How Much Should You Spend On A Mini PC?

[@TechDweeb]

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[@polarvortex6601]

how much does it cost your external ssd? you didnt provided a link to it. bought one on ebay and it was a fake one lol

[@Dracossaint]

I understand you need to take sponsorships. please not nordvpn though, they've had data breaches in the past and hid it from their customers. Data breaches are fine, hiding it/lying to customers is not.

[@JQueasy]

Fully watched the ad. Who hasn't had a necromancer attempt to steal your personal data.

[@wizzel22]

Beelink SER5 5800H is my main Mini-PC. It caps out on 55W, but you can cut it at 45W. Playing Retro Games is enough for me (RAZE, GZDOOM, Force Engine). It's the perfect Mid-Range Machine.

[@foxlunacy]

Thank you for explaining this so well for us Olds, and for showing actual gameplay. I am looking into a mini PC for space reasons. I mostly play indie games on my SteamDeck and Switch, and more demanding games on my PS5, so I don't need anything crazy. But I want to be able to pick up an AAA title here and there to play online with my friends again. I just turned 40 last week, and suddenly, computer jargon makes no sense to me (I never thought it would happen to me, but technology betrays us all in the end). This is the first video on mini PCs that actually gave me enough *comprehensible* info to make a decision.

[@KFJordan]

Babe wake up, new techdweeb video is out!

[@jasonjayalap]

AI Waifu: Thank you for waking me up, Jordan. I, too, love tech tweet.

[@RetroBreezeYT]

"Lots of mini PCs oouht there"

[@TechDweeb]

No doot aboot it!

[@nicklong27]

That segway into the advert.... smooth. What a nerd.

[@crystal_is_cozy]

Ooh thanks for this, I think the $140 one would be perfect for putting in an arcade cabinet and running pico-8 on. I wonder if I should just go with that and forgo poking at a raspberry pi.

[@joshsadowski8869]

Definitely

[@fredericmanson441]

With that rig, you will have a powerful PICO-8 machine. For the Pi, if you go up to 3d games, you will need the Pi 5, with a beefy cooling system--it gets really warm!!

[@crystal_is_cozy]

@@fredericmanson441 You had me at powerful pico-8 machine lol. I don't really like a lot of 3D games, which is great because I can get a much cheaper device to run my favorite retro systems ^^

[@Bibvock]

A pico8 arcade cab? 🤩🤩🤩🤩😍

[@crystal_is_cozy]

@@Bibvock Doesn't it sound fantastic? I want one so badly.

[@h3rc110]

I have never enjoyed a NordVpn advertisement so much

[@kylespevak6781]

I'm crossing my fingers that Xbox with allow Steam soon. It'd become the most affordable Steam box

[@digitizer3627]

Great video. 110% agree. I choose the mid ground too but expanded it with Crucial m.2 SSD's. Awesome shoutout to Crucial I love their external harddrives❤

[@conza1989]

Really nice video - especially positive impact from the ad spot, few people on KZbin who I like the ads for, that now includes, TechDweeb :)

[@The1Mischief]

Ended up with a Beelink EQR (Ryzen 5 6600H, 16GB DDR5, 500GB NVMe) for $275 on sale on Amazon. I think under 300 is perfect for above basic specs with basic gaming capabilities.

[@TechDweeb]

Great deal for that machine!

[@FallenAngel850]

Recently ordered a Palmshell SLiM X2L with 8GB. Can´t wait to get my Hands on it.

[@ludgeson69]

How was it?

[@FallenAngel850]

@@ludgeson69 I´m still pretty happy with it

[@CHA0SBLEEDS]

The G3 has an intel iGPU which has quick sync which is why it's able to handle video editing really well. People use these as plex servers and using it for encoding/decoding.

[@Retrofire-47]

Eagerly awaiting the day that a modern computer can fit onto a grain of rice.

[@sky0kast0]

And then you could daisy chain your sushi to make fish

[@Heru3005]

My son gave me what would be the equivalent of the M5, but from Beelink, for christmas. Specs are identical. I installed Fedora Linux on it, and it's been my daily driver ever since. It's shockingly capable at most things. It performs pretty much on par with my Steam Deck in most games. I wouldn't go trying to play competitive counter strike on it or anything, but for slower paced or single player games its solid and doesn't need a nuclear reactor to power it like my main gaming machine does.

