Just a quick question

I bought a mini PC and it will be delivered in hopefully max 14 days.

I want a reasonable operating system.

I was thinking about

Windows 11 combined with AtlasOS

Normal Windows 11 (with manual tweaks)

Or CachyOS

I am mostly planning to do gaming and daily use (coding, work, browsing the internet)

What do you guys think is best?

Looking for opinions about what to upgrade first for a predominately couch-gaming focussed build on a UM760.

My specific variant has:

- Ryzen 5 7640HS

- 1x16GB 5600MHz DDR5 RAM

- 1TB 2230 M.2

Upgrades I'm planning are:

1. An additional 1x16GB RAM kit

2. An OCulink based eGPU to replace the onboard graphics (probably using an RX 9060 XT, but might splurge for a 9070 XT depending on deals and how impulsive I'm feeling at the time of purchase - ignore a PSU for this option as I already have a spare lying around)

System is currently running Windows 11, but will be moving to Linux at some point as well.

I typically don't play particularly intensive (or modern) games (Darktide, Doom: Eternal, and Horizon Zero Dawn are probably among the more intensive games I've played in the last year), but my Fiance and her sister are keen for the remaster of AC: Black Flag.

If this was your system and use-case, what would you upgrade first? (Assume both will happen in the next 12 months)

Are there any other upgrades I should consider, for a console replacement couch-gaming system?

TIA

Fiancee wants to join in for "friend slop" game nights so mostly Indy games. Not looking for top of the line performance but enough to be comfortable, and doesn't have the space for a full sized pc.

Is this enough of a budget? What do you all recommend looking at?

First of all, I had zero idea that these sized computers existed, but this is going to be great for my application.

I have a small 3d printing business and what started off in a spare bedroom with an ancient desktop, has grown and now I have moved everything to the garage - except the desktop due to its size and simply just nowhere to put it. So that's where a mini would work perfectly for me as a wall mounted workstation, and I'm after some recommendations on a suitable PC.

Doesn't need to run games, I'll use it to slice models, do some light cad/fusion360 work.

Thanks brainstrust!

I'm looking to buy either a Geekom a5 pro or a a6 and I'm wondering if its worth the price.

I don't play any super demanding games. Mostly just roblox , minecraft, sims 4 with mods and valorant. Would it be able to run that?

also, I would appreciate if anyone could give me some more recommendations for £400 or less.

TLDR I'm on the hunt for a Mini PC that can run claude code/docker/backend/frontend related work both at my desk and away from home via remote control.

Hi All - it's getting to the point where my slimline laptop struggles a bit with running multiple sessions of Claude Code building webapps.

So I'm on the hunt for a Mini PC that will sit at home and run coding tasks in relation to web app development. I run docker (with DB) and a front end where I'm using playwright a lot for testing.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has recently bought and if you recommend anything in particular. I'm ideally looking for windows based in the 500-1000usd range (although open to suggestions!). Thanks 😄

Recently, I sold my MacBook because I literally couldn’t play ANYTHING but Roblox and three steam games on it. I have an Xbox series s, but I cannot play marvel rivals on it with my keyboard and mouse set up to it. I was thinking about getting a mini pc because I would like to have a bigger variety of games, and I believe I can upgrade it overtime. I’m not too good with specs and such, so I’m asking here to see if it’ll be a good investment.

https://preview.redd.it/vpz1txwa1kah1.png?width=1536&format=png&auto=webp&s=f52f5075d2c090cbd78ea5cbbe278bdea33d60f3

Hi folks, I’ve been building Pi SD Writer, an Android app focused on one workflow: preparing and flashing SD images for Raspberry Pi/SBC devices directly from a smartphone.

The goal is to remove the laptop/desktop requirement and keep the process reliable even on mobile hardware.

What it does

• Select image source from:
  • Google Drive
  • Local file storage
  • GitLab Releases (Premium)
  • GitHub Releases (Premium)
  • Raspberry OS catalog
• Supports common formats:
  • .img
  • .img.gz
  • .img.xz
  • .iso
  • .zip
• Writes directly to microSD over USB OTG.
• Uses streaming/chunked transfer to reduce peak RAM usage during write operations.
• Includes guided 3-step flow:
  • Source selection
  • USB/device validation
  • Write progress + live log output

Technical approach (high level)

• Cloud/release sources are validated before selection so users get a list of valid image assets first.
• Write path is designed around block/chunk streaming rather than loading full images in memory.
• UI exposes progress state, ETA area, and live diagnostic logs for visibility during long writes.
• Connectivity-sensitive sources (Drive/GitLab/GitHub/Raspberry OS) are disabled when offline.
• Google auth is used for account/session features and plan management.
• Base plan has a monthly write quota; Premium unlocks unlimited writes and extra repository integrations.

Why I built it

The existing SD flashing flow is still desktop-first. I wanted a phone-first workflow that is practical when traveling or when you only have Android + OTG adapter + SD reader.

Known constraints

• OTG hardware quality matters (reader/cable stability can affect results).
• For network-backed sources, internet connectivity must remain stable during transfer.
• UX and recovery paths for interrupted writes are still being improved.

Feedback I’m looking for

1. Which source integration matters most to you (Drive/local/GitLab/GitHub/Raspberry OS)?
2. Would you prefer stricter pre-write validation (slower, safer) or faster start?
3. What diagnostics are most useful in the live log when a write fails?
4. Any must-have feature before wider release?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magix.sdcardimager

Thank you!

I've been playing video games on an M1 Mac mini.

I recently bought a Beelink SER9 (Windows 11) hoping for parity with the Mac mini and to expand my options to include Windows-only games. I was really underwhelmed.

• Minecraft- Using the same set of mods and render distances, the SER9 was playable but noticeably worse than the Mac mini.
• No Man's Sky- Without any mods, the SER9 had abysmally long load times, hanging UI screens, unenjoyable graphics, nearly unplayable FPS-- all on the lowest settings. Trying to improve the quality (even slightly) made the game unplayable (or worse, crash). It's a beautiful game on the Mac mini.

Is wanting to play Minecraft and No Man's Sky asking too much of the SER9? That doesn't bode well for playing other PC games.

I've seen a lot of posts here from folks who use Mini PCs for gaming. Coming from the Apple ecosystem (where things just work) to Windows (where everything is custom) I'm hoping there's some undocumented setup or configuration I'm missing that makes playing more enjoyable... is that the case?

Not having any other tangible data points, I picked the SER9 because it was a little more expensive than my M1 Mac mini, and a few years more modern. Should I have aimed higher for parity in the PC world?

Any recommendations and advice would be appreciated.

UPDATE: Beelink SER9 with Ryzen 7 H 255, 32GB LPDDR5X, Radeon 780M

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