HP Elite Mini 800 G9 2022, Core i5-12500T, 32GB, 1TB SSD, Black

A tiny office PC with big RAM but weak everything else. Buy it only if you need Windows in a small box and find it cheap.

The i5-12500T is a 35W chip, so it sips power and stays quiet, but it's not going to blow anyone away. Our database puts the CPU at the 37th percentile for mini PCs, which is fine for office tasks but nothing to brag about. The 32GB of DDR5 is the real standout here, landing in the 74th percentile, so multitasking is smooth even with a pile of apps open. The GPU is the weak link, sitting at the 14th percentile, which means even light gaming or video editing will feel sluggish. Storage is middle of the pack at the 51st percentile, but 1TB is plenty for most business users.

The obvious competitor is the Apple Mac mini M4 Pro. It's smaller, faster, and the M4 chip absolutely destroys the i5-12500T in both CPU and GPU tasks. If you're not locked into Windows, the Mac mini is the better buy almost every time. On the Windows side, the Lenovo Legion 90YA003GUS offers way more graphics horsepower for gaming or creative work, though it's bigger. The Dell Tower Plus EBT2250 is another option if you don't mind a traditional tower and want better expandability. The HP's only real advantage is its size and the fact that it's a refurbished unit, which might save you a few bucks upfront.

At $996 USD or $750 CAD, this is a tough sell. You're paying a premium for the small form factor and the HP Elite brand, but the performance doesn't match the price. For the same money, you could get a more powerful traditional desktop or a Mac mini that runs circles around this thing. Unless you absolutely need the tiny footprint and Windows 11 Pro for a corporate environment, the value just isn't there.

The HP Elite Mini 800 G9 is a business desktop that shrinks the office tower down to something you can hide behind a monitor. It's got a 12th-gen Core i5-12500T, 32GB of DDR5, and a 1TB NVMe SSD, which is a solid combo for spreadsheets, video calls, and the occasional 40-tab browser session. But the integrated Intel UHD 770 graphics mean this thing is strictly for work, not play. If you need a compact, mountable PC for a desk job, this one does the job without taking up real estate. Just don't expect it to do anything fun after hours.

If you're looking for any kind of gaming or creative performance, this isn't it. Go get a Mac mini M4 Pro or a desktop with a dedicated GPU instead. Also skip it if you need lots of ports or expandability, the limited connectivity will frustrate you. And if you're on a tight budget, there are cheaper mini PCs that do the same office work for less.

The HP Elite Mini 800 G9 is a competent office machine in a tiny package, but it's overpriced for what you get. The 32GB of RAM is nice, but the weak CPU and nearly useless GPU make it a one-trick pony. If you need a small Windows PC for basic business tasks and you find it on sale, it's fine. Otherwise, spend your money on a Mac mini or a more powerful desktop.