In this video we take a look at the top five mini PCs of 2024 chosen from almost 30 potential candidates. All minis were reviewed by me on this channel and are my best five category winners chosen on a range of factors including, performance, noise, value and temps.
EaseUS Todo Backup Home is an award-winning backup software suite with a great user interface. Try it here: prf.hn/l/Rlqkj5J
Amazon USA Links
► Minisforum NAB9: amzn.to/3JC1DA2
► Beelink SER5 5560U: amzn.to/4a5DXPG
► Beelink SER7: amzn.to/3wfcg94
► Reatan Alloy 9: amzn.to/4by3WQX
► Minisforum HX99G: amzn.to/3UrArt8
Worldwide Official Links:
► Minisforum NAB9: shrsl.com/4ibo1
► Beelink SER5 5560U: shrsl.com/4ibo3
► Beelink SER7: shrsl.com/4ibo5
► Reatan Alloy 9: reatan.com/product/alloy9-794...
► Minisforum HX99G: shrsl.com/4ibnz
Worldwide AliExpress Links:
► Minisforum NAB9: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dnm...
► Beelink SER5 5560U: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DD5...
► Beelink SER7: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDD...
► Reatan Alloy 9: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DEX...
► Minisforum HX99G: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dcj...
Amazon UK
► Minisforum NAB9: amzn.to/3w9tODz
► Beelink SER5 5560U: amzn.to/4ba8uND
► Beelink SER7: amzn.to/3UzVkn4
► Reatan Alloy 9: amzn.to/3UlX0PC
► Minisforum HX99G: amzn.to/44iyl3c
Amazon Germany
► Minisforum NAB9: amzn.to/3QnhBlI
► Beelink SER5 5560U: amzn.to/3JGqanU
► Beelink SER7: amzn.to/3QpciSG
► Reatan Alloy 9: amzn.to/3QolOFo
► Minisforum HX99G: amzn.to/3Qpcl0O
Amazon Canada
► Minisforum NAB9: amzn.to/3WmobfQ
► Beelink SER5 5560U: amzn.to/3JCOJSr
► Beelink SER7: amzn.to/4daaRkG
► Reatan Alloy 9: amzn.to/4dkSauE
► Minisforum HX99G: amzn.to/3xUpHvA
Amazon Australia
► Minisforum NAB9: amzn.to/3WkhATd
► Beelink SER5 5560U: amzn.to/3w9MKlF
► Beelink SER7: amzn.to/3WkjHq1
► Reatan Alloy 9: amzn.to/3Wmokjo
► Minisforum HX99G: amzn.to/3w3n0HD
Review Links
► Minisforum NAB9: • The BEST Intel Mini In...
► Beelink SER5 5560U: • Best Value Mini? Beeli...
► Beelink SER7: • RDNA3 Graphics Are HER...
► Reatan Alloy 9: • The BEST Mini PC I've ...
► Minisforum HX99G: • It's GOOD but... Minis...
Shop online (Generic Links):
► Amazon US: amzn.to/40NeFmk
► Amazon Australia: amzn.to/3G3T9zW
► Amazon UK: amzn.to/47iM76G
► Amazon Germany: amzn.to/3R1ayja
► Amazon Canada: amzn.to/3ujqqVm
► Amazon Other Countries: amzn.to/40NeFmk
► Aliexpress: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_A8v...
► eBay: ebay.to/30oMKc2
❤️ Support the channel with PayPal: bit.ly/3SwDblK
💻 Join our Discord server for all things mini PC: / discord
⭐ Follow on X: / robtechyt
⭐ Follow on Facebook: / robtechyt
00:00 - The Best
01:34 - Best Cooling
03:31 - Best Value
05:18 - Best Features
07:01 - Best Performance
08:43 - Best Gaming
10:33 - New List
These roundup videos are really helpful. Given how frequently new mini PCs are coming out, you should post these regularly!
Yeah, instead of once a year, I'll be updating four times going forward. This one is a month late.
Hi Rob. Thank you very much for another video. I bought a Mele Quieter 3Q when I saw your review and it works very well for the way I use it (Excel, Outlook and browsing). Ever since I saw your review of the Beelink 5560U, I was interested in buying one to replace the Mele here at home and using the Mele to be a Roon server in another house. Keep up the good work.
Thank you for all the work you do! You are awesome! Can't wait for Qualcomm Mini PCs!
Nice choice of categories, and the winners seem like good choices. I like that you're comfortable going with older models if they are still competitive.
Agreed. Latest isn't always the best.
appreciate y'all
Beelink's SER5 series is definitely their best value. I also don't like the proprietary magnetic connector, which is why I stop with the SER5 product line for Beelink recommendations. Great video Rob!
I want to continue seeing your reviews
Thank you very much.
Another good, balanced video here. Nice work. Watched part of another KZheadr’s recent “best mini to buy for specific uses” roundup and it struck me, all three entrants were GMKTech. Can’t imagine why….. Hopefully Rob will be able to keep doing what he’s doing already for as long as he wants to continue to do it.
Definitely not bad, but current Amazon US pricing plus high fan noise makes them miss out.
