This is a "how long is a piece of string" question. There is such a wide variety in mini-PCs, with all kinds of specifications, that a general answer is not possible. Basically a mini-PC contains the same hardware as a laptop, without display and without keyboard. And often they don't come with RAM and SSD storage, up to you to buy and install yourself.
I have 3 Dell desktops that are all silent. The newest one is 3 months old, cost $1,046.82 at dell.com and specs shown below, Vostro Desktop 3910 Cable US Power Cord Item number: 470-AAKG Card Reader No Media Card Reader Item number: 385-BBPY CD ROM/DVD ROM No Optical Drive Item number: 429-AAXO Chassis Options 300W PSU Bronze L5.5 exclusive Item number: 321-BHIY Documentation/Disks SERI Guide (ENG/FR/Multi) Item number: 340-AGIK Driver Wireless Driver Item number: 555-BHKX FGA Module Fixed Hardware Configuration Item number: 998-FLMT Hard Drive 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe Solid State Drive Item number: 400-BMWB Keyboard Dell Multimedia Keyboard-KB216 Black (English) Item number: 580-AILI Label Regulatory Label Item number: 389-ECMY Memory 8GB, 8Gx1, DDR4, 3200MHz Item number: 370-AGJH Microsoft Application Software No Microsoft Office License Included – 30 day Trial Offer Only Item number: 658-BCSB Mouse Dell Optical Mouse - MS116 (Black) Item number: 570-ABIE Non-Microsoft Application Software Additional Software Item number: 619-ANJH Operating System(s) Windows 11 Pro, English Item number: 619-APTP Optical Software Not selected in this configuration Item number: 817-BBBC Packaging Shipping Material Item number: 328-BENI Processor 12th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-12700 processor (12-Core, 25M Cache, 2.1GHz to 4.8GHz) Item number: 338-CCZJ Processor Branding Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 non-vPro Processor Label Item number: 389-DXDV Retail Information Return Label Item number: 811-BBBC Security Software McAfee Small Business Security 12-month subscription (CB-D) Item number: 525-0323 McAfee(R) 30day Trial Item number: 658-BCCO Services:Hardware Support Onsite/In-Home Service After Remote Diagnosis, 1 Year Item number: 817-5411 Dell Limited Hardware Warranty Item number: 817-5341 Systems Management MOD-SRV,SW,VOSDT,WIN,V3910 Item number: 555-BHKM Energy Star Label Item number: 389-DOVG UPC Label Print on Demand Label Item number: 389-BLKP Video Card Intel UHD Graphics 770 with shared graphics memory Item number: 490-BHGN Wireless Intel(R) Wi-Fi 6 2x2 (Gig+) and Bluetooth Item number: 555-BGBP
Does your dell case have the sound dampening panel? Or merely the metal case? Can you take a look at? Thanks.
I'm not sharp enough to be able to determine. I also have a 3 year old Dell desktop Vostro DT 5090 BTX base that i cannot hear either. My third desktop is a 5 year old Dell Inspiron i3650 Premium High Performance Desktop, Intel Core i5-6400, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD, Windows 7 Pro I can't hear that one either, so might better not take my recommendations. That 5 year old machine works flawless but Windows 10 and 11 on the newer ones save me lots of work for some of the things i do. Some years ago i had a fancy gaming desktop and i could hear it loudly. Maybe a surefire method is to walk in a store and check a few out. I like to order everything online and have it shipped in, but you never really know what you are getting exactly that way.
I finally built a fanless PC through the individual components. What is the good way to use that PC? Right now I have the external monitor, mouse, keyboard linked to my laptop. Do I need to buy another set of these? I hope to use that PC using a remote screen or something like that through my lap. If can be done, what is the software to use? Thanks.