Barebones Deals & Offers

I'm looking for a cheap NUC only for Plex.....

Lol.. if your looking for a Nuc give me a message and I will send you links to some I've got my eye on. I've gone through a ton and got it down to 2.

That's funny as I was just looking today. Eggs all round!

This is a 3 month old post. Double egg on my face.

I spent so long talking I missed the deal lol.. argh. Buy first talk second. Gawd damn!

Have you got a link this one good for setting up a vpn?

£46 now

if you already have it and you aren't having any issues then i cant see why you would need to not sure how good support to previous OS is with the software so cant comment really

For anyone only casually interested in the Pi (like me) it might be worth setting up a price alert on this bundle - https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01HPJYC84/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Last time Amazon had them was about 6 weeks ago and I picked one up for £17. Including the official 16GB SD card. Wasn't even interested in them at the time, but too good to pass up :p

I got one of these last time it cropped up. The case is solid and the sinks do the job.

Now £39.99

So long as you don't need to transcode. i.e. if your Plex player (TV, etc.) can direct handle the formats stored in Plex.

fantastic as a Plex server

Just add an SD card.

Any good as a plex server?

Hmm. might be tempted... would be an upgrade from my current Atom N450 Netbook

You're basically describing a Chromebook.

I use one as a vehicle diagnostic laptop running Windows 7 and it's worked quite nicely, fairly slow...a small ssd drive might help...it's not bad on batteries. There is lots of educational software available for it, using some of it's hidden features. Good for the money , if you want to have a project to play with.

CPU in this thing is about 40% weaker than the £30 linx tablets that appear here now and again.

Any good as a linux box? Are there any gotchas in doing this (lack of driver support, etc) ?

Thanks! Bought a new dell branded 8gb stick for £38.

Anyone know where you can buy one of these, as I quite fancied one.

lucky chap

Yes mine also arriving tomorrow by DPD

Mines been dispatched. Arriving tomorrow via dpd.

stoopid kids making me miss deals

must have only been 1 :/. missed again

Back in stock on Amazon and eBay @ £216.

kind of wish I picked one up now

Well quick delivery mine arrived today got my stuff today the only downside being a don't have a mini hdmi cable

I have an ML10 v2, and will be sticking with it... The ML10 v2 has two ethernet ports, and I was really hoping for front USB 3.0 ports. It's also about £70 cheaper to get hold of a compatible Xeon if you're happy with used. Maybe the Gen10 will look a little better...

I don't know what you're looking at but both machines have 4 RAM slots and 4 internal 3.5" drive bays, although the HP, being taller, does have an extra 5.25" bay which could be purposed for additional drives (e.g. 2 x 2.5") if required. With some imagination you could stuff either full of velcro/tie-wrapped drives if you're desperate. It's all a bit of a moot point anyway; there's plenty space in both for any realistic use, and if a huge amount of performant storage is a need then you're probably looking at the wrong solution with either of these two servers. I can't see any reference to 're-casing' the T20 on eBuyer. Would seem a rather futile and expensive way of doing things. If you need a small server, just buy one? And if you do, why all the fretting about drive bays?

It shows 4 bays available on each? Also one of the comments on Ebuyer states that while you can transfer into a smaller case (which I would do) the headers are different and some other cables would be required, there is also only one RAM slot so although you can get more RAM it has to be a single stick, that and I'd not use either 32gb or 64gb. The processor is more 'future' proof for sure but I wonder how many hours and PITA messing around I'll have to do to get it to where I want it? I'd also need to buy DDR4 as opposed to just using a stick from my existing system. Edit: The T20 looks like it may have to taken itself out the running anyway as it's case is bigger than I want so downsizing the existing setup looks the best option and that is the ML10 if I'm going through the processes

You make a good point to be fair.

This one? https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/dell-poweredge-t20-intel-g3220-4gb-ram-500gb-hdd-mini-tower-server-delivery-ebuyer-2594521 Yes, I get that is a bit smaller and it comes with a (cheap/slow) HDD but has older & slower CPU/memory, it's more expensive than the HP (after cb) and will similarly be unable to be rehoused in a Microserver-size case. The £20-odd you save buying the HP goes a fair way to buying a small SSD for the OS, hugely improving the responsiveness. It's your money though :)

Hello, No guide - I just unplugged and unscrewed the laptop style blower fan. Cleaned up the CPU die then applied new thermal paste and a small heatsink from an old motherboard chipset this sort of thing(be careful not to use one that's too big as it'll short out components around the CPU (use non conductive tape on the parts not making contact with CPU die) the weight of the metal and paste kept it in place without movement, so no clasp etc needed to fix it down. Mine was a little too tall to put the top of the case back on but I wasn't fussed.Idles around 30degrees with max temps of 65degrees when 100% stress/burn tested so very happy.actually cools better than that awful blower fan with the top off

Meant to type 'please', where are my manners.

