I want to buy my mom a small form factor PC for Christmas to replace her older PC that isn't compatible with Windows 11. I know it would probably be cheaper to just install Mint on her old PC, but I think a new computer would be more fun and I don't have any other gift ideas. I don't know anything about mini PCs though. Are they a meme? Are they reliable? She would only be using it for boomer stuff: emails, shopping, Facebook, Youtube, paying bills, etc. However, because she has grandchildren, it being able to run less demanding games would be nice too. I was currently looking at Minisforum PCs. Anybody have experience?
>>106932711The only good mini PC is the Intel NUC. Not the Asus NUC mind you, Intel. Everything else is trash. Whether it's by a reputable manufacturer or chinkshit, it's all trash. Get an old NUC for 100-300 bucks and it will do everything you specified and be silent, comfy looking, energy efficient and most of all beautiful while doing it.
>>106932711>Are they reliableYeah>Are they a memeNo, in my experience they're faster than comparable laptops while being cheaper because they don't have to spend money on a screen / keyboard / touchpad / battery etc. > Which oneMinisforum / Beelink are both good. The Beelink SER8 can play GTA V / RE4 Remake on med/low at 60fps, 1080p. It will destroy boomer stuff and handle minecraft / roblox / fortnight / whatever gen alpha children are playing now. The minisforum um760 slim is also an option if you're on a budget. >>106932731Intel mini pcs are garbage. The SER8 uses like 2watts on idle with Arch Linux and ramps up to 50-60 when gaming.
>>106932761don't trust this jew
>>106932711Mac mini
mac mini mac mini mac mini mac minidon’t fall for the third world windows mini pc meme
Mac Mini /thread
>>106933017>>106933022>>106933032Shut up Tim Apple
>>106933022>>106933032Ok post Asahi driver vulkan benchmarks.The best hardware in the world is completely worthless if you don't have software to go with it.
>>106933017>>106933022>>106933032shill has arrived, apple is gay
>>106933053>>106933038>>106933037you lost nutella. go back to selling subscriptions and your cloud racket to fat businessmen.
>>106932731There are a ton of good ones, and the best ones are the ryzen AI Max ones, none are Intel
>>106932711What are her current PC specs?There are some GMKtec One's as low as $150 I just got for my grandparents. It has better specs than their desktop PC did. They also ran Linux on that for the past 15 years and now they run Linux on this one. I recommend you do that for your mom too unless she has some stupid software that is required.
>>106932711Old used corporate mini optiplexSave your money
>>106933076The mini pcs with 395+ chips are all $2k but capable of performance somewhere between a 4060 and 4070 mobile, but using way less power and heat. And no shitty nvidia drivers or being loud as fuck. They're overkill though, a < $600 mini pc is gonna last them 5-10 yr easily.>>106933098>Mom I got you old used computer hardware!If I did this for my mother she would call me a cheap ass and never use it. I got her a $300 new mini pc instead and it's been perfect.
>>106932761>>106932731>>106933017>>106933022>>106933032Bad options.>>106933087>>106933098Good options.
holiday shopping corporate shill thread. do not interact
>>106933107Gmktec has anything from 150 to 2300 Get a lesser ryzen one Around your price range, you never told us your specs.
>>106933107>If I did this for my mother she would call me a cheap ass>You're a cheap ass for saving money>It's a giftYour mom sounds insufferable
>>106933138You don't understand how women work. They want to see that you thought about their needs and got them something quality and new. A used PC comes across as you were being cheap and wanted to spend the bare minimum. If you're going to go this route say it's not in the original box because you took it out preemptively to set it up for her so she could start using it.
