Beelink SER9 vs Minisforum N5 Pro
Beelink SER9 is the more capable pick; Minisforum N5 Pro is the cheaper one - which wins comes down to the job below.
The verdict
- CPU
- Beelink SER9 has 1.1x the CPU throughput (34,991 vs 33,292 PassMark).
- Idle power
- Beelink SER9 idles lower (8W vs 33W) - cheaper to run 24/7.
- Networking
- Minisforum N5 Pro has more NICs (2 vs 1) - better for a firewall or VLAN trunk.
- RAM ceiling
- Minisforum N5 Pro takes more RAM (96GB vs 32GB).
- Local AI
- Minisforum N5 Pro has a PCIe slot for a low-profile GPU - the other needs a DIY build for local LLMs.
Which wins for each job
| Job | Beelink SER9 | Minisforum N5 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Plex / Jellyfin | ~5 streams | ~5 streams |
| Frigate NVR | add a detector | add a detector |
| Proxmox / VMs | 34,991 PassMark win | 33,292 PassMark |
| Firewall / router | 1 NICs | 2 NICs win |
| Local AI / LLM | no slot | PCIe GPU slot win |
Approximate - capacity estimates from curated specs, the same logic as the recommender. Verify against your exact setup. Prices move; check the retailer.
Full specs
| Spec | Beelink SER9 | Minisforum N5 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Price (list) | $999 | $899 |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 370 |
| Cores / threads | 12 | 12 |
| PassMark | 34,991 | 33,292 |
| iGPU | Radeon 890M (RDNA3.5) | Radeon 890M (RDNA3.5) |
| NICs | 1 | 2 |
| NIC model | Intel I226-V | Marvell AQC113 10GbE plus Realtek 5GbE |
| RAM max (GB) | 32 | 96 |
| M.2 free | 1 | 3 |
| PCIe slot | none | x16 |
| Idle (W) | 8 | 33 |
| TDP (W) | 65 | 54 |