​Interesting. Did you follow a guide or are you able to give me a steer on that front, seems like a good idea as the fan is noisy.

​I removed the built in fan and installed a passive heatsync onto mine. use it as a silent plex server. Perfect for what I need.

What do you guys think of yours? Rate it or not?

Yes it is a barebones system but where some NUC's and similar devices allow additional RAM or maybe a HDD/SSD, this one allows a greater range of things, including CPU. More flexibility in a small box.

​yes

​yes

i dont understand what this is. Is it basically a case with a motherboard fitted and you have to supply the cpu, ram and hard disk?

More info over at the ASRock site. http://www.asrock.com/nettop/Intel/Deskmini%20110%20Series/

soz -- my mistake, I thought the price had changed, but I hadnt seen the code first

This has been up here before. A very niche device with a CPU benchmark of around 556. However, it is fanless.

Does not mean to hijack this thread, but I just want to inform you this memory can can complement, but this is for prime (you can just use the trial prime). See my comment you can get this for about £7.99. I just want to help. https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/crucial-ct102464bf160b-8-gb-pc3-12800-unbuffered-non-ecc-1-35-v-1024-meg-x-64-17-2478820

Thanks, have ordered one

Best to use an SSD with a USB3 adapter that supports UASP. This is the one that I am using: StarTech.com USB 3.0 to 2.5" SATA III Hard Drive Adapter Cable w/ UASP - SATA to USB 3.0 Converter for SSD/HDD - Hard Drive Adapter Cable

Thanks, will give this a go, I wonder what the experience will be like regarding speed

No.

That looks interesting, thanks for sharing 8-)

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/acer-revo-m1601-nettop-celeron-2gb-ram-32gb-ssd-99-ebuyer-2378103?page=2#comments Post there says about the acer revo its a 32gb emmc not ssd drive ?

Pretty much any Bay Trail mini PC will outperform this by 100% in threaded tasks. And as others have pointed out, other products in the Brix products with low-end Celerons or Jxxx0 SOCs will be even more performant for very little extra money. What this has going for it is expandability in the drive bays and RAM slots that other Bay Trail mini PCs might not offer. I'd be genuinely keen to learn of any application where you think this would shine above the burgeoning competition. Edit: with a wee bit more reading, the TDP of 6W is quite interesting. If you want an always-on device with consumption around that of a raspberry pi then I guess that I can see the point of this.

£1.80 cheaper than when I posted it 3 weeks ago and still getting a frosty reception :) Definitely a poor cpu.

The J1900 version is around the same price.

Such as?

You can get one with a better CPU for just £3.02 more. https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/gigabyte-brix-gb-bxbt-2807-2-5-hdd-celeron-barebone-mini-pc-69-99-maplin-2413812

Terrible processor, cold

CPU Mark of 505, I think my Arduino is faster!

Intel Atom E3825 is older and SLOWER then most popular Atom Z3735 processor, in my opinion its very cold! Very cold and very outdated! Silvermont architecture is 3 years old now... This box will have a problem even with High bit-rate HD Videos

for the same price, I think id rather get this used item from ebuyer, I know its fixed 32gb is limiting (and slow) but way better cpu http://www.ebuyer.com/739384-exdisplay-acer-revo-m1601-nettop-intel-celeron-n3050-1-6ghz-2gb-ram-32gb-ebr1-dt-b28ek-002

Available at Amazon.de for £119.90 delivered to the UK. Using a Halifax clarity card or similar. £15 saving over the current Amazon UK price.

Now £130.94 only 4 left http://www.amazon.co.uk/ASRock-Beebox-N3150-BB-Barebone/dp/B00ZXXU04U?tag=hotukdeals03-21

now £130

what bay trail boxes are you referring to?

No worries. You are correct in that the cheaper boxes are great if simply for media centre use. I was recommending the Beebox more as a versatile all rounder, because it would probably be a bit overkill just as a media centre. Though I am using mine as one. ;)

As the Revo i3 is now sold out I'd probably consider the Celeron Revo at £149 http://www.tesco.com/direct/acer-revo-one-mini-pc-inc-remote-control-intel-celeron-4gb-1tb-white/650-5275.prd?pageLevel=&skuId=650-5275 Again, the Asus is much nicer looking than this Revo that looks like it belongs in the kitchen!) but performance/value seems a lot better on the Revo

I would grab one at that price. Every time I check its oos, and the lesser celeron cpu is available

It was available yesterday and the deal was from 2 days back, I was thinking of getting one!