[@lexlopez15]

I wouldn't pay more than $400 for a mini pc. As such, I can currently get a barebones um780 by minisforum for $330 or so and just transfer my ram and storage from my beelink ser4 mini... I barely play games on pc's anyway so not being able to boost framerates past 100 is not a deal breaker... I'm an old cat that was used to seeing frames drop to their teens because of limited pixel count on the nes back in the day and enjoyed every minute since it made hard games easier to play. 😄... I know kids today are spoiled and refuse to play anything below 60 frames. They don't know how good they got it these days. 😄

[@lloydmilton9808]

For a gift, I recently bought my wife the GMKtec K6 based off of a certain Dweeb's recommendations and she loves it so far. It was a bit more pc than she needed, but it had enough power to leave her some legs to grow on so I was happy to spend a little extra. Thanks again for everything you do for us, Mr. Dweeb! On a side note, did you get some extra Patrons signing up? If so, congratulations, that is awesome! You deserve the extra support!

[@Rayanaminge]

I’d like to see the M5 with Batocera cooking. Any chance we can get something on that a bit?

[@Autotrope]

Presumably the m5 should have roughly the performance of a steam deck, which is likely going to be a target spec that current game developers will be optimising for at least in their low/medium settings

[@farrelljonesjr8175]

Many thanks for this video my questions been answered I’m gonna get the nucbox m5 because I just wanna play the ps2, GameCube, n64 and Wii games tbh I’m not a fan of modern games again thanks for the info also dig the videos

[@omarguerrero6417]

Just wish there was gamepad for these devices to be easily usable, I been playing call of duty 2 and modern warefare 2 2009 on my beelink mini pc

[@Lastjustice]

I been building retrogaming cabinets with Rasberry Pi4s in them, but I knew I'd someday want to replace them with mini pcs, so i figured I'd start learning about them a bit. This video was a good starting point.

[@saysbadman]

I bet with faster ram the igpu in the k8 would perform better.

[@rhythmandblues9302]

When’s your Skate 3 tutorial coming out? Mad skillz, bro…

[@KingKalos5th]

Great content as always! Pleasure to watch all the way through, you deserve way more subs!

[@Saved-by-Grace]

I don't know when Zach Hadel decided to make tech vids but I'm here for it!

[@Deadmare]

Thanks for the info I'm thinking of picking up a mini pc for more advanced emulation. At the moment I just have a cube x3 but I want to play ps2 and ps3 Era stuff. I'm curious about the external hard drive you showed do those come in bigger sizes?

[@jeffbonham1412]

with the top end sold out, would you recommend the new k8 plus for the top of line emulation? Or do you have a new one you like better to play PS3, xbox 360 and maybe tecnoparrot. thanks dweebie

[@dartsmad1000]

What would be the best mini pc to get for working from home? Remote working from from using all windows apps and having at least 2 monitors, and that is reasonaby quiet etc?

[@andrewvickers4487]

Another fan here TD, much love from the UK 🤘 Calling all techies: are mini pcs the best value option now despite their lower upgradeability i.e. looking many years ahead? (I need decent mid-tier CPU power for heavy multithreaded office work.)

[@TechDweeb]

Yeah. If you're looking for pure bang-for-the-buck it would be very hard to build a desktop PC that will outperform a Mini PC for the price. But obviously with a desktop PC you get the upgradability and you're able to bring some components along to future builds.

[@andrewvickers4487]

@@TechDweeb Thanks. I could be wrong but it just doesn't seem like there's a lot of money to be saved with the desktop route even if we look ahead 10+ years. I suppose a lot depends on how much upgrading you want to do. Hmm...

[@enemigo-zeros.p.m6833]

can i use one of these for the 12tb hyperspin to a tv or monitor without a gaming pc

[@TechDweeb]

Yup!

[@T0TALLYAWESOMEGUY]

What happened to the custom DOS setup guide video you were going to make? I'm still waiting for

[@TechDweeb]

Working on it now!

[@ezcompane]

What are your thoughts of getting one of these and running an eGPU for extra performance on some of the newer games??

[@TechDweeb]

Amazing idea. Although in that case I'd probably go for an intel variant to get better CPU performance for the price since an external GPU would handle the graphics processing.

[@manateeia]

How much should I spend if I want to host every game for my friends?. 10 players max, any game. How much should I have memory? 32/64? Which CPU. No review ever answers this. Most of them just go through rigorous gaming testing when you shouldn't buy a mini pc for gaming in the first place.

[@danandtab7463]

that mid range has the same specs as this desktop I bought in 2018 for $500 more which has gotten a lot of use since. Only difference is this mini doesn't have a DVD drive, but I already have a portable one I can use. I just think that's kinda neat.

