There’s a recurring problem in my line of work, and perhaps in yours too. I often find myself needing a full-fledged Windows desktop environment in places where bringing a laptop is either overkill or inconvenient. Think about presenting at a conference where a monitor and keyboard are already provided, setting up a temporary monitoring dashboard in an IT closet, or even just wanting a dedicated, silent media streamer for the hotel TV on a business trip. For years, the solution was either a clunky laptop with its own charger and bag or compromising with a locked-down, underpowered streaming device. The dream was simple: a complete, capable PC that could fit in my pocket alongside my phone. This isn’t just about convenience; it’s about efficiency and flexibility. Not having this solution means wasted space, extra weight, and a frustrating compromise on functionality. This exact pain point is what led me to explore the burgeoning world of PC sticks, and specifically, to the device we’re examining today.
- 【 Latest Celeron N100 Processor 】- This MeLE N100 PC Stick upgraded with Celeron N100 (0.8GHz to 3.4GHz) Quad-Core Processor, provides 45% more performance release compared to the previous J4125....
- 【Memory and Storage 】- This PCG02 compute stick equipped with 8GB LPDDR4, 128GB storage, a Micro SD card slot can be added separately to expand the storage up to 1TB, with two USB-A 10Gbps ports...
What to Consider Before Buying a Mini PC Stick
A Mini PC, especially in the “stick” form factor, is more than just a novelty item; it’s a key solution for decluttering physical and digital spaces while maintaining powerful computing capabilities. It solves the problem of space for those in tiny apartments, the need for silent operation in recording studios or bedrooms, and the demand for low-power, 24/7 operation for tasks like running a home server, digital signage, or industrial IoT applications. The primary benefit is getting a full desktop experience—be it Windows, Linux, or another OS—in an impossibly small package that can be hidden behind a monitor or television, creating a clean, wire-free setup.
The ideal customer for this type of product is someone facing a specific need for portability, silence, or a minimal footprint. This includes IT professionals setting up display dashboards, travelers who can rely on peripherals being available at their destination, home media enthusiasts who want a powerful and versatile alternative to a standard streaming box, and hobbyists building low-power home automation or media servers. However, this form factor might not be suitable for those who need significant graphical horsepower, such as serious gamers, video editors, or 3D modelers. The thermal and physical constraints of a PC stick naturally limit its performance ceiling. These users would be better served by larger mini PCs with active cooling or full-sized desktops.
Before investing, consider these crucial points in detail:
- Dimensions & Space: The most obvious advantage is size. A stick PC is typically the size of a large USB drive or a candy bar. You must consider the port layout on your monitor or TV. Will the stick block other ports? Does it come with a flexible HDMI extender to alleviate this common issue? While it saves desk space, ensure it physically fits into your intended display’s I/O area.
- Capacity/Performance: This is where you must manage expectations. Look closely at the CPU (like the Intel N100 in our review unit), RAM (8GB is a good baseline for light multitasking), and storage type/size (eMMC is common but slower than NVMe SSDs). This combination is excellent for web browsing, 4K video playback, and office applications, but will struggle with intensive tasks.
- Materials & Durability: Most PC sticks are housed in plastic casings to aid in heat dissipation and keep weight down. Look for designs that incorporate passive cooling elements, like fins or a specially textured chassis. Since it’s a portable device, the build quality should feel solid enough to withstand being tossed in a bag, and the ports should feel secure.
- Ease of Use & Maintenance: A key feature is a pre-installed, fully licensed operating system like Windows 11 Pro, which makes setup incredibly simple. Maintenance is minimal due to the fanless design, meaning no dust bunnies to clean out. However, consider the recovery options and how easy it is to reinstall the OS if something goes wrong.
Understanding these factors will help you decide if the ultra-compact form factor is the right fit for your computing needs, or if a slightly larger, more powerful mini PC is a better investment.
While the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro is an excellent choice, it’s always wise to see how it stacks up against the competition. For a broader look at all the top models, we highly recommend checking out our complete, in-depth guide:
Choosing the Best Computing Solution: A Guide as Detailed as Selecting Your D&D Miniatures
- TIC TAC Box with 60 Mini Boxes (Mint, Orange, Spearmint, Peach and Passion fruit) 234g by Tic Tac
- Includes 1 (3.625oz) canister of Cheetos Minis, Cheddar flavor
- REAL BRANDS: New minis have entered the Miniverse! Collect all your favorite foods from all your favorite brands!