That model hasn't been available at tesco for ages now and likely won't be back at that price

Poor specs when compared to the i3 Acer revo for the same price https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/acer-revo-rl85-i3-179-99-tesco-2362895 Although this looks a lot nice than the Acer.

If they try to avoid giving you a refund then just call Trading Standards.

I have heard back from YoYoTech and am less than happy: I'm drafting a response to the effect that it is not legal to take my money for an advertised product and then deliver something different but doubt it will get me far. For anyone else who ordered here is a link showing the site as it was on the 3rd before they removed references to the 64GB m-SATA drive.

Yes, I think the legal high ground is mine and I haven't even spoken to them yet so they might come good. Did anyone else order it and get the mSATA?

Legally they are obliged to supply the product as advertised, so disappointing to hear that they removed it.

Sorry to hear that. For a company selling the most expensive prebuilt ever you would have thought you were buying from a premium seller. Get a refund or moan them till they give in. Poor business practices

Never came across them !. I got this one due to having RAM and a SSD already. Going to use it as a PLEX server. USB 3.0 for a 1TB External hard drive.

Not as small, but some of the Sedatech PCs that Amazon are selling come with W7/8, HDD, 4 / 8GB RAM and J1900 CPUs for a touch above £100. The prices for them are all over the place, it's a matter of searching for "Sedatech PC" then ordering them lowest price first. The "sale" has been going on for weeks now with bargains still to be had appearing at regular and irregular intervals. http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=sr_st_price-asc-rank?keywords=sedatech+pc&rh=n%3A340831031%2Ck%3Asedatech+pc&qid=1447980237&sort=price-asc-rank

How would this compare to a laptop priced around £200?

Was going to go for this when I saw a n2807 with 160gb hard drive and 4gb ram which I managed to get for £80. Had windows 8 on so just added my product key. Literally just being used for plex and streaming via kodi and it's perfect, 1080p handles no issues. Kodi takes about 30 15-20 seconds to boot but once in it's just as quick as my fire stick I originally used.

Thanks for the info, mine arrived this morning so I'll see what I can do with it when I've got time to set it all up. Tempted to put windows on it but not liking the price of a new copy!

Tried both Ubuntu and Mint - strangely Ubuntu went in flawlessly but Mint with the same USB (brand new too) decided to have seek errors and issues reporting a "bad cable" .. very strange.. rebooted with an Ubuntu install on the USB and it worked fine.. Need to do some more digging, but once they were on the SSD both ran fine.. got some hardinfo stats if you're interested though to be fair they're all pretty comparable .. the big thing is that Ubuntu uses around 650-700 MB Ram on warming up, Mint uses about 350-400.......

Does anyone have a problem with the audio coming on after a second or 2 when playing music/videos? Each time I pause and play is has this lag... I'd imagine its a driver issue? I am using sound through HDMI into an AV Receiver.

ASRock Beebox N3150/B/BB Barebone Mini PC - Bla ck £128.49 & FREE Delivery in the UK or £124.39 flubit http://www.amazon.co.uk/ASRock-Beebox-N3150-BB-Barebone/dp/B00ZXXU04U/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1452605180&sr=1-1&keywords=beebox

You bought a better spec PC, five months later and for a cheaper price? I should damn well hope so!! :{

just bought a beebox n3150 £134.99 250gb ssd samsung 8gb ram :p

What are you using it for? If it is for movies than this unit can be powered on/off from the remote easily, in which case you probably won't notice the fan

Thanks flea, I want to keep it on 24x7 so I'm torn between the noise of the fan and it getting too hot

Use Flubit for £93 or Bespoke for £92, based on the Ebuyer URL. I assume that Ebuyer have shifted most of the excess stock, which is why the prices have firmed. I bought at £85 and £89. Dabs have it for £96 delivered if you don't want to use Flubit or Bespoke.

Thanks for this soza, I was waiting for info on the new Brix. Sticking with VGA on the GB-BACE-3000 is baffling really and it looks like the GB-BXCE-3205 isn't fanless (not surprising with a TDP of 15w). Looks like the Beebox is definitely the one for me unless there are any contenders soon....

Nice one, probably pull the trigger soon then :)

I've owned one for a while now and it's been great, but I suspect that the price will continue to go down. They've just recently announced the GB-BACE-3000 which is also fanless, has 4 USB 3.0 ports, split headphone and MIC ports, supports wireless AC, up to 8GB of DDR3L @ 1600 MHz and it also has a built in micro SD card reader. I believe that the other fanless version is the GB-BXCE-3205. It costs more, but it's slimmer, supports more memory and it should also be a little faster than than the other two. Would I recommend any of these for Kodi alone? No as there's cheaper alternatives. For a compact and totally silent PC they're amazing though.

Mine was £26 from the UK. It can run any skin.