Intel N100 vs N305: Pick the Right CPU for Your Home Server (2026)

Choosing between the Intel N100 and i3-N305 for your home server is one of the most common decisions in the homelab community right now. Both are strong contenders for the best low power home server CPU in 2026, and each is affordable and capable enough for most self-hosting workloads. But they are not identical, and the right choice depends entirely on what you plan to run.

This guide breaks down every meaningful difference between the Intel N100 and N305 for home server use. We will cover real-world performance in Plex, Docker, Proxmox, and NAS workloads. We will compare N100 vs N305 power consumption, mini PC options, and pricing. And by the end, you will know exactly which CPU fits your setup, whether the question is N100 or N305 for Plex, virtualization, or a quiet NAS in the closet.

If you are building your first home server or upgrading from a Raspberry Pi, you are in the right place. Let us dig in.

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TL;DR: Quick Decision Guide

Already know your use case? This table gets you to the answer fast.

For most home server users, the N100 is the right pick. Read on for the full breakdown.

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The N100 and N305 at a Glance

Both the Intel N100 and i3-N305 belong to Intel's Alder Lake-N family, released in early 2023. They share the same architecture, the same manufacturing process, and the same integrated GPU generation. The key difference is core count: the N305 doubles the number of efficiency cores from four to eight.

Here is the full specification comparison:

A few things worth highlighting:

They are both E-cores only. Neither the N100 nor the N305 has Performance cores. Every core is an efficiency core, which is why both chips sip power compared to mainstream desktop CPUs. The N305 simply packs twice as many of them.

Same iGPU generation, different EU count. The N100 has 24 Execution Units while the N305 has 32. Both support the same Quick Sync Video codecs, so hardware transcoding works identically. The extra EUs on the N305 help slightly with GPU-accelerated tasks but do not change the transcoding codec support.

Shared 6 MB L3 cache. This is one area where the N305 does not scale. Eight cores share the same 6 MB cache that four cores get on the N100. Under certain memory-heavy workloads, the N305 can show diminishing returns because of this shared cache.

Memory ceiling. Both officially support up to 16 GB. In practice, many N305 boards ship with DDR5 and some vendors have validated 32 GB configurations, but Intel's official spec caps at 16 GB for both.

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Real-World Performance Compared

Spec sheets only tell part of the story. What matters is how these CPUs perform in the workloads you actually care about. Let us walk through the most common home server use cases.

Plex and Jellyfin Transcoding

Media streaming is the gateway drug of self-hosting, and transcoding performance is often the first question people ask. Here is the good news: both the N100 and N305 handle Plex and Jellyfin transcoding well, thanks to Intel Quick Sync Video.

Quick Sync offloads video transcoding to the integrated GPU rather than burning CPU cores. This means that even the 4-core N100 can handle multiple simultaneous transcodes without breaking a sweat, because the CPU is barely involved.

N100 transcoding capacity:

• 3-4 simultaneous 1080p transcodes via Quick Sync
• 1-2 simultaneous 4K-to-1080p transcodes
• Direct play (no transcoding) is essentially unlimited by CPU

N305 transcoding capacity:

• 5-7 simultaneous 1080p transcodes via Quick Sync
• 2-3 simultaneous 4K-to-1080p transcodes
• The extra 8 GPU EUs provide slightly more headroom

The practical difference comes down to how many people stream at once. If you are a household of one or two people, the N100 handles Plex and Jellyfin without ever hitting a wall. If you have a family of four where everyone streams different content simultaneously, or you share your server with friends, the N305 transcoding performance gives you meaningful breathing room.

One important note: if your clients support direct play (most modern smart TVs, Apple TV, Roku, and Fire TV devices do), then transcoding is rarely needed in the first place. Optimize your media library for direct play compatibility and either CPU will serve you well.

For a dedicated guide on setting up a media server, check our Proxmox homelab build guide which covers Plex and Jellyfin container setup.

Docker Container Workloads

Docker containers are the backbone of modern self-hosting. The good news is that most containers are remarkably lightweight on CPU usage. Services like Pi-hole, Home Assistant, Vaultwarden, Uptime Kuma, Nginx Proxy Manager, and Nextcloud spend the vast majority of their time idle, waking up briefly to handle requests.