>>106932711>don't have any other gift ideasDude its ur mom, brainstorm to get some better ideas. Ask her friends or ur family members. Dont get her a computer just because you secretly want to get it for urself. You said she does useless boring boomer shit on it, so doesnt sound like youre getting her a gift that means anything to her. Sounds like ur getting her a gift that means more to (you)
>>106932761Thanks>>106933087Just about every mini PC I've seen scrolling through Amazon beats her PC. It's a smaller Dell office computer I picked up from a computer repair store back in 2019. Off the top of my head, i3 with 4gb of system memory. Don't know exactly what cpu, but definitely doesn't support windows 11. I'm surprised there's an SSD in it though with like 200 something gb of space. The only thing I worry about with these Chinese mini PCs is if they have pre-installed malware. I'll definitely use my own SSD and install the OS myself just in case.Maybe just buying a new drive and installing Mint and putting it on her old computer is the safest option...>>106933109Not a shill saar.
>>106933159I got my mom a used precision last year that we were getting rid of at work and she absolutely loves it
>>106933183Hop the memory up to 8 or 16gb, should be cheap. Then install Win10 IoT LTSC (you can do this without a reinstall, super easy) and activate it with Maas grave. Boom - years more security updates, she stays on the experience she's used to, and minimal investment.
>>106933159Nope, that's just your Mom.
>>106933183That is similar to what my grandparents had just get some $300 one and it will be five times better than her computer. The $150 one I got is three times better.
>>106933183There were a handful of computers from the manufacturer ACEMAGIC that had preinstalled malware, but it was the type of thing that an SSD format would wipe. It's probably fine but it takes 10min to reinstall an OS so might as well.
>>106933183>im not a shill, youre a jeet!right, these once daily "should i buy a mini pc for my mom" threads are not corporate advertising.
>>106932711I've bought 2 in the last few years and they'll do exactly what you mention. The brand doesn't matter since they're all the same. Just double check what ports are included to make sure it can handle the peripheries you have. It should cost significantly less than a comparable laptop and definitely don't waste your money on an Apple.
get her a laptop
Not an iToddler by any means, but nothing else comes close. Especially when the competition is exclusively chinkshit.
>>106933361I legitimately was not aware mini pc shill threads are a daily occurrence on /g/, as I am a tourist here. I mainly browse /pw/ and /v/. I just became curious of mini PCs after watching an LGR review of a minisforum PC on youtube.. though a model that is way too much computer for my mom.
>>106933545They always end the same way too with people spamming mac mini and ignoring the OP when they say shit like "it should play games"
>>106932711Have one from Minisforum, like it! Installed Ubuntu.24, added a SSD (2242!) and have technitium running to block all kinds of DNS queries. Next up is some home automation.I think it should be able to handle all the boomer stuff
>>106932731There's no Intel NUC anymore they sold it to ASUS
>>106933163The truth that OP didnt wanna hear
I got my father-in-law a chink N100 mini PC + 24" monitor for $200. So i replaced his decade-old laptop that he only used for web browsing and light Word/Excel work. Last time i checked, he was happy with that n100 machine
>>106932711https://www.bee-link.com/products/beelink-ser9-pro-365good morning SER9
>>106933163>>106933651I need to resolve the unsupported Windows 10 PC anyway -- she pays all her bills on it and it not getting security updates would eventually be worrisome. Again, I guess I could install Mint on her old PC. The OS adjustment wouldn't be that big a deal considering even on Windows, the only thing she knows how to do is browse the web and turn the PC on and off. If it were for myself, I would just get a Framework desktop PC.
>>106933746>I need to resolve the unsupported Windows 10 PC anyway no body on /g/ talks like this. not even a redditor would speak this. the only person who could possibly dream up such a deranged statement is a corporate marketing shill for microsoft.
>>106932711You are meant to gift older family members chromebooks
>>106934775Chromebooks are kind of shit now. The cheapest ones are terrible. The decent spec ones cost as much as a mini PC. I also went down this route and got complaints later when they couldn't use random software that was on Mac and Windows.
>>106932731the minisforum one are fine.our animation company uses them and after two(ish) years not a single one has died
>>106934775I got my dad one of those older touchscreen thinkpads with the 11 inch screen, he loves it, and he was an incredibly difficult person to even get onto a cellphone. To be fair he basically just uses it as a tablet so probably could've just gone that route and saved a bit of money.
