Mini PC as emulator for PlayStation 3 games

The Geekom A5 is a compact mini PC that is equipped with a dynamic duo of AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor and Radeon Vega 8 graphics. Mini PCs are used for a variety of tasks. While many people use the compact devices in their home office, they can also prove themselves in the multimedia sector.

For this, it does not always have to be a cutting-edge model like the Geekom A8. After our colleague Timm Mohn’s second PlayStation 3 with backwards compatibility broke, he asked himself the question: Shouldn’t current hardware also be able to use the existing game library?

The Geekom A5 offers a suitable starting point in terms of price. The processor clocks at up to 4.4 GHz and has 8 cores, 16 threads and 16 MB cache. This makes the compact computer suitable for the RPCS3 emulator software. Its first task should be FIFA 13, because during the review of the Beamora BS10 the last PlayStation 3 overheated.

Many old games

To operate the emulator software, the Playstation software is required, which is available from Sony can be downloaded Once you have installed the software and selected a game from your library, the fun can begin. In practice, it turns out that the Geekom A5 is powerful enough to emulate the 2012 soccer game. FIFA is just one example, because the game has also been released on the PC. However, fans of the series may prefer certain aspects of the console version to the PC version.

This is possible with an emulator such as RPCS3. The A5’s 512 GB SSD is also sufficient for larger game collections. At the same time, the risk that the compact PC from 2023 will come to a premature end is significantly lower than with the aging PlayStation 3. Similar to the backwards compatible PlayStation 3, the Geekom A5 can make different systems accessible with the appropriate emulator. This also includes the PlayStation 1. If you create a digital backup of the games of your childhood, you can, for example, re-experience “English with Rayman” on contemporary hardware in just a few steps.

The Geekom A5 is currently available for 379 euros from the manufacturer available The price is achieved through the voucher code “GEEKOMA5”. Thanks to the Ryzen 7 5800H, the Geekom A5 is able to handle more than just office tasks. If you buy a mini PC instead of regularly buying new PS3 consoles, the slightly higher purchase price of the new mini PC will pay for itself quite quickly. Due to its compact design, the A5 can simply disappear into the cupboard when it is not needed. The rather large “Fat” PS3, on the other hand, needs a whole drawer when it is not in use.