6-watt mini PC as a Proxmox node
The cheapest good node you can buy
- Price paid
- $159
- CPU
- 4 cores / 4 threads
- Idle power
- 6.2 W
- Best for
- Always-on services
Bought with our own money. No sponsor saw this before it went live.
Sample review with made-up numbers. It only shows the layout. Delete it in the editor before launch.
Every homelab starts with a machine that was already lying around. Ours was a ten-year-old tower pulling 70 watts to run a handful of containers. This little box promises the same work on less power than a porch light.
Text before the first heading becomes the Introduction page.
Farm test
Every ## Heading you write starts a new page in the review. This one is called “Farm test”.
We ran three of these as a Proxmox cluster for 90 days in a barn that swings from 28 to 104 °F.
Power and noise
Write as many pages as you like. Specs, Benchmarks and Verdict are added after them from the boxes you fill in the editor.
Specs
| Processor | 4 cores / 4 threads, 3.4 GHz burst |
|---|---|
| Memory | 16 GB DDR5 (1 slot) |
| Storage | 500 GB NVMe + 1 × 2.5 in SATA bay |
| Network | 2 × 2.5 GbE |
| Size | 4.5 × 4.2 × 1.6 in |
Benchmarks
Multi-core score
Higher is better · tested unit highlighted
Idle power draw (watts)
Lower is better · measured at the wall
Verdict
Pros
- Sips power, so a small UPS lasts hours
- Two 2.5 GbE ports for a proper cluster network
- Handles five Plex transcodes
Cons
- One memory slot caps it at 16 GB
- Fan gets whiny in dust until you clean it
Score breakdown
Out of 10