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At a glance Top AMD mini PC deal picks Acemagician S3A—$429 (20% off on Amazon) Acemagician Kron K1—$279 (12% off on Amazon) Bosgame P3—$440 (20% off on Amazon) Top Intel mini PC deal picks Acemagic V1—$259 (19% off on Amazon) Geekom GT2 Mega—$1049 (19% off on Amazon) Beastcom M1 Mini—$145 (19% off on Amazon) Whether you’re looking for a productivity mini PC, something for gaming, or just a budget-friendly machine with a small footprint, we’ve got you covered. The team at PCWorld continually sorts through all of the daily mini PC sales and puts together a curated list of the best deals available. Finding the right deals can be tricky, however, because there are so many things to consider, from the configuration to the price. Fear not! I’ve been covering mini PC deals for a long time — and PCWorld has tested thousands of PCs over four decades — so let me help you out. I select our favorite deals by thoroughly examining the list of specs, overall design, user feedback, and general value. The RAM, SSD, and CPU all matter significantly in mini PCs, and if you’re not careful, you may select a “bare-bones” rig that makes you bring your own memory and storage. All of the picks below are hand-selected for not only their performance, but most importantly, their value. I’ve also included some helpful answers to common questions about buying a computer at the bottom of this article. If you’re considering a laptop instead, be sure to check out our best laptop deals, or for more desktop choices check out best computer deals roundup instead—each are updated daily. Updated Dec 8, 2025 to reflect the latest deals and prices. Best deals on AMD mini PCs Amazon Acemagician S3A, AMD Ryzen 7 8745HS/16GB DDR5 RAM/512GB SSD/Radeon 780M iGPU/triple 4K support—$429 (20% off on Amazon) If I were to pick a single mini PC deal right now, I’d go with the Acemagician S3A for $429 because that’s a great price for the specs. It’s more than capable of handling your daily workload, browsing, streaming, and even light gaming thanks to the Radeon 780M integrated graphics. Acemagician Kron K1, AMD Ryzen 5 7430U/16GB DDR4 RAM/512GB SSD/triple 4K support—$279 (12% off on Amazon) The Acemagician Kron K1 is a great budget deal right now for only $279. With 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, you’ll be able to accomplish all of your productivity needs. It would also work well as a streaming or multimedia device as well as a smart home hub—giving you centralized control without breaking the bank. Bosgame P3, AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS/32GB DDR5 RAM/1TB SSD/triple 4K support—$440 (20% off on Amazon) If you’re looking for a bit more juice, the Bosgame P3 for $440 is the mini PC to go for. Not only does it pack 32GB of RAM and a generous 1TB SSD, but the Ryzen 7 processor is ready to handle more intensive tasks should you need it. The fact that the RAM is DDR5 at this price point makes it even more of a great deal. GMKtec M7, AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 6850H/16GB DDR5 RAM/1TB SSD/quad 4K support, Oculink—$420 (25% off on Amazon) Personally, I think the GMKtec M7 deal here is a sneaky bargain. Sure, it comes with less RAM than the Bosgame above and a slightly weaker CPU, but it makes up for it with additional 4K and Oculink connectivity—meaning you can easily hook up an external GPU should you decide to get your game on. GMKtec M5 Plus, Ryzen 7 5825U/32GB RAM/1TB SSD/triple 4K support—$368 (8% off on Amazon) As an alternative to the M7 model, you could opt for the GMKtec M5 Plus deal for $368 instead. You won’t get the same gaming capabilities, but more RAM—even if it is DDR4—for less money is always a plus, especially if you’re looking to use it for work or productivity tasks. Plus, it comes with expansion slots for RAM and storage if you want to upgrade it even further in the future. Geekom A9 Max, AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370/Radeon 890M/32GB DDR5 RAM/2TB SSD/quad 4K support—$1,100 (8% off on Amazon) For a top of the line mini PC packed with powerful components, go with the Geekom A9 Max for $100 off. The Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 is a very powerful CPU that is not only capable of 1080p gaming combined with the 890M GPU, but also breezes through AI tasks. Ample