Hands-on • No fluff

Gear that makes your homelab quiet, your desk tidy, and on-call life easier.

We test idle/load watts, noise (dB), thermals, and real-world quirks.

K3s/Proxmox2.5GUSB-C Power
Start: Best Mini PCs
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Featured Articles

Best Mini PCs for a Homelab (2025)

Top Pick — N100 Dual-NIC Mini
Idle ~6–9W
Dual 2.5G
NVMe + DDR5
Most users
See on Amazon.ca
Budget — Previous-Gen Quad Core
Idle ~8–12W
1× 2.5G
NVMe + SATA
Under $200
See on Amazon.ca
Silent — Fanless N305 Box
Idle ~5–7W
Dual 2.5G
Thick heatsink
Noise-sensitive
See on Amazon.ca

Build a $500 Homelab (Bill of Materials)

Parts List

Notes

  • Target idle draw <12W node, <4W switch.
  • Label ports and cables.
  • Put modem/switch on the UPS.

2.5G Switches Under $120 — TP-Link vs TRENDnet vs MokerLink

TP-Link 8-Port 2.5G
~3–4W
Fanless
Metal shell
Default
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TRENDnet 5-Port 2.5G
~2–3W
Fanless
Compact
Small desks
See on Amazon.ca
MokerLink 8-Port 2.5G
~4–5W
Fanless
Wall-mount
Budget
See on Amazon.ca

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About

We share practical guides for developers and SREs: mini PCs, 2.5G networking, UPS, USB-C power, NVMe, keyboards, and tidy desk setups. Canadian links included.

Amazon Associates (CA) disclosure: As an Amazon.ca Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.