Beelink SER8 vs Minisforum MS-01: Which Should You Buy?
Affiliate disclosure: some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. See our full disclosure.
Quick verdict
| You are… | Buy this mini‑PC |
|---|---|
| Building a low‑power Proxmox node that runs quietly and won’t break the bank | Beelink SER8 |
| Need a beefy homelab server with 10 GbE, plenty of PCIe lanes, and room for massive RAM upgrades | Minisforum MS‑01 |
Spec‑by‑spec comparison
| Specification | Beelink SER8 | Minisforum MS‑01 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $500 | $650 |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (8C/16T, Radeon 780M) | Intel Core i9‑13900H (14C) |
| Maximum RAM | Up to 32 GB DDR5 | Up to 96 GB DDR5 |
| Network ports | 1× 2.5 GbE | 2× 10 GbE + 2× 2.5 GbE |
| Transcoding support | Yes (Radeon 780M) | Yes (Iris Xe) |
| Storage / expansion bays | NVMe only; low PCIe | PCIe x16, U.2, 2× M.2 |
| Best for | Proxmox mini server | Powerful homelab node |
| Key pros | Great perf/watt, quiet | 10 GbE, PCIe expansion, vPro |
| Key cons | Limited PCIe options | Runs warm |
(All specs taken directly from the manufacturers’ data sheets.)
Performance & power efficiency
From a veteran’s perspective, the SER8 feels like a “
Homelab essentials
Whichever tools you land on here, two things make any self-hosted setup safer:
- Privacy + secure remote access — reach your services from anywhere without exposing ports to the internet. Our pick is NordVPN — independently audited no-logs, fast, with Meshnet built in for linking your devices.
- Off-site backup for your configs & data — pCloud, EU/Swiss-based with optional zero-knowledge encryption and one-time lifetime plans, so a dead drive never costs you your setup.