[@Deadmare]

>_> my laptop has a built in DVD drive and I don't think I have ever used it once 😅

[@NoName-zm1ks]

Most of these are purchased directly for China, so Black Friday/Cyber Monday specials not applicable?

[@tim7392]

Dweeby, you make our lives more meaningful. Love the vids!

[@jessehammil998]

Any thoughts on the G3 to stream games via steam remote play?

[@CRYPTiCEXiLE]

CA$889.21 for k8 with 32gb of memory + 1tb nvme not 690 in canada

[@rodneyabrett]

Some of these can get a significant boost with an eGPU or Occulink GPU setup.

[@JonCrs10]

How would something like the Crash and Spyro remakes or Another Crab's Treasure run on each? Mostly because they're not what people think of as "Modern AAA" but thats the architecture they were made around.

[@simonwl]

Right on cue Mr Dweeb! I've just been looking into mini PCs to satisfy my retro emulation addiction. And now the Dweebmeister comes up with this. It's dweeb fate I tell ya. 😅

[@TheWhiteMamba3000]

If I was just focused on 1080p streaming, the cheapest one shouldn’t have any issues, right? I am also curious about the performance with streaming games as well, since majority of the power needed is elsewhere.

[@HuntaKiller91]

Play with lossless scaling and that M5 with 5700U can do way better for $165 shipping to my country

[@edtuckerartist]

Wonders how a low end desktop pc would fare in comparison to the high end mini pc?

[@JP.710]

Was just thinking bout buying one too

[@tommertruong]

for those that can do without gaming n just want to focus on productivity and video editing I would recommend m2 mac mini for its price

[@Chunks_36]

For sure the best Nordvpn ad ever! 😄

[@GlitchSystem-xf7jb]

I been thinking about getting a Steam Deck but I would never use it as a handheld because i have a Nintendo switch and it's mostly been setting in it dock since I've had it. I was wanting something with more horsepower that the Switch has problems with when I'm trying to play something like Minecraft.

[@jonathont5570]

I paid about $700 on my GR model but all AMS with 64gb ram.. crushes NES emulation

[@psvg.donnie]

I would LOVE to see this with the ayaneo mini PC!!

[@carlgreene538]

How do these mini PC's compare to a steam deck or Switch?

[@Drayton2k]

The exact video I needed.

[@dmann1982]

I have wondered about getting a Mini PC or similar to attach Hard Drives and the like to, because more storage for gaming, for a while, considering I have a laptop and space is a premium to me, and this video might help with it maybe...

[@-Jamie]

I have the g3 it's fine for what I want I use it for emulation up to ps2

[@VinciKunS]

Is it able to run ps2 games (even the most demanding ones) without any problem?

[@-Jamie]

@@VinciKunS yeah all games work fine on default resolution I put mine on higher and works great

[@spaceMarine120]

I'm new to pc anything which of these should I get to play WOW or it not recommended?? plz help

[@DanoSuits]

Whats the best and affordable mini pc capable of ray tracing? Thx!

[@bryans8656]

I picked up the Nucbox G3 (16/512) a while ago. It's surprisingly capable at handling basic tasks, and I was even able to play some of my old Steam games like Half Life.

[@VinciKunS]

Is it able to handle ps2 games? I just bought it, i'll plug in a 12tb retrogame HDD (hypervision attraction)

[@bryans8656]

@@VinciKunS Can't help you there, I've never tried.

[@mjdf122]

Good topic of discussion Tech King

[@randomguy6556]

Do the mini pc Handel coding and programming well?

[@saulsalinas1355]

I want to build my first arcade cabinet will the 280 be good to run all the games on the 12tb hard drive you posted with all the emulators?

[@simonwl]

Do you think emulation performance (specifically GameCube and above) would be improved by installing a Linux disto on theses PCs?

[@runnerup15]

How do these minipcs stack up against something like a steam deck?

[@TechDweeb]

The 5800u is a bit weaker than the Steam Deck (but in the same ballpark). The high end offering here is a lot better than the Deck.

[@utsavgoswami5263]

any mini PC that you recommend for running LLMs and RAG applications locally?

[@KevsBatoceraBuilds]

I’ve been testing n100 mini pcs and they can comfortably play ps2 GameCube and anything below! The n100 mini pcs can be as cheap as 89$! The 100$ mini pc I’m testing now can even run most Nintendo switch titles 😱

[@VinciKunS]

So is it worth it to buy the nucbox g3 since it has a n100? I just bought it together with a 12tb hard drive of retrogames.