@@RobtechYeah. Excessive fan noise is a no go for me as is the whiff of “paid to show”.
Glad to see the 5560u. I looked at the n100 for budget and the ones I saw had no better than m.2 Sata drives. The 5560u looks to be a usable budget machine
Unless you want 4K60hz, which it will not provide without unforgivable blackouts. I guess if you don't need 4K60HZ it could fit your usecase.
Im still running the NAB7 13700H still running strong since it first come out.
I read its the same as nab9 except the processor?
what would you recommend for server that 22h a day only hosts websites and 2h also minecraft?
Weird use case here, but I'm going to put a mini PC in a truck to give me the ability to fold up a VESA mount monitor from the dash and smash out invoices while I'm parked up on the side of the road between drives, as well as youtube and stuff on my rest breaks. What mini PC would you suggest? Trying to decide between: Beelink SER5 Mini PC Ryzen 5 5560U MINIX Z100-Aero The Beelink is about $10 cheaper at the moment
I guess it depends what's more important, performance (5560U) or power consumption (N100).
Question in consideration of Ai.. Do any of these minis have dedicated NPUs.. dedicated Ai engine embedded in the processor and graphics cards with tensor cores?
No, that'll be 8000 series AMD and Intel 14th Gen. Haven't reviewed either yet, both on the way likely this month.
BeeLink SER7 is my favorite from this list. 780M iGPU, an excellent Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU, and good ports.
Really like to see actual comparisons between these to really determine these sorts of things instead of opinion pieces :)
Just go to the links he provides to each mini pc review. In each review he provides comparisons, lots of comparisons, in every catergory: performance, power use, noise etc....
The in depth reviews cover that, this is more of a round up so you don't have to watch all the individual reviews.
All the reviews are linked. Compare away.
I dont see the comparison links, where is it exactly
Is the BlackView MP80 good or not?
Yes, might take a spot in the upcoming "Best Minis Under $250" video
YES. NEXT VIDEO BLACKVIEW MP80 VS GMKTEC G5. BOTH N97
Beelink doesn't include Windows 11? How can I use Windows Office on it?
It does include Windows
I got to this Windows forum on the web occasionally and people will ask where they can get a smaller PC. They're always talking about brand names like 'Dell' and 'Asus' and I'm like, dude, there's an entire world of Chinese Minis that dominate. And then I send them your way. I can't believe I just got my wifey the GMTec G3 for so little and it works great.
Intel really needs a budget unit to compete with the 5560u, the n100 isn't going to cut it. Thanks for this refresh on the best of the best in the mini PC space.
Yeah, the N305 was so horribly priced it seems to have dropped out of the mini PC market.
The cheapest ser5 to find from germany is 290€. This is a bit much in my opinion. Because of that i keep watching the price of the nab9 and ser7. Both dont got wifi6e as far as i know, but i tend to nab9 mostly. Regards from germany
SER7 has WiFi 6. NAB9 has WiFi 6E
@@Robtechno chance to get the alloy in germany unfortunately
I believe you can through the official website.
@@Robtech ser 6 and ser 5 have wifi6e, why not the 7. Stupid
Why Minisforum Um780 XTX is not in your top rank? In my opinion it is the most complete and balanced with the price. What you don't like of It?
"I only make recommendations based on minis I've actually reviewed"
@@Robtech ah, sorry. It's right. Hope you will test that model soon . I trust in your opinion about miniPC a lot
No A7 nor IT13?
Both have cooling/performance issues.
If you need a strong Wi-fi connection on a HTPC, then Minix is the only way to go they don't skimp on their Wi-Fi performance as it is one of the strong selling points !
Im more concerned about WIFI connectivity. I want something for the 40" New Dell Curved monitor hub for trading shares. No Gaming. Im also in Australia....not everything on your VLOG is available in Australia right ????????
Beelink and Minisforum are mostly available on Amazon.com.au
Rate top 10 intel mini PCs because lots of people only know i3 i5 i7 and i9
Beelink ser5 5560u is a tank. It is what a mini pc should be... plenty powerful enough to use it as an every day computer and do casual gaming but not powerful enough to make it a jet engine. I just received a Bosgame H66 with Ryzen 6600h which is a AZW brand and so far so good. Packaging and case quality looks better than Ser 5 and Ser 6 (first gen) Beelink.
Except for the lack of properly working 4K60hz I will agree. I hated sending it back, but it was unusable to me, because of this issue.
Greetings from Ukraine, dude! :) Thanks for your reviews - so interesting, short, and “no water” in text. :) Only useful info! Please, advise to me cheap mini-PC with TWO slots for RAM and Type-C for charging for editing video on 1920x1080 from AliExpress. I have own RAM and NVME, so i did need this in mini-PC. We have russian aggression in our country, so I haven't a lot of money, but need mini-PC. Thank you!
It's often cheaper to buy something already with memory and storage. The cheapest option is the Firebat T8 Plus which is regularly around $100 USD and I reviewed favourably. None of the Intel Alder Lake-N CPUs have two memory slots. They only support single channel memory, but still have better graphics capabilities than the previous generation which had two slots. The Intel N100 featured in this mini does pretty well at 1080P video editing.
