The Mini PC market is a strange place. With computers becoming more and more powerful, it feels strange buying a computer in this day and age if you are not a gamer. What if you are simply looking to have a basic PC to check emails and browse the web? What if the only game you get lost in is Solitaire and those random match 3 puzzle games? What if you need a second PC for the kids or for that new at home office life you are living?
These questions always come up, and while PC computing is advancing at a rapid pace, it’s hard to justify paying $800 or more on a computer that isn’t designed to make you the next Twitch star. In my case, this list came about because my 90-year-old father needed a new PC. He’s been using an already aging Dell OptiPlex that my mother brought home ages ago when the office she worked at was getting new machines and recycling the old ones.
And for years it worked great. He uses it daily to read the news, check emails, and play Hearts; not to mention the occasional Netflix stream when mom is in the living room watching the latest crime drama from one of the Scandinavian countries. But after all these years that machine is chugging along at a snails pace. Chrome runs slow, boot-up takes ages, and don’t even get me started on how long it takes to load the Windows included Netflix app.
Still, he’s reluctant to spend money on a PC at this point in his life as even the most basic all-in-one starts in the hundreds of dollars and he already has a nice widescreen monitor. A laptop won’t do either as the screens are too small and he’s pretty set on his mouse and keyboard that he has had for years, and isn’t the kind of person to use a laptop in bed or be hunched over at a desk. So, with all those prerequisites, the only real option was a Mini PC. And, so, we here at the magazine hunted down the best and most affordable Mini PCs that would fit your basic computing needs.
Let’s take a look at the contenders!
- . WO-WE Mini PC with AMD Excavator A9-9400
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(Source: wowe) The machine that started it all. The Wo-We mini computer comes in a couple of flavors and the company has a number of models, but the AMD Excavator-based system, a chip we’ve never heard of, nailed everything that we wanted. It also has the pleasure of being one of the very few AMD-based machines in the mini space and only one on this list. It’s small and doesn’t take up a large footprint, and while not the most stylish, it’s also the cheapest on this list with a pretty decent feature set for our needs.
The AMD Excavator A9-9400 is focused on business work (you won’t find a Titan inside) with a up 3.2GH dual core CPU that consumes very little power. It’s an older chipset but one that still powers a number of Dell laptops that range from $500 to $900, making the sub-$100 cost of this PC a steal. It normally retails for $119 on Amazon but it’s often on sale for around $100 and sometimes less. With Dual Band 2.4 & 5GHz Wi-Fi it gets the job done online, something essential as you’ll probably be working in the cloud.
One thing we liked about the WO-WE Mini PC is the amount of ports included. You get two HDMI ports for dual-screen options, something important for anyone working from home, two USB 3.0 ports for USB SSDs and higher powered devices like modern webcams, and two USB 2.0 ports to handle all your basic accessories like mouse and keyboard is you don’t use Bluetooth.
The spec sheet claims that it can handle 4K gaming thanks to its Radeon R5 graphic chip, but the CPU is probably going to bottleneck you more than the graphics chip. Still, you can get nice performance for all media and if you play MOBA titles and mobile ports you should be fine, just don’t expect to be running the latest Call of Duty on this thing.
The 8GB of DDR4 memory powers the included Windows 10 well, but if you load up Linux on the machine you can get some silky smooth computing on something like Elementary or Zorin OS. Windows 11 should probably work, but with all the OS changes and requirements I’d suggest staying with a slimmed down version of Windows 10 or experiment with Linux. Oh, and don’t forget the USB-C connection on the front for data transfer and charging, something great for modern smartphones.
We can see this working really well for more than just a basic home computer, especially if you do some light gaming. If you are building a cheap arcade setup or digital pinball table the included 128GB M.2 SSD should do you right, and you can even expand storage through the Micro SD Card slot on the side of the machine.
The size is also perfect to even stick behind a TV and have it as your networked media center for the whole family. It’s actually quite impressive to have such a loaded machine at this price point and it’s not a bad way to start this list as the benchmark to beat!
- . Ouvislite Mini PC Stick
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(Source: Ouvislite) Easily the smallest PC on this list, the Ouvislite Mini PC Stick is just that; a stick with a PC inside. Looking like an Amazon Fire Stick, this little bugger plugs into any HDMI port to provide you with full-fledged business computer in the literal palm of your hand. If you are someone who still travels for work, the Ouvislite might make a lot of sense as you can easily stick it in your pocket and have access to a full-sized TV for work use in any hotel room. It also makes for a great media stick at the same time!