RAM and SSD storage along with excellent connectivity complete the package. It’s still expensive, but $100 off is better than nothing, right? Best deals on Intel mini PCs Acemagic V1, N150/16GB RAM/1TB SSD/dual 4K support—$259 (19% off on Amazon) This deal for the Acemagic V1 is just a good overall bread-and-butter mini PC deal. The N150 processor and 16GB of DDR4 RAM means it’s powerful enough to handle your productivity and everyday work tasks. It comes with enough SSD storage to save just about everything you need—and includes an additional M.2 slot in case you want to upgrade later. It might not be fancy, but this is a good price for a mini PC that’ll be sufficient for most everyone’s needs. Geekom GT2 Mega, Intel Core Ultra 9 285H/Arc 140T/32GB DDR5 RAM/2TB SSD/quad 4K support—$1049 (19% off on Amazon) If you’re looking for an Intel mini PC that can do it all, then the Geekom GT2 Mega is the one to buy. Packed with a Core Ultra 9 processor, DDR5 RAM, and ample 2TB of onboard SSD storage, this will easily handle everything you throw at it. It’s a full desktop replacement with a smaller footprint and cheaper price tag. Plus, thanks to the Arc 140T GPU you can do all of the esports gaming you want or even play modern AAA games at 1080p with decent frame rates. Beastcom M1 Mini, N100/16GB RAM/512GB SSD/triple 4K support—$145 (19% off on Amazon) True to its name, the Beastcom M1 Mini mini for $145 is, well, a beast—an entertainment beast at least. Its triple 4K support is practically unheard of at this price. This is meant to be an entertainment mini PC thanks to its ultra-small footprint and excellent connectivity options. However, those looking for a productivity or work mini PC should probably look elsewhere. GMKtec K10, Core i9-13900HK/32GB RAM/1TB SSD/2.5G LAN WiFi6/quad 4K support—$600 (17% off on Amazon) The GMKtec K10 deal for $119 off is a solid bargain thanks to its powerful i9 CPU. Plus, the addition of a 2.5G ethernet port and Wi-Fi 6 support means it is adept at handling most networking tasks you might throw at it. To top it all off, it can support up to four 4K displays, one of which is a DisplayPort 1.4 capable of 8K as well. IdeaCentre Mini, Core 5 210H/16GB RAM/1TB SSD/dual 4K support—$600 (25% off on Lenovo) To the naked eye, this IdeaCentre Mini deal for $600 might not seem like a good value. But it comes with a couple of hidden extras that make it worth the higher price. Support for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and DDR5 RAM are just some of the advantages. Add to that the reliability and high build-quality of Lenovo machines and suddenly this becomes a more than worthwhile mini PC deal this week. Mini PC deals FAQ 1. What should you look for when buying a mini PC? The first thing you have to check off your list is just what configuration you need to get your job done. Are you going to use your new mini PC for browsing only? Then a cheap budget-friendly device with a decent CPU and 16GB of RAM will do the trick. Do you want it to be able to juggle a bunch of apps and not choke on 50 browser tabs? Then a more powerful CPU and at least 32GB of RAM would be better. Do you want to do some light gaming in your downtime? Look for a device that comes with a GPU or Occulink connectivity to hook up an external GPU instead. Are you looking to utilize the mini PC as a home server? Your priority then should be a large SSD—2TB or more. There are devices for each and every one of these scenarios, and they’re all quite affordable. The best part is that mini PCs are… well, small, so they can be placed practically anywhere depending on your intended use and available space. They also support multiple monitors out of the box, which makes it easy to replace your old, larger desktop and you won’t even need to pay for extra hubs. 2. Can a mini PC replace a desktop computer? For most people, the answer is “yes”! Mini PCs are definitely powerful enough to replace desktops for most users, especially if you’re going to use it for work, browsing, or streaming movies. If you want something for photo and video editing, or even gaming, there are models that allow you to do that, but they’ll cost a bit more. If you’re into hardcore gaming, however, you’re still better off with a proper gaming PC or laptop. 