Why Mini PCs Run 70B Models That Big GPUs Cannot Handle

Unified Memory, Explained: Why Mini PCs Can Run 70B Models a Big GPU Can't

I explore how unified memory in mini PCs allows them to load massive 70B models that high-end discrete GPUs like the RTX 5090 simply cannot fit. While these compact machines offer incredible capacity for a fraction of the cost, they pay a steep price in speed due to lower memory bandwidth. The real bottleneck often isn't generation speed, but the painfully slow prompt processing times when handling long documents.

"A mini PC and a used RTX 3090 are not two points on one scale. They are opposites."