GMK G2 Mini PC. 12GB / 512GB and N100 processor.
Listed as $159 AUD which is a steal, with a further $12 off using a code = $161 AUD inc tax before cashback.
Unfortunately I paid about $170 AUD for a similarly spec'd unit a month ago, but noticed the price had dropped when this was sitting in my cart.
My hot air smd station from AliExpress is on standby power 24/7 is the CCP watching me?
The CPC doesn't care about the porn you watch, but the Americans do.
I didn’t say anything about CCP. My concern is the device catching fire due to poor build and quality control.
But AliExpress doesn't make the products!! There are a lot of brands that sell on AliExpress that are excellent quality, and of course there's also dangerous crap from bottom feeders. That's why sites like OzB help, you can read people's experiences such as @Mortgagetightass comment above.
@PukeyLuke: Mortgagetightass is a sample size of one. Doesn’t give any indication of the typical build quality or fire risks.
Would it make you feel safer if you bought the exact same product on ebay?
Seller has nothing to do with it. It’s the brand.
@PainToad: Agreed, that's not what your comment stated though, as if the platform made a difference.
*arr? a quick google just opened a flood gate of things. What is this magic?
Oh man I need this in my life. Thanks that will keep me busy 😂
Thanks for the review. How loud do the fans get under load? I'm comparing to some Beelinks which are rated quitest as noise is high prio in my situation.
3-4W, what about storage?
yeah i've always wondered what people running the arrs on a NUC do about storage. synology etc?
hey just saw this, I have a cheapo 2 bay synology with 2x 6tb drives.
power from the wall using a reader when watching Plex is about 14-20W, idle it's about 5W when the drives are asleep.
the synology is only used as network mounted storage, mini pc does all the lifting
The N100 is a relative powerhouse.
Will be curious to see what equivalent Intel offer with newer architectures.
With the price of each node increasing as it has, I doubt a monolithic die would come in close to this price.
The N97 has already dropped and is faster. Odd naming progression.
EU plug only… factor that into the hassle factor…
Its usb c powered. So the powerpack is whatever
Thanks got one. Will use for home assistant. Got a nas already so not sure if it's worth proxmox'ing given it'll be single purpose….
May as well setup ProxMox, I reckon. That way you can always add other services down the track as you’d have plenty of horsepower left over if it’s just for HA.
Alternatively I'd consider just going with ubuntu server and doing HA as a docker install. Then you can always add more containers later. Love proxmox but on an N100 with 12gb of ram?
Good point. For the N100 Ubuntu/Docker/Portainer and a good backup solution would be the way.
Got one, thanks op.
Is RAM upgradable?
No
GMKTEC G3 16gb DDR4/512GB also available for $188.36 AUD. Removable RAM, up to 32gb!
the G3 doesnt look like its USB-Type C powered though.
True, but you can get USB-C PD to 5.5mm/2.5mm DC Barrel cables, which is what I have done.
@randomdude: Can you help me out with this?
Ali says the power needs 12v/3a. Does that mean i need something that can deliver >= 36 watts?
@Waffles: Here's what I'm buying.
https://www.amazon.com.au/tunghey-5-5X2-5mm-Extension-Chargi…
【PD Sink Chip】: Built-in PD smart Sink chip, so that this PD cable can output voltage stably, strong enough to support maximum 3A current, support USB PD fast charging. (Video and data transfer are not supported.)
【Compatibility】: Support 65W and other power supply PD fast charging, used to convert the PD power supply of the type-c interface into a general DC 5.5mm x 2.5mm interface.
I haven't bought these specific ones before, but I have bought others. As long as the USB-C Power Source can do a 36W = 12V/3A Output, it should work. I currently connect my NUC to a 100W 20V/5A GAN Charger using a similar (20V) cable. You can use a Multimeter to check the DC barrel to confirm it is correct voltage. I have also used in-line USB-C current measuring devices.
I think this is the proper ali link, without the vi:
format and reinstall LTSC windows and massgrave.dev
IoT LTSC
can i use photoshop and lightroom with this?
might be a silly question, can it play games, I mean PC games that are few years old, FPS games.
yep, plenty of vids of people using these as emulators and to play esports at low settings
I was trying out Parellel Desktop on M1 MBP, some games even I reduced the settings to extreme low, still stucks.
