Question Plex on a 2011 mac mini

[spanconstant5]

thinking of buying a 2011 mac mini server to run plex and a shared network drive
specs:
i7 2620m, 8gb ram, 2x 500gb hard drives, $95
i plan on upgrading the drives and adding more usb drives in the future, i am also broke college student, so dont send me links asking to buy this or that that costs more.
i just want input or any better ideas for a similar price

 

[Newtonius]

That's a decent idea as is. Though for a bit cheaper you can buy a Raspberry Pi 4 instead and make it a DIY plex server build, though it will be more technical in terms of setup. If you don't know Linux that well it could be a good opportunity to learn if you're interested.

 

[spanconstant5]

That's a decent idea as is. Though for a bit cheaper you can buy a Raspberry Pi 4 instead and make it a DIY plex server build, though it will be more technical in terms of setup. If you don't know Linux that well it could be a good opportunity to learn if you're interested.

I wanted to use a Pi, but those are being scalped in my area, a 3B+ is like $180 US and the 4 isn't even available. and if the price was similar, the Mac can be useful to have around for some things

 

[Newtonius]

I wanted to use a Pi, but those are being scalped in my area, a 3B+ is like $180 US and the 4 isn't even available. and if the price was similar, the Mac can be useful to have around for some things

Then, in my opinion, sounds like the mac mini is the best option you can go. Unless you're able to find a spare desktop or even a working laptop motherboard at a cheaper price.

 

[spanconstant5]

Then, in my opinion, sounds like the mac mini is the best option you can go. Unless you're able to find a spare desktop or even a working laptop motherboard at a cheaper price.

ok, the 2620 will be enough power? and would it be better to load windows or ubuntu over using Mac OS?

 

[Newtonius]

ok, the 2620 will be enough power? and would it be better to load windows or ubuntu over using Mac OS?

I can't say I personally have experience with using that CPU for any type of transcoding, but I believe it should be able to play 1080p movies just for you with little to no struggle, and maybe - MAYBE - simultaneously with a couple of other friends/family you invite to your server. Just don't go too far and try to stream 4K videos to a ton of people at once if that was the plan as well. Here is what plex says about hardware requirements too if you're curious.
I would say it'd be better to go with Linux since Linux is pretty efficient, but it's really up to you. It might become more technical to setup if you plan to go that route.