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Ask HN: Do you use a mini PC, and what's your workflow?

15 points by shortrounddev2 ↗ HN
I work fully remote, and like to go out for lunch during the day. Sometimes a work emergency will come up and I either need to head home, or have a laptop with me.

I would prefer to have a small 7 or 8 inch netbook which can fit in a very small bag, but it seems like they don't really make these types of PCs anymore. I do, however, see a LOT of mini PCs. This product confuses me: who is frequently near a monitor and power outlet, but not a desktop computer or laptop? It seems like a niche product but there appears to be quite a lot of mini PC manufacturers out there.

Do you use these things? What is your workflow/use case?

31 comments

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k310
I use a mac mini. Have had one for years. Latest model is a $600 M2 CPU and monitors are (almost) everywhere.

I haven’t tried using it headless (as with an ipad or laptop as monitor)

shortrounddev2
> monitors are (almost) everywhere.

Can you give me an example of a place you're commonly at where you have access to a monitor? Personally I can't think of any other than home

palata
Same question. Monitor + keyboard/mouse, I guess.
PaulHoule
Like this kind of thing?

https://www.servethehome.com/dell-optiplex-7000-intel-alder-...

I have one on my desk at work, when I need to log in remotely (not often) I use my old work laptop. For my personal work I have this bad boy

https://mastodon.social/@UP8/110568695732952713

that I log into with an iPad (bluetooth mouse and keyboard work fine but not if I add bluetooth headphones to the mix) using Remote Desktop and Tailscale.

shortrounddev2
Yeah the first is what I mean. I see a lot of those but I don't understand the portability aspect of it. They're often advertised as "pocket size", which I assume means "portable" (why else have it in your pocket?) But I can't imagine a portable PC is very useful without access to a monitor or keyboard
PaulHoule
I could take mine home for work and plug it in at home, but it would not be good for being out on the town.
ThrowawayR2
I think you're under some kind of misapprehension? Mini PCs aren't meant to be mobile. They're just cheap PCs for ordinary office workers that don't need any expandability and/or don't have the desk space to accommodate a full sized desktop. They're common as dirt because corporations buy or lease them by the truckload and that is also what makes used mini PCs dirt cheap.
shortrounddev2
They often advertise as "pocket sized", which I take to mean: "put this in your pocket", but I guess I could be wrong
shoo
yep. another use case, specifically for mac minis, is (was?) build servers. buy 20-30 mac minis, lock them in a dedicated room in the office, use them to execute build & test CI jobs for company's ios app. no one is carrying them around, they're used as servers.
screwturner68
I use them in my home lab. The company is too cheap to provide me with a real lab but $1000, ebay and some creativity I can pretty much do whatever I need to do on my own.
yuppie_scum
iPad + keyboard folio can get a lot done on the go.
shortrounddev2
I would do something similar if I could get a desktop OS running on a tablet, but I would prefer a much smaller tablet than the iPad (like 7in). I need to be able to run either Linux or (preferably) windows. I wonder if there are mini tablets that do what I want...
ThrowawayR2
GPD Win 4. Otherwise, load Windows on a refurbished Steam Deck and carry a separate folding keyboard and mouse.
rtcoms
iPad Mini would be just 1.3 inch bigger
shortrounddev2
That could work if I could run windows or Linux on it
BMc2020
I bought one for $92 on amazon

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BHP34TH1

basically for a background media player, mostly youtube. It works fine. It's also fine as a backup and programming arduinos.

It's not my main machine but I'm glad I have it.

MichaelMug
I’ve been using Mini PC’s instead of a laptop for travel. I started with used HP EliteDesks from eBay. I use the TV in my hotel room and Bluetooth peripherals. Mostly for gaming on the go.

MINISFORUM has some great specs at reasonable prices.

Today I travel with a custom 5L SFF build that has an 5700x and 3060 12GB. My build is much more powerful than your typical laptop in the same price point.

shortrounddev2
Do you not need to use the device when out of the hotel?
roland35
I have an HP server at home, TailScale helps with logging in on the go.
heywire
I have one of those Intel “stick PCs”. I keep it running in my server rack for anything I need Windows for. It is not fast, but at like 2W idle, I don’t worry about leaving it running all the time. I just RDP into it when I need it.

I also have a few of those “mini PCs” around the house for various things. One is my “server” (NAS, docker host, etc), one is a Proxmox host so I can spin up random VMs as needed, and my son uses one as a gaming PC.

ta456457547
Personally I got sick of updates hosing my OpnSense home router, so I installed Proxmox on a little Zotec mini PC. That way I can clone it, update, then rollback as needed (pita just having serial console access, gotta dig out an old HP laptop with a serial port etc).

Just today I bought a new ASUS mini pc (PN52). That'll be for Proxmox, and my new world order (making an mmo, not fancy 3d one, but still addictive).

aborsy
Computers have become powerful over time. Those mini PCs are desktops and computers. They draw little power, can do office tasks and serve as servers.
Mrirazak1
I use a MacBook Pro and my iPad Pro. I think these two are my powerhouse for coding, designing and doing all I need because I brainstorm on my iPad and research and use it to Disney/aappletv+ etc. and my Mac is for hardcore stuff.
flagged24
Mini PC (ASRock X300) and Samsung DeX on a S22 Ultra for on the go / portable sessions. Both setups using a portable 15.6" screen.
toast0
I've used mini pcs as desktop machines. I didn't need a lot of performance, and wanted a small form factor to not clutter the desk. Recent cores, expandable memory, good enough storage, gigE, wifi if you need it. Don't really need anything more than that, although I did replace them with MiniITX desktops, as I wanted a bit more performance at a certain point. MiniPCs work well for HTPCs, too.

If you shop well, a mini PC can be cheaper than you can build a desktop from parts, and probably cheaper than a laptop, too.

I did breifly mount one to the back of a monitor and bring it to my garage to run some ODB-II software with my car, as I didn't have a laptop that could do it, but that felt pretty silly. Otherwise, these things aren't hard to move, but I didn't move them.

qup
I carry around a thinkpad when I might need to use a keyboard.

It gets like 11 hours battery life even with Linux. It's a 14-inch screen I think, and I find it a good compromise.

I'm a terminal nerd anyway

gtirloni
Look for GPD micro PC or Pocket 3.
PurpleRamen
There are multiple different flavors of mini-pcs and use cases for them.

Namely, using them in shops and offices as some better terminal, often just connecting to some server. But also at home as a media center, for children or as an energy-friendly solution. Mobile usage would be usually at events, like a fair, convention, or some workshop, where you want something small light which is not heavy to carry. Especially when you have multiple of them will they be a better and often cheaper alternative to a notebook. Then there is also the special corner of people who want something small for working, hacking, tinkering, where a normal notebook is too big, heavy or expensive, or lacking some special feature. And then there is also the very special type of people, who just fancy exotic hardware, and buy it mainly for the coolness. The two last groups have usually a bit overlapping, and people want some small but powerful enough for mobile tinkering, which is also hackable on its own, and kinda fancy at the same time.