Unboxing and First Impressions: A Surprisingly Robust Micro-Computer
Pulling the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro from its compact box, the first thing that struck me was its density. It’s smaller than my smartphone but feels substantial and well-constructed, not like a cheap, hollow piece of plastic. The chassis has a textured, finned design that isn’t just for show; it’s the core of its passive cooling system. Included in the box are the essentials: the PC stick itself, a USB-C power adapter with interchangeable plugs for different regions (a fantastic touch for travelers), and a short, flexible HDMI extension cable. This last item is more critical than it seems, as it prevents the stick’s body from blocking adjacent ports on a crowded TV or monitor panel, a lesson we’ve learned the hard way with older stick PCs.
Compared to previous generations of PC sticks that were often plasticky, underpowered, and plagued with connectivity issues, the MeLE PCG02 feels like a significant leap forward. The inclusion of a dedicated Gigabit Ethernet port, a full-function USB-C port, and an external Wi-Fi antenna signals that this is a serious tool, not just a toy. Powering it on for the first time was anticlimactic in the best way possible. It booted directly into the standard Windows 11 Pro setup, which was quick, painless, and required no hunting for drivers. Within five minutes, I was at a fully functional, activated Windows desktop, ready to install my suite of testing software. You can see its full feature set and user reviews to get a better sense of this seamless experience.
Key Benefits
- Absolutely silent fanless operation
- Excellent connectivity for its size (Gigabit Ethernet, USB-C, Wi-Fi 5)
- Ultra-compact and highly portable design
- Comes with Windows 11 Pro and supports Linux
Limitations
- eMMC storage is slower than modern NVMe SSDs
- Reports from some users regarding long-term reliability issues
Performance Deep Dive: Punching Far Above Its Weight Class
A device this small is always a story of compromises. The art is in making the right ones. After spending extensive time with the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro, it’s clear that MeLE has prioritized connectivity and silent efficiency, creating a remarkably capable machine for its intended uses. We pushed it through a series of real-world scenarios, from office productivity to media streaming and light server duties, to see where it shines and where it hits its limits.
The Intel N100 CPU: A Leap in Low-Power Performance
At the heart of this device is the Intel N100 processor, a quad-core CPU from the Alder Lake-N series. For anyone familiar with the sluggish performance of older Celeron or Atom-based mini PCs (like the once-ubiquitous J4125), the N100 is a revelation. In our testing, the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro handled day-to-day tasks with surprising agility. We opened a dozen tabs in Chrome, streamed a 4K video from YouTube, and had a Word document open simultaneously without the system grinding to a halt. This is a level of responsiveness that was simply unattainable in this form factor just a few years ago. The 8GB of LPDDR4 RAM is a perfect match for the CPU, providing enough headroom for light multitasking.
We found this performance echoed in user feedback. One user noted it handles “browsing, small server stuff” just fine, while another was impressed at how “fast and easy to carry” it was, calling it a good alternative to a Chromebook. To be clear, this is not a gaming machine. We saw a review where a user attempted to run Second Life and achieved a paltry 6.8 frames per second, which aligns with our expectations. The integrated Intel UHD Graphics are built for video decoding and display output, not 3D rendering. However, for its primary mission—powering digital signage, acting as a presentation machine, or serving as a high-quality media streamer—the N100 processor delivers more than enough power. We successfully streamed 4K HDR content to a Samsung Frame TV without any stuttering or dropped frames, a task where many lesser devices falter.
Uncompromised Connectivity: The Stick PC’s Swiss Army Knife
Perhaps the most compelling feature of the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro is its I/O, a feature that really sets it apart. In a chassis this tiny, finding a dedicated Gigabit Ethernet port is a game-changer. While the dual-band Wi-Fi 5 (with its prominent external antenna) provided respectable speeds in our tests—one user reported it was “Awesome on WIFI”—a hardwired connection is non-negotiable for reliability in many business and server applications. We consistently achieved our network’s maximum speed of 500 Mbps via the Ethernet port, confirming its gigabit capabilities.