Powered by an Intel Celeron, a chipset we totally forgot about, the Mini PC Stick features Intel HD Graphics 600, 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM, and 64GB of eMMC storage. This all means that you aren’t going to be doing much with this little thing outside sending and checking emails and basic media, but that’s more than enough for most. If you don’t want to spend a lot of money and are looking for a second PC in your guest room or RV, then this one fits the bill.
The ability to turn any TV in your house into a business PC via an available HDMI port makes this one an attractive offer. You can easily move from your office doing work to the living room watching YouTube and more. It’s also a great PC for kids that are just getting in to PCs and won’t break the bank since you probably already have a spare TV. And if you’re thinking about a lack of ports, well, you’d be wrong. The Ouvislite Mini PC Stick features just enough with two USB3.0 slots, an included headphone jack for audio, and Bluetooth for your wireless peripherals.
And while this thing is tiny, they somehow managed to stick a fan inside to help with cooling. The unit comes with Windows 10 included, but because of the limitations of the chipset upgrading to Windows 11 is probably out of the question. Try getting a small Linux distro onto it and you might just have a fun little machine with lots of options. We really love this little guy simply because of the space saving nature of it, something that helps for those short of space where they live or work.
We’ve heard about people doing some fun things with the Ouvislite Mini PC Stick in a number of ways. For older people it helps a lot as you can simply plug it into the back of a large 50 inch LCD TV and have an impressive workspace. This is a great idea for those with issues with smaller displays like the elderly or those that simply want to work from their couch. A number of users love these things to add to their main offices as you can plug them into mounted televisions to display weather and calendar alerts making for a great work message board.
The Ouvislite Mini PC Stick may not be able to run any game beyond Solitaire, but it makes for a great second computer for those with limited space or the business traveler that needs a good presentation PC that they can keep in their pocket and will work just about anyplace. A few of us here are thinking of picking one up in order to create that super clean desk look that’s all the rage. I’m thinking of picking one up to clean up my messy garage office that I run my side hustle from!
- . Beelink T4 Pro Mini PC
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(Source: Beelink) Coming in at about the size of the mouse you’re using right now, the Beelink T4 Pro Mini PC has a very sleek look that is sure to draw attention from everyone who sees it. Featuring an Apollo Lake Celeron N3350 processor that max clocks at 2.4GHz, the Beelink T4 Pro Mini PC takes very little power while letting you get work done. And that’s one thing we forgot to mention earlier in that the idea of having a mini PC can save you money in the long run.
Having a gaming PC with a 1,000W power supply running all day is going to cost you in the energy department. A low powered device like the Beelink T4 Pro Mini PC can save you money as you can get you work, surfing, and video fun done without your electric meter spinning like its Wheel of Fortune. As this list has developed I now have a mini PC and it helps keep my gaming PC off when I’m not gaming or streaming.
The Beelink T4 Pro Mini PC features integrated Graphics 500 making it, surprisingly, less powerful than the Mini PC Stick from Ouvislite that we talked about above. You might be starting to see a pattern in how different companies are essentially using the same platforms in order to keep costs down. This is why the AMD Excavator A9-9400 from Wo-We is so unique in our research.
As expected, the Beelink T4 Pro Mini PC runs Windows 10 but only features 4GB of DDR3 RAM and a very tight 64GB of eMMC storage. Still, the machine does manage to feature two HDMI ports allowing you to run dual displays, but we have concerns that the chips inside this thing might really stutter doing so.
And don’t think about gaming outside the assorted card games that the Windows Store features on this thing. That said, if you simply need a very basic work machine that you can hide away easily, this might be a decent option. The underpowered specs won’t impress but they will get the job done for basic email, word processing, and online video.
It looks like this unit is pretty popular and chances are you’ve run into it before as it’s often used to power cash registers, medical equipment, and run digital signs in malls and businesses. It’s going to be a slow machine but we are featuring it for a couple of reasons.
The main reason is that you can run dual displays, something important for most office workers as it makes editing and studying much easier, especially if you want to sneak a YouTube video on one display while getting things done. The other point is that you can actually ditch Windows 10 and install Google ChromeOS Flex on it from all reports.
Where the machine might chug under Windows 10 with more than a handful of tabs open, running ChromeOS Flex really increases the speed of the unit. In fact, we’d suggest Beelink drop Windows on this low-powered platform and switch to ChromeOF Flex or a Linux distro and make it even cheaper in the priocess.