[@sw1tchpoint]

I personally love my mini PC It's great for a small work space area like I have myself. Sure you have to temper your expectations, but it works well when you know what you can get away with

[@ToyKeeper]

Great video, and at the perfect time. I was literally just shopping for a mini PC for The Mom, like 5 minutes ago... and it looks like a N100 model will probably handle everything she wants it to do. Hell, it'll be nicer than what I'm using right now.

[@nate6000]

Get the N97 over the N100.

[@ToyKeeper]

​@@nate6000 Sounds nice, kind of. It looks like it has a somewhat better GPU, but it runs hotter and costs more and is harder to find.

[@nate6000]

@@ToyKeeper GMKTec g5. N97 with 12gb ddr5 and 256 or 512 gm hd. Amazon changes up the discount codes constantly. I'm still waiting for mine to arrive, 512gb hd for $165 plus tax.

[@ToyKeeper]

@@nate6000 I love how cheap these are now. I found a Beelink N100 w/ 16 GiB + 500 GB for $160, but the GMKTec's extra GPU performance might be worth sacrificing some RAM.

[@rw-pj6dl]

I have little interest in many of the devices you review but your videos are excellent! Thanks for what you do!

[@preefix33_3]

How about building small itx mini pc? Vs thid?

[@Rspsand07]

Wtf I couldn't even tell that was Shadow of the Tomb raider, lol. I thought that was some sort of n64 era inspired pixel art game.

[@gamingguru2k6]

I got a windows handheld instead. I can't imagine traveling with a mini PC. I don't think I would need one for other purposes. A handheld just made the most sense for me.

[@SNKev411]

Just a video I need thanks td

[@TechDweeb]

Solid!

[@SNKev411]

@@TechDweeb I might consider getting the $280 one and use it with my external GPU

[@MarillMau5]

It's like if you read my mind I've been looking for the best cheapest GameCube PS2 mini PC. I'll be buying the second tier model.

[@OvniDawn]

What’s the best mini pc for a dual pc setup to stream at 1080p

[@numberoneappgames]

Great video! Loved the breakdown.

[@Jfuzzy85]

Will my mini pc run a Kinhank 12TB HDD smoothly? It’s a MINISFORUM Mini PC UM480 XT AMD Ryzen 7 4800H 8 cores/16 Threads Mini Desktop Computer, 16 GB RAM 512 GB.

[@Messedmindsolos]

Would the Nucbox ms run roblox good? Or those horror games on steam?

[@TechDweeb]

Yup!

[@Messedmindsolos]

@@TechDweeb thnak you!

[@LexLuthor0719]

No link to the crucial ssd?

[@peach4hubby69]

Can you recommend me a portable monitor? Planing to get my first mini PC. I also need a new keyboard and a new mouse. I already have enough controllers lmao( 8 bit do pro 2, switch pro and even 8 bit do arcade joysticks).

[@jasonjayalap]

Dont be fooled: He's wearing nothing but sleeves.

[@thenoiceguy1799]

bruh, i thought skyrim on nucbox g3 was suuper laggy, turns out it was just my laptop lagging. Thanks for another great video

[@thenoiceguy1799]

also, we need to get this man to 100k subs and beyond. he deserves it

[@Mademanmagic]

Will the 140 dollar one work for me to stream with obs? I play my games on console but my laptop is a Dino and not strong enough to run obs and TikTok like studio without the CPU usage getting full. Will the 140 option work for me or do I need one of the higher models? Would appreciate a response anyone really. Thanks in advance :)

[@-Astro--]

Great video prof dweeb, just what i needed 😃👍

[@Cunningcox]

What about the wii and wiiU emulation ?

[@erichansen9669]

Got a link to that Crucial external?

[@thehaymaker3660]

First- to say I love your channel! ❤

[@TechDweeb]

Thanks for saying so!

[@Rayu25Demon]

no one hates TechDweeb

[@tigrewulph]

Of all the mini PCs you've reviewed which do you think would be best to pair with that 12tb emulation drive you reviewed?

[@kylespevak6781]

That 12tb emulation drive was part of a mini PC set up. Theoretically, it would just have all the games in files that you could extract and use wherever. They may not be named accurately though

[@tigrewulph]

@kylespevak6781 I have the drive it has to be hooked into a windows machine. I'm only really worried about up to ps3 level for emulation purposes with ps2 tier being a must (but ill take the best i can get in that form factor). I know he reviewed one a week or so ago he said was great and the highest tier one in this video as well, but I'm curious which he thinks would be best.

