Raspberry Pi 5 is the most powerful board on the brand's roster, but its most expensive option is now rivaling mini PCs. Storage and RAM prices have doubled (to say the least), and if you're planning to spend that much on a small single-board computer, you should be aware of the options. A mini PC has much more room for upgrade with versatile connection options that put most single-board computers, including the Raspberry Pi 5, to shame.

The Pi 5 isn't a bad machine, but the price that you have to pay for using it in full glory with the storage expansion, power, and connectivity options is becoming ludicrous. Instead, you can buy this GMKtec Nucbox G3 Plus mini PC that's better in every aspect than the Pi and won't struggle to run a full-fledged OS as well.

Mini PCs are powerful

Don't leave performance on the table

It's not a secret that the Intel N150 processor in the GMKtec Nucbox G3 Plus is way more powerful than what you get with the Raspberry Pi 5. The sheer RAW performance is compelling enough to turn your interest towards the mini PC. Even the N100 variants perform better than the Pi hardware, and you'll notice the difference when you put the system under duress.

Demanding services like Home Assistant or the transcoding needs of Jellyfin require powerful hardware, and when you need a device for such specific use cases, the Pi 5 feels inferior. By default, you won't get the fastest storage support with a Pi 5, as it needs an additional HAT to add NVMe support. GMKtec Nucbox G3 Plus includes the NVMe slot and doesn't require any further setup.

Even demanding scenarios like running full-scale operating systems, virtualization, or a slew of self-hosted services feel seamless on the Mini PC. You can install almost any operating system on it with a bootable USB drive, while the operating system options and support are limited on the Pi 5 side. That said, Raspberry Pi 5 is still the best software-supported SBC, but it is still behind x86 in terms of software and OS availability.

A small yet functional PC

Don't need a ton of accessories

The entry into the Raspberry Pi 5 ecosystem isn't easy. A Mini PC, or any desktop system, is simple to set up. All you need is an HDMI cable running to a monitor with a keyboard and mouse combination to control it.

Raspberry Pi 5 isn't very convenient because it starts as a single-board computer but needs a lot to become a powerful device for demanding workloads. If you buy an 8 GB or 16 GB Pi 5, you are certainly looking to push it to its limits, and that needs a few more components.

The first one is the NVMe SSD hat because the Pi Foundation decided to add support, but didn’t add the NVMe slot on Pi 5, while designing the board. Many SBCs that came after it had an NVMe slot on the board, but if you need NVMe speed on the Pi 5, that is the only solution.

Next, you need a cooling fan to keep the board from sweating under a workload and a 27.5-watt power adapter to power your setup. After all this, you'll invest in a Raspberry Pi 5 case that can house this janky setup and make it presentable.

That's not all. If you intend to use your Pi 5 as a PC (even if occasionally), there's no audio port on it. You'll have to sacrifice a USB port to connect it to a USB speaker or add a USB DAC to pair it with an old speaker that lacks Bluetooth connectivity.

GMKtec Nucbox G3 Plus is devoid of such trivial connectivity problems. It doesn't have GPIO pins, but it has every other possible connection option that you'll need in your projects. The faster 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port is also a bonus when you have multiple devices connecting to your mini PC server. Even the wireless connectivity is superior to the Pi 5.

Prices are a mood killer

Pi 5 rivals Mini PCs

Even after making so much effort and trade-offs, the pricing is horrendous. Raspberry Pi 5 prices haven't come down, and a mini PC with a similar spec sheet and less setup and software hassle looks more inviting.

If you're keen on adding a new device for a small-scale home server running a few self-hosted services like a media server, and multiple other tools like a password manager, local cloud storage, there's no advantage to picking the Pi 5. Even if you decide to use it later for a single purpose like demanding game emulation or a secondary computer, the Mini PC is a far better investment.

For nearly identical pricing, you'll get a system that supports memory and storage expansion, which isn't possible on Raspberry Pi 5. Memory demands will surge as you gravitate towards more self-hosted tools and multiple user roles, and you can at least give it a boost of up to 64GB.

The price bump is astonishing for both devices, mainly due to a bump in SSD and memory prices. GMKtec Nucbox G3 used to retail for around $160 until September 2025, but the same configuration costs about $260 with a $10-15 price fluctuation. The base price of the Raspberry Pi 5 is $140 currently, and adding a SSD and the HAT with a couple of other accessories brings it on par with the GMKtec Nucbox G3 Plus.

Pick wisely

Raspberry Pi 5 is a great SBC, but the GMKtec Nucbox G3 Plus makes it appear minuscule (in every aspect). Performance, connectivity, and upgrade room are all pain points of the Pi 5. You get a much better price-to-performance ratio in a mini PC, and it’s easy to set up and work with. However, if you plan to use it for GPIO pin-related and other IoT projects with a device that works on low power, the Pi 5 is surely unbeatable.