The port selection doesn’t stop there. It features two USB 3.2 Type-A ports and one full-function USB 3.2 Type-C port, all rated for 10Gbps. This is a generous and modern setup. The USB-C port is particularly noteworthy; it handles data, display output (DisplayPort Alt Mode), and power delivery. One adventurous user even reported successfully powering the device from a 5V 3A battery pack via this port, turning it into a truly mobile computing solution when paired with a lapdock like the Nexdock 360. This level of connectivity transforms the device from a simple media stick into a versatile computing hub. We were able to connect a keyboard, mouse, and external SSD without needing a separate USB hub, a common requirement for its competitors.
Silent and Steady: The Fanless Design and Thermal Engineering
The “fanless” aspect of the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro is a cornerstone of its design and a major benefit. The complete absence of moving parts means it operates in absolute silence. This makes it an ideal companion for a bedroom TV, a recording booth, or any office environment where noise is a distraction. The lack of a fan also means there are no vents to suck in dust, a critical feature for long-term, 24/7 reliability in industrial or commercial settings, such as running a dashboard in an IT closet as one user was doing. The elegant passive cooling system, which uses the entire chassis as a heatsink, is remarkably effective for the 6W TDP of the N100 chip.
Of course, fanless means heat has to go somewhere. Under sustained heavy load, such as transcoding a video file or running benchmarks, the chassis does get noticeably warm to the touch. This is expected and by design. In our stress tests, we didn’t observe any catastrophic thermal throttling that impacted normal performance. It maintained its boost clocks for typical workloads like web browsing and video playback without issue. As one reviewer aptly put it, “it does get warm but not anymore than a laptop would.” For its intended light-to-medium use cases, the thermal management is perfectly adequate, providing a stable and silent computing experience, which you can verify by checking the latest technical specs.
Plug-and-Play Professionalism: Software and BIOS Features
MeLE clearly understands its target audience extends beyond home users. The inclusion of a pre-installed, activated Windows 11 Pro license is a significant value-add. This provides access to professional features like BitLocker encryption, Remote Desktop, and group policy management right out of the box. Beyond the OS, the BIOS offers enhanced commercial features that are rare in this form factor. We tested and confirmed the functionality of Wake on LAN (WoL), PXE boot, and Auto Power On after power loss. The Auto Power On feature is particularly useful for unattended applications like digital signage or kiosks, ensuring the device reboots automatically after a power outage. One business user highlighted this exact feature, using it to replace old thin clients and setting the BIOS to power on automatically.
Furthermore, MeLE embraces OS flexibility. While it works perfectly with Windows, we followed the lead of a user who successfully booted Fedora Linux from a microSD card. We did the same with Ubuntu, and the experience was seamless—Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and audio all worked without any manual driver installation. This makes the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro an excellent, low-power device for Linux hobbyists looking to build a tiny server for projects like Home Assistant, Pi-hole, or a lightweight web server. The microSD card slot, supporting up to 1TB, provides a simple way to expand storage or boot alternative operating systems without touching the internal eMMC drive.
What Other Users Are Saying
Synthesizing the broader user experience reveals a product that is largely praised for its innovation, though not without some significant concerns. On the positive side, the overwhelming sentiment celebrates the device’s compact size and surprising capability. One user perfectly captured the ethos, saying, “Stick it in your pocket and go. A little smaller than my cellphone.” Many, like a customer who bought it to stream content with a VPN, lauded the “easier or quicker” setup process, going from unboxing to installing programs in just five minutes. The performance of the N100 for light tasks is consistently praised, with one reviewer noting, “Didn’t expect much, but this little stick PC is pretty powerful.”
However, it’s crucial to address the reports of reliability issues. A couple of users experienced catastrophic failures, with devices failing to boot after about a month of use, often ending in a “blue screen of death” or a black screen with only a cursor. One user noted, “the 1st one only lasted 27 days and the replacement lasted 34 days,” while another said their PC “failed to boot” after two months with a file system issue. These reports, while in the minority, point to potential quality control or eMMC storage longevity concerns that prospective buyers should be aware of. They stand in stark contrast to the majority of positive experiences but are too serious to ignore.
How Does the MeLE PCG02 Compare to the Alternatives?
The MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro occupies a unique niche, but it’s important to understand what you gain or lose by choosing its stick form factor over a more traditional mini PC box. Here, we compare it to three popular alternatives from Beelink.
1. Beelink SER5 Mini Desktop PC AMD Ryzen 5 16GB RAM 500GB SSD
- 💡【Tower Performance & Powerful Processor】 Powered with AMD Ryzen 5, 5500U 6C/12T, 2.1GHz by default but can boost up to 4GHz, which can turn your desk into a powerful workstation just by adding...
