Laptop or desktop, pre-built or DIY… these are the questions that have to keep a good number of people from fully entering the market for a PC. Not to add more confusion to the mix, but there’s also a third option that you might not have heard of. It’s a device small enough to slip into a pocket, and it can turn a living room TV, spare monitor, or hotel-room screen into a fully functional computer. It’s known as a mini PC stick, it runs full desktop operating systems, and it plugs directly into an HDMI port. That’s all it takes to enjoy this handy alternative to bulky laptops or massive desktops.
Setup’s as easy as a Roku Streaming Stick: Plug it in, add a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse (or controller, if you’re gaming), and you’re ready to dive in. They’ve come a long way in the past decade, too. Early models like Intel’s Compute Stick, which came out over a decade ago, could only give you limited storage and modest performance at launch. But these new and improved versions out there today have much more capable processors, far improved wireless connectivity, and even support for Windows 11 or Linux operating systems.
What mini PC sticks do well (and where they fall short)
Mini PC sticks aren’t as powerful as a full-fledged desktop build, and they’re not as portable as a laptop, but they’re still not a bad option for people who want something between those two sides of the PC debate. Like Mini PCs, they work really well for streaming services, light productivity tasks, presentations, and basic multitasking. You can also use them to repurpose an older TV into a smart display. There’s also potential for remote desktop access while you leave the heavy computing to your PC at home or work.
Because of their size and their low power consumption, they’re not going to be the best for more demanding workloads like video editing or AAA gaming. Storage beyond the cloud is pretty limited, especially on models with fixed eMMC memory. Also, if you have a lot plugged into your HDMI ports as it is, you might be out of luck: it is going to need to take up another spot that you might not even have free to begin with.
Some of the highest-rated mini PC sticks
Among highly rated mini-PC sticks, professional critics and online reviewers typically point to brands such as MeLE and Minisforum. These are the ones they say do the best job of balancing size, performance, and reliability. MeLE’s fanless mini-PC sticks get high marks for their quietness, while Minisforum’s higher-end mini-PC sticks get praised for their speed and build quality. Just keep in mind that these are going to come at a much higher price point and take up a lot more space in your setup than some other, more casual mini-PC sticks.
Intel still has an option on the market, as well: The brand was one of the first on the market back in 2015, and its latest mini-PC stick is still holding a spot in some people’s hearts all these years later. Amazon reviewers don’t have a ton of major qualms with it, ranking it at a pretty solid 4.1 out of 5 stars on average based on a few dozen reviews. If you really want to step it up, there’s always the option to just drop the “stick” part of the equation and just get yourself one of the best mini-PCs on the market instead.
Methodology
Our mini PC stick recommendations are based on a combination of professional reviews, user reviews pulled from Amazon and Reddit, and the hands-on experiences of these real buyers online. We also considered processor capability, memory, storage type, port selection, operating system support, and long-term reliability in our roundup.
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