3. Can a mini PC run modern games? Mostly, yes. But it will ultimately depend upon the mini PC you buy and which modern games you want to play. Some high-performance mini PCs can run modern AAA games. You might not be able to run them at the highest settings though, and performance will depend heavily on the specific hardware. If you do want to game on a mini PC, look for powerful models with dedicated discrete GPUs such as an Nvidia RTX or AMD Radeon rather than integrated graphics. Alternatively, you can opt for cloud streaming services to game on less powerful mini PCs, which bypasses the need for high-end hardware. 4. Which mini PC brands are reliable? Some of the most reliable mini PC brands are Minisforum, Beelink, GMKtec, and Geekom. Of course Apple’s Mac minis are also excellent computers if you prefer using macOS. Brands such as Asus, Lenovo, HP, and Dell all make high-quality smaller-footprint PCs, but they might not fill the same niche and/or they are typically more expensive. Read...

OpenAI has turned off ads appearing on ChatGPT while it works out how best to improve the model’s precision, its top researchers said. In early December, a user complained about the nonsensical way in which ChatGPT was showing ads for Target below a conversation the user was having about Windows’ BitLocker. In repsonse, Mark Chen, the chief research officer at OpenAI, said that the company would look into the situation. Late on Friday, Chen confirmed that the ads had been paused. “I agree that anything that feels like an ad needs to be handled with care, and we fell short,” Chen said in a post on Twitter / X. “We’ve turned off this kind of suggestion while we improve the model’s precision. We’re also looking at better controls so you can dial this down or off if you don’t find it helpful.” This interaction with ChatGPT prompted a user to complain that ads were being unnecessarily added to ChatGPT. As LLMs have emerged as an alternative to search, their owners have wrestled with how to monetize the queries their users enter. Some, like Google Gemini, have turned to AI Mode, slurping up third-party content recommendations and aggregating them, with tiny links back to the original source of content. Microsoft’s Copilot has also occasionally embedded ads, though they’re much less frequent on searches that I have made personally. The story was originally reported by The Verge. Read...

With shortages of DRAM and flash memory for SSDs driving up retail prices, the expectation is that PC makers would be hit by rising costs, too. According to a report, both Lenovo and Dell will be raising prices soon to account for the additional costs of memory and storage. According to a report by TrendForce, which monitors Taiwan’s supply chain, both Dell and Lenovo have sent notices to their own customers warning them that prices will be going up. TrendForce reports that Dell is planning to raise its prices almost immediately: by 15 to 20 percent in mid-December. So far, Lenovo isn’t notifying customers of how much it plans to raise prices, but reportedly will do so in January. The narrative continues to be a simple one: Venture-backed AI hyperscalers continue to buy up whatever components they can to build out data centers. While Intel and other CPU companies divide up their product lines between the consumer and enterprise markets, the line is much blurrier where DRAM and storage are concerned. With AI companies buying up as much high-speed RAM and SSD storage as they can, that has pulled supply away from the consumer market and caused prices of both components to start rising, quickly. Prebuilt PC maker CyberPower was scheduled to raise prices on Sunday night, citing increased component costs as well, and it wouldn’t be surprising if other PC vendors did the same. The problem has rippled up and down the supply chain, with reports that DRAM makers aren’t even providing short-term or “spot” pricing, but asking customers to sign long-term contracts. That, in turn, has left other vendors who have signed such contracts worried about if they’ll be able to source the necessary memory. TrendForce TrendForce also predicts that the shortages will pull down PC configurations as well, with “high end” 2026 PCs including just 32GB of RAM and a terabyte of SSD storage, rather than the 64GB of RAM and 2TB of storage that typically populate high-end PCs. Dell and Lenovo could not be immediately reached for comment. Read...

