mini pc News - Page 4 of 149 - CNX Software

December 11, 2024December 28, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 14 Comments

MeLE QuieterDL – An ultrathin fanless Intel N100 mini PC with dual 2.5 GbE, HDMI, DisplayPort, and USB-C video outputs

MeLE QuieterDL is a fanless mini PC with an ultrathin design similar to the MeLE Quieter4C, albeit larger, and featuring two 2.5GbE RJ45 ports and supporting triple display setups via HDMI, DisplayPort, and USB-C connectors. The computer also comes with up to 16GB LPDDR4 RAM, 512GB storage, a microSD card slot, a 3.5mm audio jack, three USB 3.2 ports, one USB 2.0 port, WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.1 wireless connectivity, and Kensington lock slot for theft prevention. MeLE QuieterDL specifications: SoC – Intel Processor N100 CPU – Quad-core Alder Lake-N processor @ up to 3.4 GHz (Turbo) GPU – 24EU Intel HD graphics @ 750 MHz Cache – 6MB cache TDP: 6W System Memory – 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB LPDDR4X Storage Up to 512GB storage; support up to 4GB (unclear where it’s an eMCM flash + SSD configuration, or SSD only) MicroSD card reader Video Output 1x HDMI 2.0 port […]

December 9, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

UP Xtreme i14 Edge – An Ubuntu 24.04 Pro industrial mini PC powered by Intel Core Ultra “Meteor Lake” SoC

UP Xtreme i14 Edge is an industrial fanless mini PC preloaded with an Ubuntu Pro-validated Ubuntu 24.04 Linux distribution and powered by an Intel Core Ultra 5/7 “Meteor Lake” SoC with up to 64GB LPDDR5. The device is based on the UP Xtreme i14 SBC we covered last June, and comes with M.2 PCIe sockets for NVMe SSD, a SATA port, 2.5GbE and GbE interfaces, support for WiFi and 4G LTE/5G wireless modules, four 8K capable video output ports (HDMI, DP, and USB-C), and three USB Type-A ports, but is housed in a fanless metal enclosure with two RS232/RS485 DB9 connectors and an externally-accessible terminal block for GPIO signals. UP Xtreme i14 Edge specifications: Meteor Lake-H/U SoC (one of the other) Intel Core Ultra 7 165H 16-core (6P+8E+2LPE) processor @ 1.4 / 5.0 GHz with 24MB cache, Intel 8Xe LPG graphics @ 2.3 GHz, Intel AI Boost NPU; TDP: […]

December 5, 2024December 28, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

GEEKOM GT1 Mega review with Ubuntu 24.10 – Part 3: Linux on an Intel Core Ultra 9 185H “Meteor Lake” mini PC

GEEKOM GT1 Mega Ubuntu 24.10 Linux review

We’ve already had a look at GEEKOM GT1 Mega’s hardware with an unboxing and a teardown before following up with a thorough review of the Intel Core 9 Ultra 185H mini PC with Windows 11 Pro. After being interrupted by some Raspberry Pi reviews, I finally had the time to test the GEEKOM GT1 Mega with Ubuntu 24.10 to check out how well (or not) it works with a recent Linux distribution. I’ve tested the features of the Meteor Lake mini PC in Linux, ran some benchmarks, evaluated storage and network performance, played 4K and 8K videos on YouTube at various frame rates, went through a stress test to check its thermal design, and finally measured the mini PC’s fan noise and power consumption. Ubuntu 24.10 installation I would usually review mini PCs with the latest Ubuntu LTS version which would currently be Ubuntu 24.04.1. However, since the Intel Core […]

November 28, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Barebone Intel Celeron 2955U or Pentium 3805U fanless industrial mini PC goes for $60 (Promo)