Minipcs really don't make any sense.I was once into this concept but you realise that you can only get some hardware with real punch if you pay at least 1000 bucks. And it's going to be shittier than some SFF you build yourself and that will run circles around it.Sure it's not gonna have some cool case panel integration, but it's going to have a real desktop CPU, desktop GPU and won't get 30FPS on medium settings in a game.The concept is just not viable for anything but a browsing machine. Never even mention gaming on this kind of thing, because at best it could be a solitaire machine.Funny how the most powerful NUCs ever built by Intel were starting to look more and more like some high-end SFF builds with a custom case..
>>106935314Ryzrn AI chips don't exist on desktop and They're the best shit in the world right now
>>106935414I checked out SER9 and the reviewer was getting 30FPS on medium in a game>mah ai chipI bet it writes some pretty good essays with that
>>106932711>PC that isn't compatible with Windows 11Why the fuck you want to force this indian shit onto your mother?
>>106932711if it doesn't need to be new then just get one of the mini pcs from dell/lenovo/hp.I use an 8th gen i3 one for tv playback and its great. totally silent.
>>106933098This: recently looked for some to replace a family pc and googled refurbished pc's. Found this gem for 310€ delivery included
>>106933022>>106933032>fag mini fag mini fag mini fag miniWhy applefags are so annoying?
>>106935508Those are large ugly dust atractorsAutists of course don't care about that because they live alone and their house is full of plastic shit lying around. They just throw it under the table and call it a great purchase.But normies get visitors, they want their house to look nice and don't want that big pile of plastic sitting on their desk just so they can browse the web
>>106934814They always were shit.
>>106935508>Intel hd 630>gem
>>106935537You attach it to the vesa mounts on your monitor and it's basically an all-in-oneAnd a short HDMI cable to reduce clutter Couldn't be cleaner
>>106932711I have a cheap n100 from beelink for $150 and a chinesium 5500u from kamrui for $250. the n100 runs some basic servers and the kamrui runs simple unity/flash games. the ssd on the kamrui broke after a few months, but apart from that I haven't had any issues from them after a year or two. for boomer stuff and emulating retro games the n100 is probably fine, for more modern games you probably want something a bit more powerful.
>>106932711Put VMware on that thing if kids are gonna be using it. If they mess up Windows then you just nuke the VM and make another instead of having to reformat the whole thing.
>>106932711Mini PCs > laptops. You basically get double the specs for half the price. Of course you need to add a monitor + keyboard/mouse, but it's still cheaper than a laptop, and you can use the cost savings to buy a pretty decent monitor.
>>106935605>You attach it to the vesa mountshow do you turn it on
>>106932711>but I think a new computer would be more funcons00mer supreme disgusting normal fag.also>giving gifts
>>106933107>>Mom I got you old used computer hardware!>If I did this for my mother she would call me a cheap ass and never use it.iihh, brothaaa, ihhhh, your mother is such a disgusting whore>>106933138>Your mom sounds insufferablea supreme whore>>106933216>I got my mom a used precision last year that we were getting rid of at work and she absolutely loves itsupreme virgin mother of god, unlike OP's whore mom
>>106932711just get something with 32gb ram to future proof it, cpu ain't important really, everything is fast enough these days.vesa mount is also nice you can put it behind monitor and have super clean setup.
They can't game at good enough frame rates yet. I don't have enough money for a mac studio or one of the halo strix minis, and even if I could afford them they probably won't let me play Mechwarrior 5 in 4k at 120fps or more on ultra settings.
>>106932761>Intel mini pcs are garbage. The SER8 uses like 2watts on idle with Arch Linux and ramps up to 50-60 when gaming.this is somehow bad?
>>106935314>>106937302Op here, didn't think this thread would still be up. It doesn't absolutely need to game, just that it would be a nice plus if it could play simple shit like Minecraft or Roblox whenever she babysits her grandkids. Looking at most of the specs to some of the minis everyone here has recommended, they all seem more than enough for what my mom would use it for: simple web browsing. My only concern with them was how reliable are they throughout the years and whether I would need to replace it after a few months because it died. I guess I could go with a ThinkCentre instead, but also some of the appeal of the mini was that it would look "cute" and declutter her small desk.
