card reader as well, though in India, that’s not available. You can still see the positions for the same, highlighting that ASUS just used the same chassis for the Indian market. There is a 3.5mm headphone jack on the front, which is always welcome.
Moving on to the back, I wouldn’t blame you for mistaking it as a desktop PC, since there’s a decent amount of I/O there as well. The Mini Tower comes with an HDMI port, a DisplayPort, dual USB-A 2.0 ports, another couple of USB-A ports designed for your keyboard and mouse, an RJ45 LAN port, and a trio of audio ports. The secondary USB-A ports are designed to support the power-on feature, hence they’re best used for the keyboard and mouse. Interestingly, there’s only a single USB-C port on this machine, which was on the front, and that’s a slight bummer.
Inside, the machine uses ASUS’ custom motherboard, which houses the 13th-gen Intel H-series CPU. And keeping it cool is the massive space inside the chassis, coupled with a single fan setup. The Core i7 variant of this machine comes with a powerful 95W cooler with three heat pipes. On the other hand, the i5 and i3 variants come with a 45W cooler with a thicker but single heat pipe.
Speaking of power, the system has a capable 180W power supply that’s rated at 80+ Bronze. Considering this machine’s overall power consumption, that’s going to be enough for most folks.
Upgradability
One reason it differs from a traditional laptop is the factor of upgradability. Apart from the M.2 slot that the supplied SSD is using, there’s another M.2 slot for adding more storage. Further, the system has 2 x SATA 6.0Gb/s ports to add a SATA SSD or HDD, though there’s no mounting space inside the chassis. (Yes, you read that right — you can add drives, but you’ll have to figure out a creative way to mount them.)
The motherboard also sports a PCIe 4.0 x16 slot. However, it’s limited to operating at just PCIe 4.0 x8. So, in theory, if you want to, you can install a dedicated GPU like the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT or the Intel Arc B580 (provided you can find one in India). However, in practice, there’s a bigger issue: the bundled 180W PSU simply won’t be enough. You’d need to swap it with a 450W PSU to install a proper GPU in this thing. But at that point, it defeats the purpose of buying a compact prebuilt system.
You can also upgrade the RAM, though it uses more compact SO-DIMM slots instead of regular desktop DIMMs. That said, the system already ships with 5600MT/s RAM (capped at 5200MT/s due to the CPU), so unless you’re running memory-heavy workloads or need more capacity, there’s no urgent need to swap it out.
How It Performs
Now onto the good stuff — performance. And to be honest, the ASUS V500 Mini Tower actually managed to surprise us. In our testing, the Intel Core i7-13620H variant pulled off an impressive 16,830 points in Cinebench R23 (multi-core), comfortably beating many regular 13th-gen laptops. Over on Geekbench 6, the system scored 2,530 points in single-core and 10,628 points in multi-core, clearly showing how the bigger chassis and better cooling help sustain higher clock speeds compared to your typical laptop setup.
We even ran a few GPU benchmarks, though with Intel UHD Graphics onboard, expectations were… modest at best. That said, a score of 3,885 in 3DMark Fire Strike and 16,395 in 3DMark Night Raid isn’t too shabby for lightweight creative work like photo editing. Just don’t expect to chop through 4K video timelines on Premiere Pro. Stick to Lightroom and Photoshop, and you’ll be much happier.
To give a better perspective on how the CPU performs, we pitted the V500 against the Gigabyte G6X 9MG, a gaming laptop powered by the higher-end Intel Core i7-13650HX. Ignoring the GPU advantage and focusing purely on CPU benchmarks, the ASUS V500’s i7-13620H actually delivered better multi-core performance in Cinebench R23, despite having fewer cores on paper. That said, the Gigabyte laptop had the performance edge in GeekBench, so there’s that. Also, small disclaimer, Cinebench R24 refused to run on the V500, so we couldn’t compare it there.
We also compared it to the MSI Thin 15, which features the same Core i7-13620H CPU, and again, the ASUS V500 pulled ahead, both in single-core and multi-core results.
The difference? Thermals. You see, the thin design of the MSI laptop just can’t cool the CPU as effectively, while the V500’s roomy 15L chassis and beefier cooler allow it to stretch its legs properly. Despite the V500’s chip technically being a laptop CPU, here it can perform much closer to its full potential, without getting roasted.
