Best HTPC 2024 – our top Home Theatre PCs

We Go Through The Best HTPCs On The Market For Each Price Point

Table of Contents Table of Contents

Sometimes the average user would just like a nice small form factor prebuilt PC to run in the lounge and not interfere with how the room looks, enter the HTPC. A home theatre PC isn’t that different from a smart TV however it is a lot more powerful and gives you much more flexibility with what you can achieve in your home theatre.

These mini PCs can be mounted to TVs and gaming monitors and can be kept completely hidden whilst giving you extra entertainment options in your home.

An HTPC will allow you to browse the web, watch movies, and in some cases even play some pretty impressive game titles too! It is no secret that over the last few years, HTPCs have become smaller in size and price, making them a more attractive option.

HTPCs vary in terms of performance and cost so it is important to know what your needs may be. A higher-end HTPC will handle your day-to-day tasks and entertainment with no issues. These types of HTPCs will also feature a powerful CPU with integrated graphics that can handle a range of games with fast storage solutions to back it up.

Lower-end HTPCs may not feature the most powerful CPUs, with many sometimes struggling with games and even multitasking. Despite this, less powerful HTPCs can still handle 4K viewings and with the low-cost factoring in make a great little entertainment unit for the home.

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Best HTPC systems

Intel NUC 13 Pro

01

Intel NUC 13 Pro (i7-1360P)

CPU / GPU

Intel Core i7-1360P / Intel Iris Xe

Dimensions (L x W x H)

‎7.72 x 6.73 x 4.8 inches

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Pros

• Latest gen CPU in a small factor
• Comes with VESA mounting
• Comes with a 512GB NVMe for fast storage
• Can do 4 or even 8K video

Cons

• More expensive mini PC

The Intel NUC is one the best and most well-known choices for an HTPC, and even though Intel itself said it will stop producing them it will be taken over by ASUS. Even still NUC 13 is a great choice in the latest generation offering.

With a 13th Gen i7-1360P, you get the latest iteration of mobile CPU that Intel has to offer. With great efficiency and split performance cores, it has a lot to offer especially with Iris Xe graphics.

You get plenty in its interface as well with:

• Two Thunderbolt 4
• Three USB 3.2
• One USB 2.0
• Two HDMI 2.1
• One 2.5 Gbps ethernet
• One 3.5mm headphone jack

It also comes with 16GB of DDR4 for a lot of processing power. The speed is also from the WiFI 6E with Bluetooth and Thunderbolt 4 for all-in-one fast connections. It also has 512GB of NVMe SSD for responsiveness and fast loading, all in a small package with not much power needed to run.

Apple Mac mini M2 (2023)

02

Apple Mac mini M2 (2023)

Chip

Apple M2

CPU

8-Core CPU

GPU

10-Core GPU

Memory

8GB RAM

Storage

256GB / 512GB

Dimensions (L x W x H)

7.75 x 7.75 x 1.41 inches

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Pros

• Apple’s latest M2 all in one processor that is powerful and efficient
• Fast connections with Thunderbolt 4, Gigabit ethernet, and WiFi 6E

Cons

• Very expensive
• Limited to just 256GB of storage
• Only 8GB of memory that can limit its multitasking and processing

Apple gives you a good option with the Mac mini. Featuring the latest silicon from Apple, it has the M2 processor in it with 8 CPU cores and 10 GPU cores. Running its own ecosystem does mean you’re a bit limited in what it supports especially with the limited games like from Steam.

The design is sleek and stylish like all Apple devices with limited standout features showcased and the computer is rather compact for the package.

In terms of ports you get:

• Two Thunderbolt 4 (Type C)
• Two USB A
• One HDMI
• On headphone jack
• One Gigabit ethernet

The Mac Mini is limited in terms of memory it has onboard though, with only 8GB unified across the board. Which can mean limited overall ability with CPU and GPU utilization.

Although the rest of the setup offers very fast connectivity, with Thunderbolt connections and Gigabit you will have a lot of fast peripherals and internet. It also comes with a 256GB NVMe for quick and responsive usage.

AWOW NYi3 Mini PC

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Most compact HTPC here with affordable, mid-range performance

AWOW NYi3 Mini PC

CPU / GPU

Intel Broadwell i3-5005U/ Intel HD Graphics 5500

Dimensions (L x W x H)

4.8 x 4.3 x 1.6 inches

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Pros

• Can run applications, entertainment and even some games smoothly.
• Low profile
• Fast and reliable
• Affordable
• Comes with a mounting bracket

Cons

• Not the most powerful of components

The NYi3 Mini PC from AWOW offers something quite surprising for such a small computer. The power is good enough to keep your home theatre running smoothly with ample memory and a fast storage solution. This unexpectedly can run certain games (albeit in low graphics) and makes light work of general computing tasks.

