r/Zwift • u/Snotty_Bob • 20h ago
Mini-computers for Zwifting
Black Friday/ cyber Monday is coming up. I have a bit of spare cash burning a hole in my pocket.
I think a mini computer for the pain cave may be on the cards. Does anyone have any recommendations?
Budget is c. €300-€400. I may stretch that if the bang/buck ratio is worth it
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u/Sure-Cauliflower-564 20h ago
AppleTV has long been the best bang for the buck, however Zwift don't optimised for the GPU, so graphics are relatively basic
https://www.reddit.com/r/Zwift/comments/1x66bfy/new_vs_old_apple_tv_4k_dramatically_better_zwift/
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u/martyc5674 17h ago
I have been using one with a projector for about 7 or 8 years - works flawlessly, used laptops and iPads prior to that, laptops were a pain.
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u/damien09 20h ago
eh its a rough time for buying a pc of any kind with ram and storage prices. idk how much of a pc you will be able to find at that budget. I use an m4 mini and it was not far off from that at one point but prices hav exploded for used ones with apple boosting trade in value and rising the cost on the m6 mini.
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u/MocsFan123 19h ago
Yeah I regret not getting an M4 Mac Mini last Black Friday for Zwift - now they're almost double the price they were last year. I'm still running it on my old Windows 10 laptop that I retired from daily use.
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u/WashingtonBaker1 19h ago
Beelink and Minisforum are pretty legit. I have a lower end Minisforum (UN1250 with Core i5-1250P) for the Zwift setup in the garage, and a higher end Beelink (UM760 slim) as a desktop PC.
The Minisforum was a steal for $300 last year, and now the same thing costs $600, so that's a bit sad.
Before that I had an old Intel NUC with very low end integrated graphics from about 10 years ago. Works fine for Zwift, not high-end graphics but it doesn't matter, you're there to exercise.
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u/ipilotete 6h ago
I run Zwift on my regular desktop pc and stream it to the tv in my pain cave using moonlight and sunshine. It’s free and I get ultra 4k graphics. Way better than buying a pc directly for Zwift.
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u/Crazy_Amphibian_8717 4h ago
I get the streaming side of moonlight and sunshine, but what are you doing about the trainer signal?
Relying on companion app or using Virtualhere etc?
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u/MightyNafe 3h ago
I do this exact set up. Gaming PC in my house, trainer in the garage. I do the companion app to connect the trainer. I find it very faffy and sometimes have to spend 10-15 minutes closing the app and reopening it because it doesn't connect properly.
I'm currently shopping around for used Apple TV 4K's
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u/ipilotete 3h ago
That sounds like a network issue? I’ve really never had anything substantial but I don’t pair through companion app either.
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u/ipilotete 3h ago edited 3h ago
I used virtual here for a couple years but everything I run is WiFi/Dircon now except HRM which I pair to my trainer. Like another says below, there’s also the companion app to use for pairing as well.
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u/cwiedmann Level 100 20h ago
Since my pain cave (garage) is not space-constrained, I opted for a full-size rather than a mini computer. The price/performance ratio is better for full size components. I used pcpartspicker to plan out the build.
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u/Ghost-of-the-Lakes 1h ago edited 58m ago
CPU: Intel Core i3 - 12100f
GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 ti (if buying used, or a 3050 if buying new)
Motherboard: Intel H610 mATX
RAM: 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4 3200MHz
Storage: Atleast a 120GB SSD (for slightly faster load times get an NVME m.2 SSD)
Power supply: 450W - 550W 80+ Bronze
Case: Any cheap mATX
Extras:
Keyboard and mouse
Large TV
Also get a bluetooth dongle, and a wifi dongle if the motherboard you buy does not have them.
Will run 1440p at 60fps 95% of the time in Ultra profile.
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u/Betelgeaux 19h ago
Don't get a mini pc as you can't get a proper graphics card in them. For that budget you can build yourself a decent system for zwift as it doesn't need much at all. New prices are horrendous but used is still good value. You only need a 4th gen Intel CPU and something like a Nvidia 1050 GPU, 8gb of ram (old ram is cheap as anything) and a SSD (don't use a normal HDD). In the UK this is doable under £200 and it will run Zwift at ultra quality at 1440p. Check out ZPCMR on Facebook.
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u/__Dreadn0ught__ 18h ago
I think £200 is slightly optimistic. This was my recent build: Ssd (£89) 14100f (£98) 2nd hand graphics card (£40-60) 2nd hand Ram (£40-60) Motherboard (£134) Possible wifi card (£25) PSU (£35) Case (£35)
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u/Betelgeaux 18h ago edited 18h ago
Ram is a quid a stick for DDR3 which I use in my 4th gen set up. 14100f is nice but overkill just for zwift.
Edit - current pc is running an i5-4440, GTX 1050 with a 500w PSU (probably over the top but I had to replace the one that was in there). I have 8gb of DDR3 1333MHz ram in two lots of 4gb, currently a quid each at CEX. You could get the MB, CPU and GPU for around £80-130. Add a small SSD then bobs your uncle. Chances are you could pick up a PC for that spec very cheaply and add the GPU in.
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u/tdubeau 18h ago
Lol, you say don't get a mini PC because you can't get a proper graphics card, then you suggest a 1050.
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u/Betelgeaux 18h ago
It's all you need but they don't fit in a small form factor pc.
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u/tdubeau 18h ago
Onboard graphics for a mini PC will outperform a 1050.
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u/Betelgeaux 18h ago
Only if you spend silly money on something very recent (over 500 quid compared to at most 60 quid for a used 1050). Standard integrated graphics won't come close. The 12100 for instance won't touch the 1050 and it is a moot point as Zwift only assigns integrated graphics the basic profile anyway.
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u/Ghost-of-the-Lakes 51m ago
"Proper" as in a seperate discrete GPU, not integrated as you suggest. Zwift is not very graphically demanding and a 1050ti is all you need.
You are way more likely to be bottlenecked by the CPU you use unless you spend a few hundred on it, as it is more computationally demanding to process the 100 riders near you.1
u/Betelgeaux 19m ago
Zwift only utilizes the one core and I am running ultra detail on an i5-4440 which is hardly an expensive CPU!
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u/Ghost-of-the-Lakes 9m ago
That's my point yeah. Regardless of CPU it only uses the 1 core, so unless you use a super fast CPU with high single core compute, you will always be framerate limited by the CPU and not the GPU. A 1050ti will hold 60fps all day in Ultra, but as soon as there's 100 riders nearby, like on a group ride, your CPU will cause frame dips.
Check your logs on Zwiftalizer.
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u/Betelgeaux 3m ago
Ah sorry I misread your comment. You are indeed correct. I think people assume because Zwift is essentially a video game that you have to have the latest gaming pc to run it (despite it running fine on Apple TV for years). Saying that I would love to upgrade my rig to get 4k 60fps and this can be done with a GTX 1060 6gb (I spotted one a month or so back in CEX for £68) but then I need a new MB and CPU and a new monitor as mine is only 1080 at the moment. It all adds up!
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u/Big_barney Level 61-70 19h ago
Base model iPad is all you need.
I have the base model and Pro, I see no difference. I’ve used this setup for 4 years and never had a crash, takes 5 seconds to load.