[@kylespevak6781]

@@tigrewulph PS2 is super easy to emulate. My old phone (Pixel 3A) could run it decent. PS3/360/Switch I have little experience with. Wii U and 3DS are fairly easy to emulate as well

[@tigrewulph]

@kylespevak6781 yes I'm aware, I specifically want to know which of the mini pcs he has reviewed that he thinks would work best with that drive. I've been emulating off and on for 20 years now, back to Super Mario on my TI-83 when I was in high school. Being a moderate old-fart at this point I liked the plug-and-play ability of the ready-to-go drive and it works great on my desktop... but I want to hook it to my main TV in the living room for couch retro time with the progeny, so I want to use the mini pc form factor.

[@kylespevak6781]

@@tigrewulph The drive is just storage. This video shows the performance of each PC with emulation. All the info is there

[@alphaomega154]

i think that could be answered by logic . for example, when you talk about gaming, then the treshold should abide to the well known price for a proprietary gaming device that actually a gaming device, no not the windows handhelds those are a fad, the PS5 and xbox series x. so if those proprietary gaming device comes in around 500 bucks, since mini PC should be able to do other things than gaming, let say its make sense if they add another 200 bucks. so, around 700 bucks should be the sensible price. or with larger storage its around 800 bucks. similar to the price of those mediocre handheld fads. but wait, since the comparison is a true gaming device like the PS5, then configuration of that gaming purpose mini PC should comes with DISCRETE GPU. if you say "PS5 use iGPU", of course, but they use GDDR6 memory for both system and VRAM. those mediocre handheld fads only use DDR memory. so, if its something with also GDDRxX level of vram then, its DISCRETE GPU. this means, the sensible price for a gaming oriented mini PC WITH A DISCRETE GPU should be around 800 bucks. and that pricing should make sense, say if coming with a radeon 7600m XT for example. since laptop with the similar config could comes in around 1000 to 1200 bucks. the extra 200-400 bucks make sense for the laptop extra expenses for SCREEN, ARGB mechanical keyboard, built in touchpad, battery, large metal laptop chassis, on board camera and microphone and other stuff like spyware and such. this means, without all those unnecessary extra, a gaming mini PC with a radeon 7600m XT inside should sensibly come in 800 bucks. this is the HONEST product version. but you know how companies are in doing business. so if you see those mediocre handheld fads comes in 800 bucks WITHOUT a discrete GPU, that only make sense due to it comes with a screen, albeit its tiny, but the price should also pays for its CONTROLLER sets. something mini PC dont come out of the box with. but an iGPU with a mere DDR memory for VRAM is not how you want to game with. you can use the similar logic with any other category of usage purposes. just go check what those laptop parts PRiCES are normally for laptops manufacturing. since all those components you find in mini PC are all LAPTOPS components. the moral for this : dont let industry dictate your spending. would you pay over 1000 bucks for mediocre gaming in 30 fps at low setting? man, just go get a PS5.

[@sergiomessias3691]

Best sponsorship bit ever😂🎉

[@deathsnitemaresinfullust2269]

What's the most cost effective way for me to emulate 360, PS3 and play Elden Ring? I don't know a thing about putting my own PC together. 😅👍

[@Rowsell98]

Man.... now I want a mini pc lol

[@rometherevenant8749]

The aoostar god57 us my favorite and i only discovered it thanks to your awesome channel.

[@TechDweeb]

Yeah that one is pretty great. Great price, and it's the quietest Mini PC I've ever tested!

[@broto8]

The Han movement is excruciating after a little while.

[@Jogazi_12]

So this is what Pinkman has been doing in Alaska

[@csh9853]

not spending 700.00 on a mini pc. i'd just build or buy a pc that will game with a used gpu.

[@Broken_robot1986]

I think what swings me toward these minis is the quite potential

[@Kitsune_Dev]

then the product is not for you, I’m looking for something to use as a home server for various things, it’s more of a side kick rather than a main PC

[@ldr.enjoyer]

Then don’t?? It’s obviously not meant for you, people want and look for different things☠️☠️

[@csh9853]

@@ldr.enjoyer obviously

[@BigCatnapDominus]

@@csh9853bet you're wanting a 128 gb ram 4tb ssd i9 pc.😂

[@michaelbenny659]

Knocked out 3 mini pcs from the tower in a single video, smart

[@albant.30]

At 500 $/€ a mini pc don't worth it for the price.

[@WhisperWorksGaming]

Thank you for sharing your banana poem 😊