VeryPC Flex Micro & Flex Mini

[jessica]

The school I work for are looking to buy a number of new PCs that are Windows 11 compatible and like the look of the Very PC Flex Micro's and Flex Mini's.

We haven't used VeryPC before and are wondering if anyone has used them and what their support and PCs are like?

[steveg]

We haven't had those particular models but our last 2 refreshes were very pc devices, had no failures and found both before and after sales (when we couldn't work out how to put the all on ones together!) support was excellent.

[StormTrooper59]

We have around 120 Flex Micros and 15 or so of the Flex Minis. The Flex Micros have tiny fans which we have had to replace around 30 of them after we had an issue where the fan was constantly on and had a loud whining noise. We've had better experiences with the Flex Minis. The support from Very is good but the build quality can be a bit hit and miss sometimes.

[Steve101]

I recently tested out the mini and was not impressed, our filtering was blocking the TPM attestation and nobody could help provide the correct URL to bypass. Service provided was ok.

 

We have 100 of the Flexbook laptops in operation and so far the reception has been good, only 1 has been sent back for repairs and it was a quick turnaround.

 

I am looking to roll out the Micro computers as teaching machines, I have been provided one to test and although it seems quite loud it's impressive for the price. After being disappointed with the way DELL handle everything nowadays, it's quite refreshing to be able to obtain affordable machines and be able to speak directly with the manufacturer.

[LeMarchand]

Our suite comprises of the larger Flex machines. All but 2 still going after 9 years and those failed well outside of warranty. We also have various other VPC models dotted about. For "student" areas I'd recommend the ones that "cage" the connectors away.

[Danp]

The school I work for are looking to buy a number of new PCs that are Windows 11 compatible and like the look of the Very PC Flex Micro's and Flex Mini's.

We haven't used VeryPC before and are wondering if anyone has used them and what their support and PCs are like?

 

I've only seen one of their latest mini devices and they look great when branded. As for the company, can't fault them, a great company to work with, I've been using them since 2011.

[supportman]

We use the Very-PC All-in-ones here and are very impressed with the speed and reliability of them.

 

They are a cheap Chinese OEM brand but work very well.

 

I personally see no reason to buy a separate computer and a monitor these days. Makes for a much cleaner desk setup as well with less cables.

Edited January 30, 2025 by supportman

[Chris_Cook]

We use the Very-PC All-in-ones here and are very impressed with the speed and reliability of them.

 

They are a cheap Chinese OEM brand but work very well.

 

I personally see no reason to buy a separate computer and a monitor these days. Makes for a much cleaner desk setup as well with less cables.

 

Same here. Very PC support is excellent and have supplied new screens for us when damaged. Would 100% buy again from them.

[dhicks]

We use the Very-PC All-in-ones here and are very impressed with the speed and reliability of them.

 

We bought a batch of VeryPC all-in-ones about 10 years ago:

 

https://www.edugeek.net/forums/av-multimedia-related/190728-driving-4k-smartboard-using-integrated-graphics.html#post1630226

 

They're still going, currently as a classroom set we donated to a charity.

[GeekyPete]

Got about 400 various VPC computers across 6 schools. The standard cases are a little flimsy, but they are very easy to service. Out oldest ones are about 7 yrs old now. Had a few of those fail in the last few months. We do take out the 5 yr warranty. I Reported a noisy CPU fan on a 4 1/2 yr old computer on Tuesday, replacement fan arrive Wednesday. We're happy with them.

[Fazza]

The school I work for are looking to buy a number of new PCs that are Windows 11 compatible and like the look of the Very PC Flex Micro's and Flex Mini's.

We haven't used VeryPC before and are wondering if anyone has used them and what their support and PCs are like?

 

Both pre-sales and after-sales service has always been excellent for us. Not had many warranty issues (or issues outside the warranty to be honest) just the odd SSD going faulty and they just send us a replacement so we can fit it ASAP when it arrives so we can get the PC back up and running in sooner rather than later. I think we did have a problem with some USB ports on a batch of computers we got from them that we only realised when we were installing them and they sent an engineer out to work with us the very next day to solve the problem and they did, so like I say they have provided us with excellent service at all times.

[MrEprise]

I personally see no reason to buy a separate computer and a monitor these days. Makes for a much cleaner desk setup as well with less cables.

 

In some scenarios possibly. However, if the PC part fails outside warranty and can't be repaired, then you have a monitor you can't use anymore... alternatively if the monitor part fails outside warranty or is smashed by a Student then you have a PC you can't really use properly.

 

I'd rather just have a mini PC bolted to the back of a monitor for ease of maintainability.

[Fazza]

I personally see no reason to buy a separate computer and a monitor these days. Makes for a much cleaner desk setup as well with less cables.

 

For us, having a seperate monitor (that we mount on to the VeryPC Flex case with the optional monitor mounting kit) saves us money each time we refresh the computers as we just by a the computer and not a screen/monitor each time.

Edited January 31, 2025 by Fazza

[robyholmes]

We have used Flex Micros for many years. What we like about them is the separate monitor (As explained above, means the monitor can be retained and PC swapped. We aim for 12 years on monitor, 6 years on PC). They mount on the back of the monitor, so don't take up desk space, and the cable cover stops cables being removed and keeps things tidy.

 

Durability wise, front USBs have been a problem in the last batch. VeryPC in the end have agreed to swap them when they fail under warranty. At first it did look like damage, but soon became clear they were weaker than they should have been. CPU fans sometimes fail, but again covered under warranty and aren't anything special to get replacement for outside of warranty. I would like VeryPC to use slightly better NVME drives, we seem to have a few issues with them, but again not much of an issue and it's easy to sort under warranty. So while this sounds like a number of issues, in relation to the amount we have and use they get, it's really not.

 

We get them on a 5 year warranty (Return to base for students, onsite for staff) and it really doesn't cost much to do this. Which shows VeryPC are pretty confident in them as well.

 

Going forward, I'd like to see some AMD based versions, which I'm sure are incoming. I've asked for a few years now for these, mainly as Intel have slipped back and cooling the intel chips needs more and more airflow.

@VeryPC will be watching this thread, at least I hope they do as it's some really useful information from customers as to the pros and cons of devices in there range. Which is another plus point, they have a range to pick from so they should have something that suites your needs!

[Cat_Jam148]

We've been running 33x Flex Micro in our Suite since 2019, and we haven't had any major or widespread issues (pushing my luck saying that!). In all that time we've only had to get in touch with them once and that was all handled very quickly under the VeryPC warranty.

 

In 2023, we rolled out a newer model to our classrooms, and so far all has been good! They do run a little hot sometimes, but that is expected with the form factor.

 

We'll probably be looking to replace our machines in the suite in the next couple of years, and wouldn't hesitate to go with VeryPC again!

Edited January 31, 2025 by Cat_Jam148