Is an Intel N100 a better value than a Raspberry Pi?

All of this to say: value is complicated. The Pi 5 ismuchmore compact and slightly more power efficient (especially at idle) compared to the cheapest N1XX Intel systems. The Intel systems are better suited for a desktop use case. The Pi 5 can be run off PoE power, for easier one-cable networking + power. The Intel systems are more compatible with a wider range of software (not the least of which isanything requiring Windows).

Jeff Geerling

Intel's N100 and N150 are vastly underappreciated. The mini laptop I reviewed over a year ago is built around the N100, and I still use it every day for watching YouTube, writing OSNews posts, and so on. I never run into performance issues, battery life is excellent, and I don't have to deal with the annoyances of using ARM. The catch is that you're going to want to use Linux - I use Fedora KDE - because Windows' performance on the N100 is dreadful.

I don't think the jump from the N100 to the N150 is worthwhile enough to buy the new version of my mini laptop, so I'll stick with what I have. I do hope Intel continues the Nxxx line or processors, because it offers something no other x86 chip offers: more than reasonable performance at low power usage for an incredibly low price.