Don't use Parallels, use like Crossover or Whiskey
Check out ETA Prime on youtube. He has reviews for this and heaps of other mini pcs
If you can be specific we can find out
CounterStrike2, Ace Combat 7, PUBG.
Genshin Impact if possible.
Check YouTube, CS2 runs shit on these.
maybe pre 2015. so it can do skyrim and crysis
What do people use with these for bulk storage? External drive?
The internal is SATA , not NVME, pity doesn't come with AU power supply, or a power supply with plug in power cord, its EU power supply.
NAS.
Store your data on your network, not on your computers.
What’s the purpose of reinstalling loT LTSC? Thanks
its a lighter version of the latest version of windows without the bloatware which likely will bog it down,
I can see $20 keys on Google. Is this the normal way to get it?
No. There’s no legitimate retail keys for LTSC. All those sellers are doing is selling enterprise keys from a MSDN account which is in breach of the license agreement. If you’re going to do that, you might as well just pirate it.
@anthman: Legally, you can't. It's not meant to be used by home users (or even enterprise desktops).
I'm running Win11 on the T8 Pro (same specs).
With this much ram you won't notice lower speeds imo. Ultimately up to you though.
All coupons claimed it seems
use code - AUOC12
thanks, your reply got me off the fence to buy something I didn't really need (I'm sure I'll be able to justify my purchase)
I kept getting dodgy Aliexpress items had to return twice recently
How does this compares to the GMKtec N97?
N97 is newer, slightly faster cpu, fair bit quicker graphics, draws more power.
Been using one of these for HA and it's been flawless.
Does anyone know if ubuntu will have drivers for all the hardware in this?
Sorry, these coupon codes have already been claimed. However, you can still enjoy other great deals on AliExpress.
Just used AUOC12 one minute ago - worked fine for me. $12 off
Would this work well as a HTPC running Kodi as well as some light game streaming? I'm not afraid to tweak and/or install a different OS but just want to make sure it will work for its intended purpose in the end.
I'm using my T8 Firebat (same spec) for HTPC / Music exclusively. Not familiar with Kodi but this is pretty snappy and flawless for my use case.
No issues with 4K HDR playback etc.?
No issues at all. I had issues with my aging i5 ThinkPad E14 when outputting to HDTV (stuttering etc) which was part of the reason I wanted a mini!
Anyone had issues with shipping?
This product can't be shipped to your address.
I am in VIC and tried Metro + Regional addresses.
I ordered it last night and it worked - VIC metro
Bugger. I think it is OOS.
For your interest, this deal was spotted when looking for a remote to control HTPC.
Ended up ordering this (yet to arrive). Someone might find it useful:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005548968381.html
I can see first time buyer promo of $8, but regular user price of $20. Is there any way you got this lower than $20?
I paid about $20. Haven't been monitoring the price, just needed a keyboard/mouse and this looked class.
Looks like it has expired, can't add it to cart
I'm trying to get into the Mini PC game.. Unfortunately I've missed out on this deal, but what are some of the things that I should be looking for to know if I'm getting a good device?
What's your specific use case? I wouldn't recommend one of these low-power PCs for office or everyday use, they are a bit too slow for that. They are absolutely amazing for home lab/Home Assistant use though, and a better choice than Raspberry Pi 5 for most scenarios.
Yeah exactly that! I'd want it to run Home Assistant, Plex server, Node RED, my Christmas light display, that sort of thing. Not necessarily all on the one device, I'd potentially look at purchasing a couple, but I'm pretty sure the computing power is greater than the Raspberry Pi?
Yeah it's significantly more powerful than the RPi 5 — the real problem with the RPi is that you need to buy a bunch of additional accessories and upgrades to make it do the same stuff, which ends up being just as expensive or more expensive than a mini PC.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40209801
I used to be extremely skeptical but after getting a GMKtec G5 N97, I'm now a true believer in these little computers. Home Assistant OS (bare metal) runs like a dream with 7.2W of idle power draw, and for the N100 CPU it should be even lower.
I use one of these to run plex, and *arr software, it's fantastic, quiet, uses 3-4W from the wall as well. I share my server with 12 others, even 4 transcoding @ 1080p, this thing is a champ!