The design is pretty plain but seeing as it’s designed to be tucked away it isn’t exactly a bad thing. Indeed the AWOW NYi3 Mini PC is the smallest HTPC on this list.

Looking at the connectivity department, you have the following:

• 2 x USB 2 ports
• 2 x HDMI ports
• 1 x DCIN port
• 1 x USB-C port

This mini PC is really responsive and that is down to the reasonable i3 CPU paired with the 8GB of RAM. If that wasn’t enough this HTPC features an M.2 storage solution making this ideal as a small workstation also.

This little barebones PC can also display in two 4K displays at once which isn’t too bad for such a small machine.

This can be mounted with ease on the back of a monitor and will be easily hidden if you look to use it as part of your home theatre setup in the living room.  This a solid and affordable option from AWOW that’s worth picking up.

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Things you should check before buying a HTPC

HTPCs offer a unique solution to computer users. They’re light, compact, and can pack a punch.

Unlike barebone PCs, an HTPC comes prebuilt and in many cases gives you options to upgrade RAM and storage size. These upgrades can be costly but they do add a bit of flexibility to the machines.

Processor (CPU)

A lot of the time HTPCs don’t feature the latest CPU and in many cases they have a mobile CPU installed. This doesn’t mean they aren’t fast though and it is worth knowing exactly what you plan to use your new HTPC for.

If you are looking to use this for everything from browsing the web to gaming then you are looking at an increase in your costs. For those looking at just using this as a little Microsoft Office PC or to watch some movies then you probably won’t need an overly powered chip to achieve this.

HTPCs are the smallest form factor PCs going and will save you insane amounts of room. They often come VESA mountable or with a mounting bracket as standard giving you the option to attach these to the back of televisions and gaming monitors.

HTPCs will never replace gaming PCs but they are very portable and can be taken with you on holiday without taking up any room. Just be sure the CPU coolers are sufficient to keep it going.

Size and weight

Fairly self-explanatory – although HTPCs are generally portable, some are most so than others so you should pay attention to the dimensions and the weight when thinking about how easily you’ll be able to carry one around before you buy it.

The HTPC case tends to be rather small and doesn’t require a big power supply to work like a normal PC. The chassis needs to be small enough to be moved around easily or hidden away as long as you have enough hard drives in your system. With enough GB on your HDD, you can fit plenty of videos to watch.

Connectivity

You’ll also need to pay attention to the I/O (input and output) ports included in the model you buy since they can vary greatly. Most HTPCs should have some (if not all) of the following:

• Mic and headphone jack
• USB port
• USB-C port
• LAN port
• HDMI/DisplayPort
• VESA mount

It tends to be provided by the motherboard and what it has to offer. As you still need a good option to connect your mouse and keyboard.

Final word

There you have it! These HTPCs (and one Mac) cover various needs in the home theatre area, however, it could be worth your time and money to invest in a new PC build instead seeing as you do get plenty more bang for your buck.

Best HTPC FAQs

Is HTPC Dead?

There are many that would declare that the HTPC format is dead as a doornail, and for them, that’s probably true. Chances are they canned their aging HTPC long before now in favor of a dedicated gaming build and Smart TV. But as long as an HTPC holds a steady place in your media center, it’s never really dead.

What’s more, companies are still producing them in the thousands, so somebody must be buying them. These dominant institutions are far too shrewd from a business standpoint to continue making something that is by and large obsolete.

Granted, HTPC’s position in the market is shrinking due to affordable streaming devices and the rise of the Smart TV, but there’s still nothing out there that really does what it does. In light of this, even if companies halted HTPC production, with nothing to completely fill their shoes, their decline would be a very gradual process.

What Is an HTPC Used For?

HTPC stands for Home Theater PC. Often referred to as living room computers, they’re a household’s quiet, wireless, one-stop entertainment system used to store and play music and videos, display user photos, and to a certain extent, play games.

Used in place of dedicated DVD and Blu-ray players, an HTPC is often a tasteful and compact way of imbuing your living room with all the tech you need to kick back and have a good time without loading TV cabinets full of separate hardware.

If an HTPC is fitted with a TV card, it can even record and playback cable TV shows, although, you can get all the entertainment you need from the internet alone these days, so it’s a rare appointment.

If you’re still a little confused about what exactly an HTPC is, you can think of it as an incredibly advanced Smart TV. It brings the full functionality of a standard computer to a shared zone of a living space