Acemagic S3A vs iKOOLCORE R2
Acemagic S3A is both faster and cheaper here - the default pick unless you need something specific from the other.
The verdict
- CPU
- Acemagic S3A has 2.7x the CPU throughput (29,232 vs 10,800 PassMark).
- Plex
- iKOOLCORE R2 transcodes more 4K HDR streams (~5 vs ~3).
- Idle power
- iKOOLCORE R2 idles lower (9W vs 12W) - cheaper to run 24/7.
- Networking
- iKOOLCORE R2 has more NICs (4 vs 1) - better for a firewall or VLAN trunk.
- RAM ceiling
- Acemagic S3A takes more RAM (96GB vs 16GB).
Which wins for each job
| Job | Acemagic S3A | iKOOLCORE R2 |
|---|---|---|
| Plex / Jellyfin | ~3 streams | ~5 streams win |
| Frigate NVR | ~4 cameras | ~4 cameras |
| Proxmox / VMs | 29,232 PassMark win | 10,800 PassMark |
| Firewall / router | 1 NICs | 4 NICs win |
| Local AI / LLM | no slot | no slot |
Approximate - capacity estimates from curated specs, the same logic as the recommender. Verify against your exact setup. Prices move; check the retailer.
Full specs
| Spec | Acemagic S3A | iKOOLCORE R2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price (list) | $369 | $389 |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS | Intel Core i3-N305 |
| Cores / threads | 8 | 8 |
| PassMark | 29,232 | 10,800 |
| iGPU | Radeon 780M | Intel UHD (32 EU) |
| NICs | 1 | 4 |
| NIC model | Realtek 2.5GbE | Intel I226-V + Realtek 2.5GbE |
| RAM max (GB) | 96 | 16 |
| M.2 free | 2 | 1 |
| PCIe slot | none | none |
| Idle (W) | 12 | 9 |
| TDP (W) | 54 | 15 |