OnLogic Helix 500: A Linux-Friendly, Fanless + Reliable Edge Computer

Given the fanless OnLogic Helix 500 is rated to run within a 0 to 50 degrees (Celsius) operating range, I also ran some more tests of the unit when at freezing (30~32F) compared to benchmark results at a room temperature of aroudn 70F. Obviously if going for a higher-end CPU like the Core i7 10700T, with the warmer operating environment there is the greater likelihood of performance throttling from the warm environment. These tests are looking at the peak performance if your industrial environment happens to be on the freezing end for the optimal performance that could be obtained.

The colder environment to little surprise was of benefit in some workloads.

With about two dozen benchmarks for this run, at room temperature the i7-10700T within the Helix 500 saw an average core temperature of about 70 Celsius while when running in a room at freezing temperature saw the CPU core temperature under load at 51 Celsius and a peak of 71 degrees, 17 degrees lower.

The CPU was consistently pulling around 32~35 Watts at load, as rated by the TDP. The Intel RAPL Linux interface was reporting spikes as much as 98 Watts which obviously was not accurate.

The per-test thermal metrics and other results can be found via this OpenBenchmarking.org result file.

For those wanting to compare their own Linux system(s) to these additional metrics can install the Phoronix Test Suite and run MONITOR=cpu.temp phoronix-test-suite benchmark 2102178-HA-ONLOGICHE13 for your own automated, side-by-side benchmark comparison.

Overall the OnLogic Helix 500 is a very capable fanless mini computer that can be either used as a premium desktop PC or within an industrial setting for edge/IoT use-cases and other similar harsh environments. The Helix 0~50 degrees operating temperature range, EMC compliance testing, engineered for 24/7 usage, and sports a wealth of connectivity options along with other configurable components ranging from a Celeron CPU through Core i9 Comet Lake processors and up to dual SSDs and 64GB of RAM.

The OnLogic Helix 500 has been working out well in our testing over the past nearly two months across a range of modern Linux distributions as well as the likes of FreeBSD. A Linux distribution performance comparison and other metrics from this Core i7 10700T Comet Lake industrial PC will be forthcoming in follow-up tests on Phoronix.

Learn more about the Helix 500 at OnLogic.com.