Hi all
I am an 82 yr old newby and my old ex Win box appears to be dying.
My best options right now appear to be a new old stock NUC11PAHi5 and a well used NUC10i5FNH which costs more. Both have 16gb RAM and a 500gb hard drive.
Doing a web search for each type +Linux produced mixed results as to how good they are for linux so I would like user input on their experience with Zorin on NUCs and especially with these two NUCs.
In both cases I found a lot of what were obviously Computer Rendered Ai Products and articles that were obviously paid promos that raved about what great Linux computers these were.
On Reddit I found two five year old posts, the first saying the HDMI audio is broken on Linux and the second one suggesting that Bluetooth audio is also broken.
https://www.reddit.com/r/intelnuc/comments/ru80d7/does_nuc11pahi5_have_any_issue_with_linux/
https://www.reddit.com/r/intelnuc/comments/1042j5n/nuc11pahi5_and_linux/
Have more recent versions of Linux like Zorin 18 fixed this audio on Bluetooth? My monitor does not have speakers so I use a bluetooth headset.
I also found this that suggests that it may be fully Linux compatible - they just say NUC11 but not the submodel but one option appears to be the PAH. Intel NUC11 Linux Mini-computer | Laptopwithlinux.com
For the second option. the NUC10i5FNK, the web search found this
Intel NUC10i5FNH Core i5 Linux Mini-Pc | Laptopwithlinux.com which again suggests fully Linux compatible.
Any assistance would be appreciated as I do not want to purchase something that is not Zorin compatible.
Thank you.
Mi
Where minicomputers are concerned, you are highly likely to see mixed results.
It comes down to that miniaturization.
A standard PC is highly likely to use Standard Components.
Whereas, mini PC's will use shrunked down versions - which suppliers and vendors may vary.
That variance is what can lead to differences in hardware.
Hardware all has its own operating system. You have heard of someone needing to "flash" the car computer? "Flashing" in this case, means reinstalling a fresh copy of that hardware's operating system.
Your motherboard has its own O.S.: EFI (Old BIOS).
Your GPU and your NIC (Network Interface Card) have their own operating systems. You use Zorin OS, they use their own - and Zorin OS communicates with that O.S. by means of a bridge: Drivers.
With Mini PC's, you can see that variance lead to hardware that is Minimally flashed with a basic version of the O.S. that hardware uses that lacks the extras that make it perform on Linux or Unix-Like Operating Systems - that bridge breaks because calling the other end leads only to a busy signal.
This is why you can see one user of a model declare that everything works perfectly while another on that same model, says that several pieces of hardware do not work. Different components used at different times, trying to balance vendor supply and meet demand with non-standard components.
Thank you @Aravisian
That is very worrying. The new residence we are about to move to has VERY limited space so I was looking at a NUC to save space. Now I need to think again.
Cheers
Mi
When You have only limited Space, You could think about a PC but in mini-itx Format. With that, You can have very little Machines, too when You use a small Case like a Silverstone Milo 10 for Example.
The Downside would be that You have to buy the Parts and built it by Yourself or let it built by someone.
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Thank you @Ponce-De-Leon
That looks like a viable option and gaurantees I do not get things like microphones and cameras that I do not want or need.
Cheers
M
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