In real-world use, light office tasks, browsing, media consumption, and even medium-duty editing on Photoshop felt smooth and breezy. There was no unexpected throttling or fan noise tantrums. Of course, gaming is a hard sell. Without a dedicated GPU, even older titles like GTA V (Legacy Edition) struggle to stay above 60 FPS on Medium settings.
But Who Is It For?
Here’s the million-rupee question. Yes, the V500 Mini Tower performs well. Yes, ASUS is right in saying it gives the CPU room to breathe. But who exactly is this system for?
If we’re talking regular consumers, honestly, there are way better options out there depending on what a person actually wants. If space is tight, a Mini PC like an Intel NUC or a Beelink would be way smarter, since they’re super tiny, hide behind your monitor, and still get the job done. If you want a clean, no-fuss desk setup, an All-in-One (AIO) PC just makes more sense — monitor, PC, everything in one neat package. And if portability is even remotely on the table, a good laptop wins hands down, with similar performance, sometimes better pricing, and the bonus of mobility.
And all these options would be in a similar price bracket, or even cheaper, depending on the specs. Or if someone is thinking desktop, they could just build a custom PC for half the cost of the V500, complete with a full-fat Ryzen 5 or Core i5, better upgradability, and a standard ATX PSU. So, where exactly does the V500 fit in?
To better understand this, I hopped on a call with ASUS, and the picture became a bit clearer. The brand says the V500 is primarily aimed at Tier 2 to Tier 5 audiences, where the idea of computing is still rooted in the good ol’ desktop tower form factor. In many of these regions, digital literacy is still growing, and to a lot of parents, a “computer” is still a box that sits under the table, not a laptop, not a Mini PC, not an iMac-style AIO. There’s also a practical angle to this: a fixed desktop setup ensures their kids don’t move things around or misplace components like you might with a laptop or tablet. As a parent, they can also monitor easily what time their kids are using the PC, as opposed to a laptop, which one can carry to their own room.
There are other thoughtful touches, too. For instance, the V500 comes with an 80+ Bronze-rated 180W power supply that can handle surges of up to 230W, which is a big deal in areas where power fluctuations are common and cheaper local PSUs often fail. ASUS also acknowledges that this user base likely doesn’t care about swapping CPUs or GPUs. Instead, they want something they can expand with more RAM or storage, and be done with it. Oh, and one more underrated point is the fact that it’s harder to steal. In areas where shared spaces or community use is common (like coaching centres, labs, or shared households), a bulky PC that stays in place is a lot less likely to disappear than a slim laptop or palm-sized Mini PC.
Verdict
The ASUS V500 Mini Tower feels like a laptop in cosplay: dressed as a desktop, but pulling off the role pretty well. It might sound odd at first, but it works better than you’d expect. With plenty of cooling and space to stretch out, that humble CPU actually gets to shine. It runs quiet, performs well, and feels like a proper, well-built machine. For what it sets out to do, it’s a surprisingly solid package. In terms of pricing, the i3-1315U variant costs Rs. 35K, while the i5-13420H variant comes at Rs. 48K. Lastly, the i7-13620H variant that I’ve tested here, comes bundled with Microsoft Office 2024, and fetches a price tag of Rs. 65K.
Now, see, I totally get what ASUS is doing here. They’re catering to the digital literacy gap in Tier 2 to Tier 5 regions, where a desktop still holds more perceived value than a laptop, and most people haven’t even heard of Mini PCs or AIOs. Instead of trying to change minds, ASUS is delivering exactly what these users ask for — and honestly, they’ve done a great job of it.
That said, my job isn’t just to understand the business side; it’s to educate readers like you. So here’s the deal: if you genuinely prefer a fixed desktop setup, go for it. But if you’re from a Tier 1 city, or even parts of Tier 2 and beyond, please know that there are more versatile options out there, such as Mini PCs, laptops, AIOs, and even DIY builds, that offer more value.
Still curious about the V500? Or wondering what kind of PC would fit your needs better? Let me know and we can have a chat in the comments.
Editor’s Rating: 6.5 / 10
Pros:
- Great thermal performance
- Compact yet familiar desktop form factor
- Decent upgradability
- Surge-resistant 180W PSU
Cons:
- Niche use case
- Better alternatives available
