Suggestions for a fanless computer

Support & Help Requests Hardware
#1

So I think my laptop is dying and I fear I may be in need of a new computer soonish. I’ve been looking at small barebone boxes like the nuc/gigabyte brix/msi cubi/that sort of thing. Something small and discrete and I’d very much prefer a fanless machine. It’ll be plugged into an old hdmi tv (that has decided not to work as a tv anymore), which will do until I buy a proper monitor.

What is putting me off is that these appear to be marketed as nothing more than media centres. Yet looking at the specs, they’re comparable or better than my laptop (Intel T1600 1.66 GHz 2 cores). Am I missing something?

Admittedly, I’ve had to start using an adblocker, and kde and gnome are starting to feel sluggish so I ideally would like something a bit faster to future proof myself a bit. I don’t play games, won’t be playing 4k movies. I pretty much just surf web, navigate around files, open text editor, compile. So what is the minimum recommended spec at the moment?

I’m not flush with cash, and I can’t justify spending hundreds on something. I don’t mind second hand, ideally something around or below the 100 pounds mark. The MSI cubi n (celeron n3050) was selling at 50 pounds (disappeared in the last few hours)…would that have been a good deal or 50 pounds wasted?

Any help/thoughts welcome.

#2

I’ll also be very interested in hearing what others have to say. These tiny little machines sound just the job if they are up to it.

#3

Hi @veggrower,

I have no idea about how good any of the following are?:

#4

I’m writing this post using a Brix N3150.
It’s not fanless, but it is discrete. I have two 1080p screens connected on it.

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#5

Thanks Wolfman, you can certainly go to town on a fanless computer!

This is the kind of thing I’ve been looking at http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/liva-mini-pc-kit-a00tu . It is only a n2808, but comes with 2gb of ram (not upgradable) and 32GB of storage. All for just short of 100 pounds. Predictably somebody has posted a less than flattering video review - http://www.kitguru.net/desktop-pc/leo-waldock/ecs-liva-x-mini-pc-review/

That pretty much tallies with what I keep reading about these boxes. Yet if you look up the spec of the processor http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Celeron+N2808+%40+1.58GHz&id=2505 it actually just outscores the one in my laptop (and I don’t consider my laptop useless).

For the same money you could get a j1900 gigabyte brix http://www.ebuyer.com/711030-gigabyte-brix-gb-bxbt-1900-2ghz-vga-hdmi-barebone-gb-bxbt-1900?mkwid=sAR3N2K8P_dc&pcrid=51482413019&pkw=&pmt=&gclid=CM7Evv6Iu9ECFeMp0wodZsQEBw . That’s double the CPU mark, but it is not passively cooled (supposedly a very quiet fan) and you have to buy ram and storage on top.

For a little bit more money you can have what I think is passively cooled the fanned https://www.scan.co.uk/products/asrock-beebox-j3160-mini-pc-barebone-dp-2x-hdmi-1x-usb-30-type-c-3x-usb-30-ac-wifi-plusbt-40-remote- or wait for one of these http://www.udoo.org/udoo-x86/ but then you have to add a case etc.

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#6

@ouroumov what is the performance like?

#7

Hallo

Tuxedo Computers have this:

https://www.tuxedocomputers.com/Linux-Hardware/Linux-Computer-/-PCs/Alle-Systeme/TUXEDO-InfinitySilent-passiver-Kleinst-PC-Quad-Core-Energiespar-CPUs-bis-Intel-Core-i7-VESA-Halterung-bis-2-HDD/SSD-bis-32GB-DDR4-RAM.geek

I bought one a year ago. 1 SSD for the system and a standard turning drive for the data. Ubuntu Mate was pre installed following my written and telephone request (it wasn’t an available option back then - but now you can select Ubuntu-Mate from the list of OSs they will pre-install!).
i5 processor
I had to make one external modification - for hot summer days here in central europe the machine sits on top of a “HAMA maxi Notebook-Cooler”, which has a 22cm diameter fan and has kept the temperature low (psensor) no matter what I’ve been doing. Of course I only swith on the fan when the work load or a hot day requires it.

It is VERY quiet. If you want total silence fit only SSDs - my fine ears can hear the spinning drive - just.

Would I recomend this? Yes.
Would I buy one again? Yes.

By the way, Tuxedo have told me that their on-line store will be adding extra languages in 2017 - for the moment it’s a German language website - but the configuration is all via drop-down menus - most people should be able to find their way around.

Hope that helps. :slight_smile:

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#8

It’s pretty good, though not the kick of an i5. It’s still enough to read full HD videos (two at the same time).

#9

@alpinejohn that looks like it means business! Sadly it wouldn’t be troubled by hot summer days here…

But you’ve made me look a bit more at cooling. These cheap boxes just seem to use the case as a heatsink (if they don’t have a fan), and I don’t like the idea of that. They could get quite hot since they don’t seem to be designed well to dissipate heat.

Current plan is maybe to get a cheap box with a small fan. If the fan turns out to be annoying, then possibly whack a giant heatsink on it and maybe create a custom case for the thing.

@ouroumov thanks for the follow up. It’s good to know it performs okay.

#10

For anybody who’s thinking of reusing an old thin client, somebody has put together a superb website with everything you need to know - http://www.parkytowers.me.uk/thin/hware/hardware.shtml

#11

I have a Brix J1900 on a VESA mount on the back of one of my monitors on my desk. It’s running Libre Elec and is almost inaudible. One thing to note is that you need to turn off some of the intel powersaving features in the UEFI, otherwise you can experience random lockups when running Linux. It’s peculiar to just the Bay trail-D processors & chipsets like the J1900. So fan will spin up more often because of it, but as I mentioned, it’s almost inaudible on the Brix. What you need to turn off seems to vary by motherboard. On the Brix I needed to disable Lowest Power C States and C State Reporting.

Some of the more recent (and therefore more expensive) thin clients are really quite satisfactory as a low spec desktop. The main issue is lack of expansion, although some have expansion bays available. Parky Towers site really is a wealth of knowedge there. His Write-ups there include what thin clients are expandable and CPU upgrade details for those with socketed CPUs (usually AMD). For a few $ (or Euros, or Etc.) you can usually find used processors that will give a big performance boost while staying in the thermal envelope of the original.

Cheers!

#12

For more information on that, see point #3 in this topic.

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#13

Thanks for the info regarding the j1900. I do wonder if there is a wider problem with Intel. My laptop seems to have big problems in 16.04, but if I boot into an ISO from say 16.10, I don’t seem to have the same trouble.

Does anybody use a Raspberry Pi 3 as a normal pc? My experience of the original Pi has put me off the idea, but I’d like some updated info on the pi 3.

#14

That solution is definitely more elegant than tinkering with the UEFI! I hadn’t seen that when I searched for a solution, so thank you for pointing it out.