>>106936576alt+p
>>106932711get her one that's light enough to hang off the back of the monitor with cables short enough to not be a bother. Then a wireless mouse and keyboard. She'd appreciate the lack of clutter. It's a mini pc so don't expect it to be a powerhouse. Bear in mind that it will most likely be NVME storage only. Get something with an APU and enough 64GB RAM.
>>106932711Mini PCs are great. This isn't 2016 anymore, iGPUs have massively improved, to the point where they are perfectly suitable for most uses.My home desktop PC is a Beelink SER8, never had an issue. Really, a full tower desktop at this point in time only makes sense for AAA gaymen or similarly intensive tasks.
>>106932731t. time traveler from 2012
>>106935314>And it's going to be shittier than some SFF you build yourself and that will run circles around it.People say this all the time but never post concrete examples of such builds at a comparable price point.
>>106936576Turning on and off is not a thing anymore. It goes into standby automatically and they turns back on just clicking the mouse or kyb.
If you love her, buy her a laptop. If you want it to be cheap, a used laptop that's in good physical condition.
I'd like a mini pc but I fail to justify buying one.>Expensive >Worse than my old i5 9500 with old nvidia gpu>Just 1 or 2 drives>Limited bios>usually lack vpro and other advanced functionalityBasically a more practical rpi or a desktop for normies.
If it’s within the budget just get her a Mac mini. Yes proprietary software, yes not the best price to performance ratio for gaymen, but it will give her and you the least headache.As someone that has no clue about computers the only way for her to evaluate the quality is that it’s new, it looks good and it doesn’t give her any trouble.
>>106932711I've been looking into NUC mini pcs for a low-power home server. Heaps of companies make them, but there are popular varities from Intel, MSI and Asus seem to be most prevalent.You can go ultra low power or something moderately powerful, say enough to run minecraft or even a counterstrike server from what i could see. There's nothing wrong with them, just make sure you match the hardware to her needs. You should probably chuck Linux on it anyway. Harder for the old generation to fuck it up.
I have a couple of Minisforums. The MINISFORUM BD795M has been rock-solid. The MINISFORUM BD790i X3D is a great performer, but I can't find a driver for the shitty realtek ethernet controller that doesn't randomly reset or disconnect, it's 100% fine in windows though.Because of the ethernet driver thing, I'm wary of AMD boards now. Ethernet driver stuff is like linux 20 years ago, I thought we were done with that bullshit, but I guess not.
>>106933746Use https://massgrave.dev/ to>Upgrade her version to W10 Pro>Re-activate it>Enable 3 years or ESU Then buy her a new PC in 2028
>>106932711Might as well hijack this thread to ask I want a mini PC exclusively for torrenting. Seeding 24/7. That is the only thing this machine will be doing. What do I buy
>>106938497Anything with N100 to N300 CPU and 8GB is more than enough. Storage depending on how much you hoard.
Be a special snowflake and get NEC, those are very popular in Japan & China.
helped my geriatric neighbour with a lenovo aio $500 for a 27" display and an i3-1315U, wireless keyboard and mouse include, upgradable memory and storageall you should really care about is the generation of processor and whether its recent enoughcores, clock speed, whatever, they dont matter. all that matters is instructions and hardware accelerationthey will gladly sell you computers with old chips that only have a few feasible years leftbe warned, the intel low power cheapo processors havent received a generational update since 2023
>>106938652have you ever seen how boomers use storage? the largest thing that drive will ever see is the operating system
>>106938889my mom has 80 years and I have to constantly upgrade nas storage because of her but it's all photos.
>>106938903does she save every single picture off facebook 24/7 or somethingeven my big fat raw camera file holiday pictures take up barely any space
>>106938966nope has couple of cameras and takes lots of pics
>>106932711Just get one of those minisforum or similar boxes. I bought one without ram and ssd and just added it myself, bought 2 so my mom and dad could replace their aging boomer machines. They work fine and were cheap enough, lots of chink companies make similar devices now.
>>106937929Which models have you looked into?
