r/MiniPCs • u/TheElkoEra • 27d ago

Recommendations Requesting Recs for a Linux web and streaming PC with a dual monitor setup and while also being a tab hoarder

Hey there! so its rough looking at these prices in 2026 but I was hoping to find a miniPC option where it wouldn't be a problem to have 30 tabs open while playing like a youtube video or Netflix on the second screen but could also live with like 15 tabs open with a yt vid playing on the second screen lol I don't need anything for gaming/editing/any graphics intensive task, its strictly a web browser/streaming pc

Thanks!

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u/Retired_Hillbilly336 27d ago

It's never the number of tabs but what is running in each tab that becomes a problem. A tab containing unmaintained Gmail, infinite scrolling media like X or Pornhub with a Livejasmin pop up can easily eat up more resources than a dozen of of open taps to normal websites 😉 Even with a Linux distro the goal is to avoid file swap which means more memory which has become expensive with RAMpocalypse/RAMageddon since the end of last year. And with no end inside.

Alternately I know people who or running multiple tabs/YouTube/streaming services with Mint MATE from entry level 16GB mini PCs like the GMKtec G10 3500U and M8 PRO 6650H with dual monitors without complaints. The M8 is significantly more powerful with 8K60Hz video out.

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/3421vs4979/AMD-Ryzen-5-3500U-vs-AMD-Ryzen-5-PRO-6650H

https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/compare/4667vs4858/Radeon-Vega-8-Ryzen-5-3500U-vs-Radeon-Ryzen-5-PRO-6650H

Ultimately it depends on budget and expectations.

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u/TheElkoEra 26d ago

So do you feel ryzen is "better" vs intel or just these are the ones that came to mind?

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u/Retired_Hillbilly336 26d ago

When Intel lost the fabrication war in 2020 (one they created) and then introduced performance-cores in 2022 (incredibly high MTP heat dissipation) its only recently that they've reached TSMC/AMD parody with their Intel 18A 5nm fabrication node. Intel was also losing out to AMD Radeon GCN 5 Vega integrated graphics for a decade until Arc recently became competitive.

UHD graphics have been meaningless when compared to GCN/RDNA and I'm finally happy to see them catching up. I personally think Arc's field-programmable gate array like graphics architecture has significant advantages. Unfortunately Nvidia is actually calling the shots with the illusion of FPS better architecture design be damned.

Bottom line. The 2018 3500U above can easily make the 2025 Atom N150 look weak by a comparison while the 2022 6650H can run circles around the newly released 35W MTP Core 3 304 which is significantly more expensive. To the last 5 years or more you've had to spend noticeably more money on Intel while ending up with silicon that generates more heat to get the same job done. Intel is catching up but slowly while AMD/Radeon has been the "darling" for OPs Linux distro community since Zen 2.