SUMMARY: This is an amazing desktop microcomputer! It has a great feature set, fast Celeron processor, minimal malware, Windows 10 Pro and obviously very small size. The standout feature is that it uses passive cooling instead of a noisy fan found in other mini PCs. I recommend! BACKGROUND: I am tech savvy and have worked in IT for decades. My daughter's WiFi in her dorm room is very unreliable, so she uses all of our family's mobile data plan. I'm updating a solution I installed in her room last year and replacing a mini pc with a fairly noisy fan with this mini pc that is passively cooled and makes no noise at all. This is my third mini pc from different manufacturers. WHAT I LIKE: - Comes with Windows 10 Professional, which I really like (although I don't need Pro features for this device) - Doesn't come with McAfee Antivirus or Norton, both of which are highly invasive programs - DID NOT come with a bunch of others - Excellent feature set, including Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities (essential for mobile hotspots) - Two USB 2.0 ports and two USB 3.0 ports - One USB Type-C port - Anti-glare blue light indicates power-on status - The Boot time was just less than 30 seconds after I ran all the necessary Windows and Intel updates - There is no big company logo on the case - The Celeron processor is fast with a base speed of 2.0 GHz (from Intel Q4 published from 2019). The manufacturer, Mele, has a company website with several helpful FAQs on reinstalling Windows etc. After installing all of the Windows updates (which only required two reboots), I then downloaded and installed the Intel Driver & Support Assistant, which is a driver update (Intel graphics driver). It was very good! After spending some time on these updates, he was ready to go. WHAT COULD BE BETTER: - There is a USB-C port, but it cannot power the portable LCD panel I used to set up this mini PC. . It would be better if enough power came out of that USB-C port to power the LCD. I had to use the HDMI port to connect to this mini PC and power my LCD panel separately. Raised antennas are probably fine for Wi-Fi use, but other mini PCs and laptops I've used can connect easily without raised antennas. . I'd rather not have raised antennas (but I can just rotate them horizontally, so it's a minor mistake). It has 128GB of onboard persistent storage, but I'd prefer an SSD instead, which offers better overall performance than this type of onboard storage. For my use case, however, this is not a problem at all. CONCLUSION: After updating Windows and the Intel graphics driver, it was easy to set up an account, connect to my home WiFi (and I've tested with Ethernet as well), and then use Windows' Mobile feature to run this mini PC to make a mobile hotspot hotspot. I connected well to the mobile hotspot with my iPhone and the download/upload speed was exactly what I expected. This should be a great solution for my daughter in the upcoming school year! This mini PC has a great range of functions, is inexpensive and very versatile with all its connections. This is now my favorite mini pc out of the three I own.
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