Low-cost Intel Celeron 2955U fanless mini PC

If you’re in need of a low-end, cheap x86 platform you’re in luck since XCY is selling the X46G industrial fanless mini PC powered by an Intel Celeron 2955U Haswell processor or a Pentium 3805U Broadwell CPU for just about $60 as a barebone system, or around $74 with 4GB of RAM, a 64GB SSD, and a WiFi module as part of a Black Friday 2024’s promotion. It’s even cheaper in some other shops, as we’ll see below. Both CPUs have been discontinued since 2021, and nobody should use those in a desktop system unless you are of the very patient type. However, if you want to run some lightweight Windows or Linux application(s), make use of RS232 ports for industrial control, set up a Full HD HTPC, configure a dual GbE server, or need to run FreeDOS or similar x86-only operating systems, those ultra-cheap Intel mini PCs might prove […]

November 26, 2024November 27, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite Review – Part 3: Ubuntu 24.04 on a low-cost mini PC

GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite Ubuntu 24.04 review

We have already checked the hardware of the GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite mini PC in the first part of the review, before testing the low-cost Intel Processor N100 mini PC with its 8GB RAM and 256GB SATA SSD running Windows 11 Pro in detail in the second part. We’ve now had time to test the GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite with Ubuntu 24.04 in the third and final part of the review. We’ll test the features in Linux, run some benchmarks, evaluate storage and network performance, play some 4K and 8K videos in YouTube playback, perform a stress test to check its thermal design, and finally measure the mini PC’s fan noise and power consumption. We’ll also compare the results in Linux to the earlier GEEKOM Mini Air12 mini PC with the same CPU, but better specs and a higher price. A challenging Windows 11 / Ubuntu 24.04.1 dual boot installation […]

November 25, 2024December 1, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

Beelink EQ14 mini PC features Intel N150 quad-core “Twin Lake” processor, built-in power supply

Last month we noted the Intel Processor N150, Processor N250, and Core i3-N355 Alder Lake-N Refresh CPUs were found in the upcoming ASUS NUC 14 Essential mini PC family, but availability was unclear. The Beelink EQ14 is the first Intel N150 mini PC which can be purchased today on either AliExpress (with EU plug) or Amazon for $182 and up for Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024. Beelink calls the CPU family “Twin Lake” instead of “Alder Lake-N Refresh”, but we can’t confirm that since the N150 has not been officially launched yet and it’s not listed on Intel Ark. The computer is equipped with 16GB DDR4 memory, a 512GB NVMe SSD, two HDMI ports, two gigabit Ethernet ports, WiFi 6, etc… It also comes with a more unusual feature: a built-in AC power supply, something we previously saw in the Beelink EQ13 with an Intel N200/N100 CPU. Beelink EQ14 […]

November 20, 2024November 23, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024 – International deals and coupons

While Black Friday and Cyber Monday used to be a US-only event, it changed many years ago, and we’ve been writing about international Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals and coupon codes since 2014, since a large portion of our audience cannot benefit from promotions on Amazon’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday events that will take place from November 21 until December 2 this year. So I’ve gathered some international Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024 deals and discount coupon codes from relevant manufacturers and popular online stores such as Aliexpress, Banggood, and others. Aliexpress Black Friday and Cyber Monday event Aliexpress’ Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024 event has already started. There are three periods: Nov 19-21 PST – Warm Up event where users can find and add items to the cart before purchasing during the main event. Nov 22-30 PST – “On Sale” event with discounts up to […]

November 17, 2024November 26, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite review – A low-cost Intel Processor N100 mini PC tested with Windows 11 Pro

GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite mini PC review windows 11

We’ve already checked the hardware of the GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite mini PC with an unboxing and teardown in the first part of the review. It is a low-cost mini PC based on an Intel Processor N100 CPU, coupled with 8GB DDR4-3200 memory, a 256GB M.2 SATA SSD, dual Display output through HDMI and DisplayPort connector, GbE, WiFi 6E, and a 9-pin expansion header port – as found in some NUC model – to access an external power button, reset button, and LEDs when housed in a cabinet or kiosk. You’ll find the full Mini Air 12 Lite specifications in our previous article about it. We’ve now had more time to test the mini PC, so we’ll report our experience with the Mini Air12 Lite running Windows 11 Pro operating system in the second part of the review. We’ll go through a software overview, test most of the features, run […]