- 💡【Compact & Rich Interface 】Easy to setup and small in size. WiFi 6 , Bluetooth 5.2 is faster and more stable. Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 2.5Gbps network connectivity. Beelink SER is equipped with...
The Beelink SER5 represents a significant step up in every performance metric. Its AMD Ryzen 5 5500U processor with 6 cores and 12 threads massively outperforms the N100, and it comes with double the RAM (16GB) and a much larger, faster 500GB NVMe SSD. This is the choice for users who need a compact machine for more demanding tasks like moderate gaming, photo editing, or running multiple virtual machines. You sacrifice the absolute portability and silent operation of the MeLE stick (the SER5 has a fan), but in return, you get a machine that can serve as a legitimate primary desktop for many users.
2. Beelink MINIS 12 PRO Mini PC N100 16GB RAM 500GB SSD
- 💡【Compact size & incredible performance】MINIS 12 PRO Mini PC allowing you to take it anywhere you go. Equipped with N100 processor (4C/4T, 6M Cache, up to 3.4 GHz), pre-installed with W-11 home...
- 💡【UHD Graphics & Dual HDMI, WIFI6】MINIS 12Mini Desktop Computer equipped with UHD Graphics supporting 4k video playback and web surfing. Dual HDMI allows you to connect two monitors at the same...
This is a fascinating comparison as it features the same Intel N100 processor. The Beelink MINIS 12 PRO showcases the trade-offs of the form factor. For a slightly larger footprint, it offers double the RAM (16GB) and a spacious 500GB NVMe SSD, which will provide a much snappier experience for loading applications and transferring files compared to the MeLE’s 128GB eMMC. It also has dual HDMI ports for multi-monitor setups. If your priority is maximum performance from the N100 platform and you don’t need the pocketable stick design or the absolute silence of a fanless build, the MINIS 12 PRO offers better overall value and storage.
3. Beelink SER8 Mini PC Ryzen 7 32GB DDR5 1TB SSD
- ✅【Beelink Latest & Powerful Mini PC】- The SER8 Mini computer is powered by AMD Ryzen 7 8745HS processor, which is based on TSMC's 4nm process technology, has 8 cores/16 threads, basic 3.8GHz,...
- ✅【4K Triples Screen Display & Full-function USB4】- Beelink Ryzen Mini pc uses AMD Radeon 780M 12core 2700 MHz, Which is capable of handling heavy applications and 3A Games like LOL, PUBG, etc....
The Beelink SER8 is in a different league entirely. Powered by a high-end AMD Ryzen 7 8745HS, 32GB of cutting-edge DDR5 RAM, and a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, this machine is a miniature powerhouse. It’s designed for power users, developers, and gamers who demand top-tier performance in a small form factor. With features like triple 4K display support and a USB4 port, it competes with full-sized desktops. Choosing this over the MeLE stick is a question of purpose and budget. The SER8 is a compact desktop replacement, whereas the MeLE is an ultra-portable utility device. It’s not a direct competitor, but it illustrates the peak performance available in the mini PC category.
Final Verdict: A Niche But Brilliantly Executed Pocket PC
After extensive testing, the MeLE PCG02 Fanless Mini PC Stick N100 Windows 11 Pro has proven itself to be a remarkable piece of engineering that fills a very specific, but important, niche. It is not, and was never intended to be, a replacement for a primary desktop or a powerful laptop. Instead, it is the ultimate utility computer. For professionals needing a portable presentation machine, for IT staff deploying digital signage or monitoring dashboards, for home users wanting a silent and powerful media streamer, or for tech enthusiasts building a tiny home server, this device is nearly perfect. Its combination of a capable N100 processor, absolutely silent operation, and a connectivity suite that embarrasses larger devices is a winning formula.
While the limited eMMC storage and the concerning reports of reliability from a small number of users are valid points of consideration, the overwhelming experience is one of surprising power in an impossibly small package. If your needs align with its strengths—portability, silence, and versatile connectivity—then we can wholeheartedly recommend it. For those who need a truly pocketable, full-featured Windows 11 Pro computer for specialized tasks, the MeLE PCG02 is an innovative and highly compelling solution. If you believe this unique device fits your needs, we encourage you to check the latest price and secure one for yourself.
Last update on 2025-10-22 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API