As a mom to six kids in rural Nebraska, it’s been hard for me to accept that the world is changing. Except for a few years in Omaha, I’ve lived in small rural communities almost all my life. It’s actually not uncommon in my community to leave your car—or home—unlocked and to know all your neighbors by name. But things are different from the way they used to be. We’ve had some close calls in the area with home break-ins and jail breakouts (which can be frightening if you’re home alone at night). While I knew I needed to get serious about securing my home, I’d been reluctant to go high-tech. After all, I live in an area that frequently loses power during bad weather and struggles to maintain good internet connectivity, which means app-based solutions can sometimes leave me in limbo. Giving smart locks a try But then I was approached with an interesting opportunity: PCWorld asked me to install a smart lock—my first—and share my experience. They knew that while I love gadgets and have written about dozens in the past, I was leery of trusting one with my home security. I can’t be the only person who’s had intrusive thoughts of being locked out of my home at 3 a.m. due to an app crash or because I forgot my PIN code.  Level Lock Pro Read our review Plus, I’m busy and not particularly handy, so my mind raced with concerns. Will it take a long time to install? Will my tech-averse husband hate it? Will we install it and then just never use that door again? Never one to back down from a challenge (I’m raising five boys, after all), I said I’d give it a shot. The biggest surprise? I can’t believe I didn’t try this sooner.  A smart lock has been the least complicated part of my home security routine, and it’s as smart as I want it to be—a big must if your household members have varying levels of tech comfort. You may be as surprised as I was at how uneventful the entire experience turned out to be (and that’s a good thing!) Installation was surprisingly easy First, before you ever buy a lock, get to know the doors in your home. You likely have an entry point in mind, but not all doors work with all locks. Most standard smart deadbolt kits, like the Schrage Encode Plus that I tried (read our expert’s review of the Schrage Encode Plus), have clear specifications on the packaging to confirm a fit. Even if it’s not explicitly stated, a given lock may not work on an antique, non-standard, or glass-filled door (e.g., French-style).  Linsey Knerl/Foundry We chose a door that was close enough to be in range of our home Wi-Fi network, but far enough away that we’d appreciate the convenience of locking it without having to physically walk to the door. In our case, this was the front door to our very cold-in-winter garage—which did not, unfortunately, have an existing lock. If your preferred door doesn’t have a deadbolt already, you can cut holes for one—which is what we did. Most hardware stores sell door lock installation kits, but be sure you purchase both the hole saw component and the latch plate jig. They may not be bundled together in the same kit. (If you don’t have a handy spouse like I do, this is a quick job for a handyman that should take less than an hour.) After we had a deadbolt hole and a place for a latch plate, the installation itself was super simple. The entire process took less than 10 minutes, so if you’re looking for a weekend project, this won’t even take the whole weekend. (Meaning, you can’t use it as an excuse to miss your least-favorite cousin’s wedding.) Linsey Knerl/Foundry Here are some highlights and tips from our installation: The door lock we chose came with an instruction booklet and an app to guide us through. I preferred the app because it had animated videos that really helped someone like me, who has little spatial ability. Reading all the steps before you start can be very helpful, as well.  The unique security code for your lock is likely printed on the instructions. Snap a photo of this with your phone so you’ll always have it, even if you lose the pamphlet.  To make the process smoother, check what you’ll need before you start and verify that you have each item (screws, plates, etc.) mentioned in the instructions. Our lock came with standard AA batteries, but not all do. Have a fresh set available so you can finish installation.  Separate bolt or screw types by size so you don’t accidentally use the wrong one for a particular step.  As long as you have a standard-sized Phillips screwdriver, you won’t need extra tools, but a second person can help when lining up the lock from the other side of the door.  