Thought I would share this. I have been using my laptop to run TR, I have it plugged into a TV. But, every time we need the laptop for something else we have to un-plug then re-plug. I was looking for a solution to have something dedicated to using as a TR standalone unit. I found this mini “Desktop” PC on-line for $150. Its amazingly powerful and extremely small. No more moving cords around attached the unit to the back of the TV. Picked up a cheap Bluetooth keyboard and mouse and this works perfectly.
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I did the same when TR updated servers some time ago (my Windoze XP machine no longer could communicate with TR). Then it died suddenly. Just D E A D. Oh well, worked a year. So I moved my home machine out to the pain cave.
For the price, I don’t understand why folks do NOT have a dedicated machine for TR (or any of the similar options) when the Apple TV is the same price.
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I have a dedicated PC, but higher-end (started as a gaming rig a few years back). It can tackle TR (that’s not CPU/GPU demanding at all), but also Zwift and other apps with real-life videos. It dumps HDMI to a large screen. This allows any app combo (TR+Zwift, TR+Netflix, Zwift alone, etc) to be run easily.
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I run TR (and Zwift) off of an Intel NUC, which is a great small-form-factor PC. I originally picked that up as an HTPC, and it still is used for Netflix, Hulu, Youtube, etc. when it’s not running TR.
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I can run dual monitors off the device, I have the second TV using my Firestick at the time. I will have to give it a try to see how this unit runs
Any links to share for the devices mentioned so far? My laptop routinely crashes while both Zwift and TR are running at the most inopportune times (like when racing) so it would be nice to find another cheap option besides going the Apple TV route with limited connectivity.
Here is the one I picked it up at Amazon for $150.
Mini PC Intel Celeron N3060… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07T5DTNPS?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
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Do you think this mini PC would be powerful enough to run Zwift as well? Been looking for something cheap that would be used mostly as a dedicated TR/Zwift machine as well
I think I would instead go for something like this in order to have dual HDMI outputs. This gives you flexibility to run TR and some entertainment on separate screens.
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On sale for $152 for another 3 hours too…
Gotta love the difference in price between US and Canada Amazon: $189 vs. $405 
Why don’t you buy an Ipad Pro?
Woot has been listing all sorts of computers for sale recently. Since Amazon bought woot, prime shipping often applies.
I absolutely do
I’ve been running a dedicated Dell mini desktop for years with all of the cycling apps (got it refurbished on Woot for $120). I originally did it because setting my laptop up before a workout was one more barrier to getting on the bike but in 2015, I switched my laptop to Fedora and then it was a necessity. It came with 4gb ram and a 500gb HDD and that worked ok but boot up time was sloooow and if it had antivirus going at the same time, sensors would drop during workouts. I upgraded it to 8gb ram and an 500gb SSD and I don’t have those problems any more. The one I have has VGA, HDMI and mini DVI outs so I can have a computer screen and TV going at the same time.
I’ve been thinking about swapping it out for a refurbished Mac Mini but cost has kept me from making the plunge. My only reason for doing that is because other than this micro PC, I don’t have any other Windows machines in my life and none of the cycling apps run on Linux (which would be my preference since it would be the ultimate in low cost, high performance trainer setup).
I see there are some Atoms with Win10 included for $150. With the Celery, where did you get Win10?
The mark of a true computer person is the use of “Celery” for Celerons. It even works in French.
Funny, I’ve been trying to learn French with very little success.
Has anyone ever tried a android mini pc? Like:
You would say that you can run TR and Zwift without a problem.
You now have one more word in your (limited) vocabulary.