[esskay]

I think if its a one off purchase for use as a general pc or learning tool that doesn't require GPIO something like a second hand thinkcentre or optiplex is probably the best option.

They'll be cheaper than a Pi 5 or Pi 500, plus often come with a keyboard and mouse in addition to the power supply. Sure, they arent going to be quite as power efficient but you're getting significantly more for your money, as well as repurposing second hand kit that might have otherwise ended up in landfill.

GPIO aside I struggle to think of a good reason to buy a Pi 5 for this sort of application, especially when the cheaper second hand alternatives have one thing the pi doesn't - upgradability.

On the N100's, they seem to occasionally get a fair bit cheaper. The GMKtec G3 Mini for example (8GB ram, 256GB SSD) was down to £67.55 on Aliexpress[1] recently for example.

I do like a good Pi but for a lot of applications they just do not make much financial sense anymore.

[1] https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/gmktec-g3-mini-pc-intel-ald...

[tacticalturtle]

I’m all for second hand, and have gone in this direction myself for use cases, but you do need some bare minimum level of technical competency, or someone to guide you.

I’ve purchased several SFFs on eBay, and had some experiences with broken hardware.

If you’re purchasing this as learning tool, particular for kids/teenagers, that’s not going to be a great experience.

That’s really the market where something like the Pi 400/500 shines. It’s new, it’s going to work, and the documentation/tutorials are super accessible.

[esskay]

I'm not really referring to broken / questionable hardware here. I'm talking about ex office stock thats been flashed with a fresh copy of Windows and is ready to go out of the box, the same way any new PC would. That's far more accessible than a Pi.

I'd argue you need a lot more technical competency to get a pi running than a fresh out of the box mini pc.