N100 Docker performance:

• Comfortably runs 15-20 lightweight containers simultaneously
• CPU usage with a typical self-hosted stack: 5-15% average
• Handles database containers (PostgreSQL, MariaDB) for personal use
• Begins to feel pressure with CPU-intensive indexers like Prowlarr running active searches alongside other workloads

N305 Docker performance:

• Handles 30-40 containers without significant CPU pressure
• Better suited for heavier containers: Nextcloud with preview generation, media indexers, code servers
• CPU-intensive operations complete faster, reducing queue times
• The 8 threads prevent individual heavy containers from starving lighter ones

For the typical self-hosted stack that most homelabbers run (reverse proxy, DNS filtering, password manager, monitoring, a few automation tools, and maybe Nextcloud), the N100 is more than sufficient. You would need to be running a genuinely heavy stack with active media indexing, continuous integration jobs, or multiple database-backed applications before the N305's extra cores become necessary.

Want to see what you can run on a low-power server? Our guide on lightweight self-hosted apps for low-power servers covers the best options.

Proxmox Virtualization

This is where the core count difference between the N100 and N305 matters most. Virtual machines are fundamentally more resource-intensive than containers, and having more CPU threads means you can allocate dedicated cores to individual VMs without starving the host.

N100 Proxmox experience:

• Runs 2-3 lightweight Linux VMs comfortably (Ubuntu Server, Debian, Alpine)
• A typical setup: 1 VM for OPNsense firewall + 1 VM for Docker workloads + host overhead
• With 4 threads total, pinning CPU cores to VMs limits flexibility
• Windows VMs are possible but slow, one Windows VM essentially consumes the whole CPU
• Real-world reports show 60% average CPU utilization with a full VM + LXC setup

N305 Proxmox experience:

• Handles 4-6 VMs with noticeably better responsiveness
• 8 threads allow proper CPU pinning: 2 cores for firewall, 4 cores for primary VM, 2 cores for host and lightweight VMs
• Better resource isolation means one busy VM does not degrade others
• Can run a Windows VM alongside Linux VMs without grinding to a halt
• Multi-core Geekbench scores roughly 60% higher than the N100, translating to real VM throughput gains

If you plan to run Proxmox as a serious homelab virtualization platform with multiple VMs doing different jobs, the N305 is the clear winner. The ability to pin 2 cores to your firewall, 4 cores to your main workload VM, and still have 2 cores for LXC containers and host management is a meaningful advantage over the N100's 4-thread ceiling.

For users who just want Proxmox to run a couple of LXC containers and maybe one lightweight VM, the N100 handles it fine. The distinction is about scale and isolation.

NAS and File Serving

Here is the shortest section in this article: for pure NAS duties, both CPUs are overkill.

File serving, whether through Samba, NFS, or a NAS operating system like TrueNAS or OpenMediaVault, is limited by storage I/O and network throughput, not CPU. Copying files over a 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet connection saturates the network link long before either CPU notices the workload.

Even ZFS, which is more CPU-intensive than ext4 or XFS due to checksumming and optional compression, runs comfortably on the N100. Real-world ZFS scrubs and resilvering operations on an N100 system with a couple of drives barely register above 20% CPU utilization.

The verdict for NAS use: Pick the N100 and save the money. There is no scenario where pure file serving justifies the N305's premium.

For a deeper comparison of NAS software options, see our TrueNAS vs Proxmox vs Unraid comparison.

Home Automation (Home Assistant)

Home Assistant is one of the most popular reasons people set up a home server, and it runs beautifully on both the N100 and N305. The CPU demands of Home Assistant are minimal even with hundreds of devices, complex automations, and add-ons like Zigbee2MQTT, Node-RED, and ESPHome.

The only scenario where CPU matters for Home Assistant is if you run it inside a Proxmox VM alongside other workloads. In that case, refer to the Proxmox section above. As a standalone Docker container or HAOS VM, the N100 handles Home Assistant without breaking a sweat.

Firewall and Router (OPNsense / pfSense)

Both CPUs support AES-NI, which is required for modern firewall distributions and provides hardware-accelerated encryption. For basic routing, firewall rules, and DNS filtering on a home network, the N100 is sufficient.

Where the N305 pulls ahead is VPN throughput. If you run WireGuard or OpenVPN and want to push close to line speed (1 Gbps+) through the VPN tunnel, the extra cores help with encryption overhead. For WireGuard specifically, the difference is less dramatic because WireGuard is already very efficient, but OpenVPN benefits meaningfully from additional cores.

If your primary use case is a dedicated firewall/router appliance, the N100 with a multi-port NIC is the cost-effective choice. If the firewall is one role among many on a multi-purpose server, the N305's headroom becomes more valuable.