As a final note, I’d strongly advise picking a door lock that runs on batteries. While hard-wired options are available, these are more appropriate for homeowners with access to an electrician and would likely lead to a more involved installation process. You can decide how smart your smart lock will be I have a love-hate relationship with gadgets due to privacy concerns and app fatigue. If you do too, that’s OK. Smart locks can be used as part of a connected ecosystem of smart devices or entirely on their own.  While you generally need to install the app and sign up for a free account to use a smart lock initially, continued use is optional. Our lock came with a key and a PIN pad, so it is unnecessary to connect to a smart assistant (Alexa, Google Home) unless you want to. In the event of a power or internet outage, I can rely on the lock’s battery power and PIN, or stick with the old-fashioned key on a ring. I also love this type of smart-lock configuration for “Wait Until 8th” households, as it allows kids to come and go without compromising on tech boundaries.  Schlage Encode Plus Smart WiFi Deadbolt Read our review Best Prices Today: $249.94 at Amazon | $319 at Schlage | Not Available at Amazon Prime I also like that our lock came with a guest PIN option, meaning a housekeeper, visiting family member, or dog-sitter can come and go with their own PIN. We can see when they came and went with notifications in the app, or even disable the PIN to revoke access.  Other locks come with fingerprint identification, something I really didn’t want. In the winter, we prefer to keep gloves on, and I’m really hesitant to give more personal data than necessary to any app or device. But you can always balance your unique needs and privacy concerns with any lock you choose.  It gave me peace of mind Ultimately, the right smart lock should make you feel safer than without one. In our case, I was impressed with a few features right from the start. For one, it was easy to check the lock’s status from anywhere, including my bed at three in the morning. This is a key factor in the middle of December, when I’m reluctant to brave the chilly temperatures in the garage to check if my door is truly locked. (Keep in mind that if you choose a Bluetooth-only smart lock rather than a Wi-Fi model or one with a network-connected hub, you’ll need to be physically near the lock to access it.) It also provides some assurance when I leave the kids home alone. Rather than texting to remind them to lock the door (and obsessively waiting for them to text back to confirm they complied), I can just check the phone app. I also get notified when they lock or unlock the door, whether they do so with the app, a connected device, the PIN pad, or the physical key.  My favorite use case is the ability to remotely lock the door immediately. Remember the escaped fugitive I mentioned earlier? It really happened in our small town, and it was nice to lock my door in the middle of the day from my kitchen without making the trek to the garage. While I doubt seconds matter in most cases, it is handy to be able to lock or unlock the door instantly.  Kwikset Halo Select Touchscreen Wi-Fi and Matter Enabled Smart Lock Read our review Best Prices Today: $259 at Amazon You can take it with you Finally, I understand the reluctance to spend a lot of money on a nicer smart lock, especially if you’re in a starter home—or if you plan to replace your door at some point. However, uninstalling the lock takes less time than installing it. So, if you keep all the parts from your original lock, it’s just as simple a process to put things back the way they were and bring your fancy lock to your next door (or location). With some of these locks costing hundreds of dollars, I like having the freedom to not be “locked” into a single door.  I’m a smart lock believer now I’m not sold on all new technology and will probably never invest in a smart fridge, for example. But I can’t deny that the smart lock has changed the way I think about security and may have actually enhanced (in a small way) how I live.  Having a smart lock makes safety a one-button push thing, like the fob on my car keys. It’s safety first, but without all the drama of waking up my husband at 3 a.m. to ask, “Are you sure you remembered to lock the door?” It gives my racing mind one less thing to ruminate on while keeping my most prized treasures (my family) a little bit more secure.  But you don’t have to be an obsessive checker like me to get value from a smart lock. Anyone who lives in cold climates or thinks hiding a key under the mat is an outdated idea can probably get on board with the gadget. Because protecting what matters most should feel simple, not stressful. Check out TechHive’s top picks for the best smart locks. Read...