Your experience will be a lot better and Google has everything you’ll need to get work done on the cloud saving you on storage. And while gaming is still off the table, Google says that you’ll soon be able to mirror your Android phone screen using the OS to allow you to play mobile games on a bigger screen.
- . Bmax Mini PC B1 Plus
(Source: Bmax) Most of the machines we’ve featured so far sit around the $120 mark, and it seems most companies are looking at the number as the sweet spot for the industry. That’s a pretty fair price, and while there are often deals for less, Bmax says “screw that” and starts their Mini PC line at a flat $99! That is a killer deal and an even better one whenever a sale comes around.
The Bmax Mini PC B1 Plus is the most affordable Mini PC on this list, but do they cut any corners in order to hit that price point? Well, it doesn’t really seem so. The Bmax Mini PC B1 Plus compares favorably with the other Intel-based machines on this list, and like the others it features an Intel N3350 CPU running Windows 10.
It does feature 6GB of RAM which is actually a bit of an upgrade, even if it still uses the old DDR3 RAM. And while it features a tiny 64GB eMMC for storage, it features the ability to add an M.2 SATA SSD to really boost the overall size and performance. It should be noted that upgradability is not something possible on most of the machines featured on this list.
The Bmax Mini PC B1 Plus sports all the basic ports and can do dual monitors with a strange catch. It features an HDMI port and claims to push 4K content, but if you want to use dual displays you’ll need to use the one HDMI port and the included VGA port to pull it off. It feels like a real blast from the bast, and something important to note as a lot of modern monitors don’t even have a VGA port anymore.
For the low price the Bmax Mini PC B1 Plus is an exciting prospect even if it will feel slow, even compared to some older machines. But with a little tweaking, maybe adding a tiny Linus distro, and some hardware add-ons you have the makings for a good basic Mini PC, but then you might be creeping up in price.
Still, if you need a new PC for your kid to use for school or your grandparents to do basic tasks the $99 will serve you well, just don’t expect to do any gaming, but then again, that might be a benefit for both of those groups.
- . KODLIX N40 Mini PC
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Another Intel machine makes the list, but this time with an updated Celeron N4020 CPU that can clock at 2.80GHz. The KODLIX (a name that feels like a sexual inuendo) might be our favorite Intel-based Mini PC on this list. On top of the updated processor it also sports UHD Graphics 600 making it more capable at light gaming.
The 4BG DDR4 RAM isn’t going to mean you’ll be running next gen games, but some basic MOBA titles and mobile-based games should work just fine alongside Windows 10, just don’t have anything open in the background. The 64GB of eMMC storage is the only dealbreaker as everything will be a bit slow to load and the OS takes up quite a bit, but expansion is possible with an available M.2 slot.
The added SD Card slot allows for easy storage of nonessential documents as well. It’s a rarity in the sector that you can upgrade a machine, so the fact that you can beef up the hard drive is a blessing. If you like the machine picking up a cheap drive will allow you to use it even longer with much better read/write speeds.
The UHD Graphics 600 claims to push a 4k at 60Hz screen and content, but just because something can doesn’t mean you should. Still, keeping things at 1080p should do just fine alongside the DDR4 that helps push everything. And the KODLIX also features a fanless design meaning you won’t hear this thing while working.
The KODLIX also features dual display support, and like the other Intel-based machine this one can probably support it well. That said, it uses that weird HDMI/ VGA port setup for dual displays. It’s not a great system for modern displays but I suppose you can always pick up a spare VGA monitor from the thrift store for a couple of bucks.
If you can stick Linux on this little box you’ll have a great machine with some options for upgrade. If you need a dedicated machine for a specific use then you might like this one. The specs mean it’ll make for a great HTPC or emulation box for projects. A basic work PC is hiding here for those not looking for much.
We’ve learned a lot from taking a look at the small but interesting Mini PC market for this list. There is a lot to love and we feel a lot of people are sleeping on these machines, especially as most people out there are simply checking emailing, writing papers, and watching YouTube videos. There simply is no need to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars for a machine at a big box store that won’t ever reach it’s potential in a home office.
But our ultimate pick for “Best Of” for our needs has to be the Wo-We Mini PC With AMD Excavator A9-9400. Silly name aside, this little box has everything we needed with more power than any of the Intel machines in the same price range. And while you won’t be winning and gaming props from friends, it does allow for gaming that will be more than what most adult and kids will need.
Let us know what you think about these little machines and if you’d like us to do s deep dive review into any of them as we already have plans to take a closer look at a number of units here in the office.
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