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Power Consumption: Where It Really Matters

For a device that runs 24/7/365, power consumption directly translates to ongoing cost. This is one of the N100's strongest selling points, but the real-world difference might surprise you.

Idle Power Draw

Idle power is what matters most for home servers. Your server spends the vast majority of its time waiting for requests, and the idle wattage is what shows up on your electricity bill.

These numbers represent total system power draw at the wall, including the motherboard, RAM, SSD, and power supply inefficiency. The CPU package power alone is lower, but wall power is what you pay for.

The idle difference is roughly 4-5W. That is real, but let us see what it actually costs.

Annual Electricity Cost Comparison

Here is the math, assuming your server runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We will use a representative idle power draw for each system and a US average electricity rate of $0.15/kWh.

The annual electricity cost difference between the two systems is approximately $6.57 per year at typical US rates. At European rates (which can be $0.30-0.40/kWh), the difference climbs to $13-18 per year, which is more noticeable but still not a deal-breaker.

The takeaway: Do not let power consumption alone drive your CPU decision. The difference is the price of a coffee per month. Choose based on your workload needs first, and treat the power savings as a minor bonus if you end up with the N100.

For a deep dive on reducing your home server's power draw regardless of CPU choice, check our ultimate power consumption guide.

Race to Idle

One nuance worth understanding: the N305 uses more power under load, but it also completes CPU-intensive tasks faster. This "race to idle" means the N305 finishes a batch job and returns to its (slightly higher) idle state sooner than the N100.

For workloads with periodic CPU bursts (like media library scanning, backup compression, or container image builds), the N305's higher peak power can actually result in similar total energy consumption because it spends less time under load.

This effect is less relevant for always-idle workloads like file serving and DNS filtering, where the N100's lower idle draw wins outright.

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Best Mini PCs for Each CPU (2026)

The mini PC market for N100 and N305 systems is mature and competitive. Here are the standout options for home server use, selected for reliability, networking capabilities, and value.

Top N100 Mini PCs

1. Beelink EQ14 (~$150-190)

The Beelink EQ14 is one of the most popular home server mini PCs for good reason. The current model ships with the Intel N150 (a minor refresh of the N100 with a slightly higher boost clock), dual Gigabit Ethernet NICs, an M.2 NVMe slot, and DDR4 RAM. Beelink's build quality is consistently good, and the EQ14's compact chassis keeps things cool and quiet. Available on Amazon with 16 GB RAM and 500 GB SSD configurations under $200.

• Dual Ethernet NICs (great for OPNsense or network segmentation)
• 16 GB DDR4, 500 GB NVMe SSD in typical configurations
• WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2
• Compact, well-ventilated chassis
• Windows 11 Pro pre-installed (wipe it for Proxmox or Ubuntu)

2. GMKtec NucBox G3 (~$130-160)

The budget champion. The NucBox G3 packs an N100 into a tiny 265-gram chassis with a single 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port, WiFi 6, and expandable DDR4 RAM. It lacks the dual NIC of the Beelink, but for a pure Docker host or Home Assistant server, the single NIC and low price make it hard to beat. You can often find it on sale for under $140 with RAM and storage included.

• Single 2.5 GbE NIC
• Expandable DDR4 RAM (up to 32 GB reported by users)
• M.2 NVMe storage
• Extremely compact and lightweight
• Best value for single-purpose home servers

3. Minisforum UN100D (~$170-200)

Minisforum's entry in the N100 space ships with LPDDR5 RAM (soldered), dual Gigabit Ethernet, and a 2.5-inch SATA bay in addition to M.2 NVMe. The SATA bay is useful if you want to add a small data drive without an external enclosure. Build quality and support are a step above the budget brands. Available in 8 GB and 16 GB configurations.

• Dual Ethernet NICs
• LPDDR5 RAM (faster but not user-upgradeable)
• M.2 NVMe + 2.5-inch SATA bay
• USB-C with data support
• Good for firewall or NAS-lite builds

Top N305 Mini PCs

1. CWWK N305 Firewall Box (~$220-300 barebone)

The CWWK brand has become the go-to for homelabbers who want dedicated network appliances. Their N305 box comes with four Intel i226-V 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports, fanless passive cooling, DDR5 support, and M.2 NVMe storage. It is purpose-built for OPNsense, pfSense, or Proxmox with network-heavy workloads. Fully configured units with 16 GB DDR5 and 256 GB NVMe run around $350-400 on Amazon.

