Have a look at the MINISFORUM line of PC's

Also, the UDOO BOLT GEAR

Last edited by Dragunov on 7 July 2021 at 2:16 am UTC

Why not buy a bare-bones NUC, get the SODIMM and SSD separately, and then you've not spent any money on unwanted operating system. I have a couple of NUCs, and my parents have one - All are running Linux. Frankly, I'd find it quite unlikely that any NUC doesn't support (i.e. run without problems) Linux.

EDIT: To be clear here, I'm saying that the hardware supports running Linux. I'm not saying that the manufacturer guarantees that Linux will work, or that the NUC comes with Linux out of the box. (You have to install it yourself.)


Last edited by g000h on 8 July 2021 at 5:33 pm UTC

Quoting: g000hTo be clear here, I'm saying that the hardware supports running Linux. I'm not saying that the manufacturer guarantees that Linux will work, or that the NUC comes with Linux out of the box. (You have to install it yourself.)

Intel don't guarantee that Windows will work on it, either. Linux is one of the Operating Systems they suggest that one could install on it, and they have a list of specific models that have been tested with specific distro releases (since some distros do that kind of thing).

I was going to suggest the Atari VCS if you can get your hands on one. It is a cheap SOC Ryzen machine and looks pretty nice from some the videos I have seen on it.

I have a couple of NUCs, and my parents have one all are running Linux.Mini PCs are fast enough for anything other than high-end gaming, and unlike some laptops spicemoneylogin.in myfiosgateway

Last edited by nbaever3 on 26 November 2021 at 9:50 am UTC

Here are some more search terms you could use:

"ASUS Mini PC"
"Gigabyte Brix"
"MSI Cubi"
"barebones"

I find when I'm hunting out computer products, it is good to use a dedicated online computing store. In the UK, I'd recommend:

www.ebuyer.com
www.cclonline.com
www.scan.co.uk
www.overclockers.co.uk

Once on the store's website, those search terms lead you to a selection of offerings that are easy to navigate and usually keenly priced too. (Reminding that barebones models usually require RAM module and hard drive to complete, and naturally use your own OS: Linux.)

If especially budget-conscious there is also the secondhand market, e.g. Ebay, and you could potentially get something much cheaper than the full-price offering.

Personally I prefer the Asrock Deskmini series as you can put your own CPU, RAM and SSD in there. This is the latest one with support for AMD APU's (you can even throw a 5600G in there): https://www.asrock.com/nettop/AMD/DeskMini%20X300%20Series/index.asp

They're not much bigger than a Nuc but can pack a good punch. Sometimes I run a Deskmini 110 (7th Gen i3 CPU). Mind you it's not great for gaming but I can take it anywhere I want with little effort.

If we're also throwing around devices that are more powerful than the NUC (OP wanted a cheap low-power device) then there's also the Slimbook One. Hopefully it'll get a refresh when RDNA 2 APUs start being available. They'll set it up for you with one of a bunch of distros, or Windows, or dual-boot if that's what floats your boat.

How small do you actually need it to be? I have always used micro ATX boards in slim HTPC cases for this. They're about the size and shape of those old VCRs. Then you just put whatever you want in there.