@@Robtech Oh, man, thanks for quick response and advise. So, maybe you advise me cheap model with RAM 32 Gb (for using VMware soft). I have own 2x16 Gb RAM and NVME if this matter. And i need model with Type-C with charging function (Thunderbold?) for charging from 65W powerbank Baseus (and for big grafic cart using adapter) when we have blackouts because rocket attacks to electric objects from russians? It will be better if this model will be on AliExpress, becouse we have problem with Amazone, becouse war and big price for delivery, but i have friends in Germany and Netherland by the way for delivery for Amazone.
@@user-bq6he4fe7q I really liked this one s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dk1rTtH (Reviewed as the GOODTICO T9), but you'll need to buy a single 32GB DDR4 stick for it if you need 32GB. It can also be powered by USB-C. It's coming up for me $122USD for the barebones when the sale starts in a few hours.
@@Robtech THANKS! :) But this model really have Type-C with charging function? Or just Type-C for file transfer? I see on AliExpress this model wit Type-C 2.0.
I've never heard of USB Type C 2.0. These spec sheets are often wrong. If it's this unit (which it looks to be) kzhead.info/sun/otdyfJuEaJF_io0/bejne.html, then it can be powered by either USB-C Port
Not bad, not bad
$ 1000 gaming PC vs $500 Xbox series x + &500 Mini PC
So agree on the value one Ser5 with the 5560U, I have it and it's just SO fast, you don't see any difference IMO between regular desktops and this one.
Please dont take offense, but ETA Prime got his hands on a mini pc with the RTX 4070 GPU that smokes every mini pc you tested. kzhead.info/sun/abied52br6SZiKc/bejne.html. Rob going forward you should address the chance spyware might be preloaded by Chinese vendors, as in the recent case of Ace Magician. Might want to promote barebones models instead. Good luck buddy.
Virus/malware testing of each OS during the review process was introduced with the GEEKOM A7 on March 2nd.
Of course that smokes all of these, it’s got a 20 core CPU and is way out of the price range of this video ($1200+)…
Let us baseline what we are viewing. These machines are laptops minus the keyboard, mouse and keyboard. They are not gaming machines unless Pong, Checkers, and Chess are what you mean by games. The majority of them lack a viable cooling solution and if you opt to insert an SSD forget about cooling. You can confirm what I am saying by researching how the GTR6 and GTR7 as they got warranty replacements with bases that now comes with vent holes for the fan. To my knowledge to get these machines to "game" you have to edit the BIOS to up the voltage. On that note many of these machines require powered USB expansion units as they cant power it all. For sure the power supply they provide doesn't allow much overhead. Lastly, when someone says there is low fan noise what that means is the fan is tiny an will go out faster as they are not designed for long term use.
Wow so much misinformation and hyperbole in one comment. Well done.
@@Robtech point out the CPU in the group that can be upgraded. point out the CPU that can be bought and put into a desktop. point out the case that has vent holes for the fan. point out the CPU that runs between 60-70 C. point out where the owners of these machines can buy a replacement fan. point out how the fan works when you cover it with an SSD. point out where one will buy the new propritary Beelink adapter, besides Beelink. point out the FPS and settings have been lowered to "play" the game. 99% GPU, 55 FPS at 720P which is not a great gaming experience. how have you missed a Beelink GTR7 that has holes for a fan and published less than 70 C temps and 38dB on actual live game play?
@@clipperbob960 if you want an upgradable CPU these are not the systems for you, just buy a normal PC. These are for people who want a small integrated solution on a budget, or to run a home lab or portable workstation. And cooling is fine on the ones with lower TDP processors, you don’t need much cooling for 15W. For the more powerful processors you’ll have more fan noise, sure.
Not sure how much you get paid by these companies, but i already bought three mini PCs with different issues in the first month. So none of your reviews are based on durability overtime and even genuine.
What are you talking about? His reviews are basically the best mini pc reviews. Which mini did you buy?
That's the main problem with all mini pc's they all have a problem it's just picking the one that has less problems. Eventually mini PC will get to laptop and desktop quality and not fall apart or overheat but right now their running pretty great just don't expect it to be on par with the best desktops.
You'd have to provide more detail than just "different issues". What machines? What are you using them for, how are you using them? What issues? What time frame have you used these 3 different machines?
@@David-uc3cl If you must know: I bought a beelink and windows key was being use by another PC, so i had to return. Bought a GMKtec and the fan was very loud, which meant the PC was overheating. Last i bought a Geekom and the front USB stopped working after two/three weeks and the back two USB followed suit. I'm still in the process of returning that Geekom pc. Anyway I am going back to regular desktops, if an American brand ever create a mini pc that size of one of those off brand ones I'll buy it because i know they're be better. For now i know these type of reviews are a bunch of bluff and lies. I get the companies want to make money and advertise but they will not go far with lies.
@@brads2041 How am i using them? this are PCs they should be used like any other PC right? just like those companies claim right? I used them for streaming, play 2d games. I'm not creating animations or using them for coding or anything like.