• 4x Intel i226-V 2.5 GbE NICs
• Fanless passive cooling (completely silent)
• DDR5 memory support
• M.2 NVMe storage
• AES-NI for hardware encryption
• The homelab community's favorite firewall appliance

2. Topton/CWWK N305 with 10GbE SFP+ (~$250-380 barebone)

For networking enthusiasts who want 10 Gigabit capability, several Topton and CWWK models pair the N305 with dual Intel 82599ES 10GbE SFP+ ports alongside two i226-V 2.5 GbE ports. This gives you a four-port network appliance capable of 10G inter-VLAN routing or connecting to a 10G NAS. These are niche but increasingly popular in the homelab community.

• 2x 10GbE SFP+ (Intel 82599ES)
• 2x 2.5 GbE (Intel i226-V)
• DDR5 support
• Fanless options available
• Best for users with 10G switches or NAS equipment

3. Beelink EQi3-N305 (~$220-260)

Beelink also offers N305 variants of their mini PC line. The EQi3-N305 pairs the 8-core CPU with 16 GB DDR5 RAM, a 500 GB NVMe SSD, and dual Ethernet. It shares the same reliable chassis design as the EQ14 but with significantly more CPU headroom. A good all-rounder if you want the Beelink ecosystem but need more cores for Proxmox or multi-user transcoding.

• 8C/8T i3-N305
• 16 GB DDR5
• Dual Ethernet
• Same compact Beelink form factor
• Best for users who want a general-purpose N305 system

Price-to-Performance Analysis

The N305 premium of $70-170 is only worth it if your workload genuinely uses the extra cores. For Docker-and-NAS setups, that money is better spent on more RAM or a larger SSD.

For more mini PC recommendations and in-depth reviews, see our 2026 mini PC buyer's guide.

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Which CPU Should You Choose?

After covering specs, benchmarks, power draw, and hardware options, let us bring it all together with clear recommendations.

Choose the N100 If...

• You are building your first home server. The N100 is forgiving, affordable, and capable enough for most beginner workloads. Start here and upgrade later if needed.
• Your primary use case is Docker containers and a NAS. A typical self-hosted stack of 10-20 containers barely touches the N100's CPU. Add Samba file sharing and you are still under 15% utilization.
• You want the lowest possible power bill. The N100 idles at 6-8W at the wall. Over years of 24/7 operation, those watts add up to real savings, especially in regions with expensive electricity.
• Your total budget is under $200. N100 mini PCs with RAM and storage included regularly sell for $150-190. That is hard to beat.
• You run 1-2 Plex or Jellyfin streams at a time. Quick Sync on the N100 handles this without breaking a sweat. No need for extra cores.
• You prioritize fanless silence. The N100's 6W TDP makes passive cooling trivial. Fanless N100 systems are common, reliable, and truly silent.

Choose the N305 If...

• You plan to run Proxmox with 3+ virtual machines. The 8 threads allow proper CPU core pinning and resource isolation across multiple VMs. This is the N305's biggest advantage over the N100.
• You need a high-throughput firewall or router. OPNsense or pfSense with VPN (especially OpenVPN) at close to line speed benefits from the extra cores. If the firewall is one role on a multi-purpose server, the N305 is the safer bet.
• Multiple family members stream simultaneously. If three or more people regularly transcode different content through Plex or Jellyfin at the same time, the N305 provides headroom the N100 lacks.
• You want room for future expansion. Starting with 8 threads gives you space to add new VMs, containers, or services without worrying about CPU pressure. It is a "buy once, grow into it" approach.
• You are building a multi-role server. A single box running NAS duties, Docker containers, a VM or two, and maybe a firewall, all at once. That convergence benefits from more cores.
• You run CPU-intensive background tasks. Media library indexing (Sonarr, Radarr, Prowlarr), continuous integration builds, or database-heavy applications that periodically spike CPU usage.

The 80/20 Rule

For roughly 80% of home server users, the N100 is the right choice. It handles Docker, media streaming, Home Assistant, DNS filtering, file serving, and basic virtualization with ease. The mini PCs are cheaper, the power draw is lower, and the performance ceiling is higher than most people think.

The N305 is for the other 20% who know they need virtualization headroom, run demanding multi-user workloads, or want a single box that does everything without compromise. If you are reading this and thinking "but I might need the extra cores someday," that is usually a sign the N100 is fine for now.

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What About Newer Alternatives?

The home server CPU landscape continues to evolve. Here is a brief look at how the N100 and N305 compare to newer options that have appeared since their launch.

Intel N150 and N355

Intel released the Twin Lake refresh in late 2024, bringing the N150 (successor to N100) and N355 (successor to N305). These chips offer roughly 6-10% performance improvements at the same power envelope, thanks to minor architectural tweaks. Mini PCs like the Beelink EQ14 have already transitioned to the N150.

If you are buying new in 2026, you will likely end up with an N150 or N355 simply because that is what ships. The guidance in this article applies equally to those refreshed models, as the core count and architecture are identical. Think of the N150 as "N100 plus a little" and the N355 as "N305 plus a little."

AMD Ryzen Embedded and Zen 4

AMD's Ryzen 7000 mobile chips (like the Ryzen 5 7530U and Ryzen 7 7735HS) offer stronger multi-threaded performance but at higher power draw and cost. For users who need raw CPU power and are less concerned about idle wattage, AMD options deserve consideration. However, Intel's Quick Sync still holds an advantage for media transcoding efficiency, and the N-series mini PC ecosystem is far larger and more affordable.

ARM Options (Raspberry Pi 5, Orange Pi)

ARM-based boards remain popular for specific lightweight workloads, but they cannot match x86 mini PCs for versatility. Virtualization support, software compatibility, and storage expansion are all significantly better on Intel N-series platforms. If you are torn between an ARM SBC and an N100 mini PC, the N100 wins on almost every metric except absolute minimum cost and power draw.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can the N100 run Proxmox?

Yes, and it runs it well. The N100 supports VT-x and VT-d for hardware virtualization. You can comfortably run 2-3 lightweight Linux VMs alongside a handful of LXC containers. Many homelabbers run Proxmox on N100 systems as their daily driver without issues. The ceiling is 4 threads, so plan your VM allocation accordingly. For heavier Proxmox use with 4+ VMs, the N305 is the better fit.

Is the N305 worth the extra cost?

It depends entirely on your workload. For Docker containers, NAS, and single-user media streaming, the N100 offers better value per dollar. The N305 justifies its $70-170 premium when you need serious virtualization (Proxmox with multiple VMs), multi-user transcoding (3+ simultaneous Plex streams), or high-throughput encrypted networking. If your use case is in the N100's sweet spot, the extra money is better spent on RAM or storage.

What about the N97 and N200?

The Intel N97 is nearly identical to the N100 with a marginally higher boost clock (3.6 GHz vs 3.4 GHz). In practice, the performance difference is within margin of error, and many mini PC manufacturers use the two interchangeably. Choose whichever is cheaper or more readily available.

The N200 keeps the same 4 cores as the N100 but bumps the GPU to 32 Execution Units (matching the N305's GPU). This makes the N200 interesting for GPU-intensive tasks like additional transcoding headroom, but it does not help with CPU-bound workloads. For a deeper comparison across the full lineup, check our Intel N97 vs N100 vs N305 deep-dive.

Can these CPUs handle 4K Plex transcoding?

Yes, both support hardware transcoding through Intel Quick Sync Video. The integrated GPU handles the heavy lifting, not the CPU cores. The N100 can manage 1-2 simultaneous 4K-to-1080p transcode streams, while the N305 handles 2-3 thanks to its 32 EU GPU.

However, the real recommendation is to optimize for direct play whenever possible. If your client devices support the video format natively (most modern streaming devices do), no transcoding is needed at all. Both CPUs handle unlimited direct play streams because the CPU is simply moving data from disk to network with minimal processing.

How much RAM do I need?

For an N100 build: 8-16 GB DDR4 or DDR5 covers most use cases. 8 GB works for a focused Docker stack. 16 GB is the sweet spot for Docker plus light Proxmox. Some boards support DDR5 at 4800 MHz, which provides a noticeable boost in memory-bound workloads.

For an N305 build: 16-32 GB DDR5 is recommended if you plan to run multiple VMs. Each VM needs its own RAM allocation, and Proxmox itself needs headroom. With 8 cores available for VM pinning, you want enough RAM to match. 16 GB is the minimum for Proxmox with VMs; 32 GB gives you comfortable room for 4-6 VMs.

Note: While Intel officially specs both CPUs for a maximum of 16 GB, many DDR5-based boards have been validated at 32 GB by manufacturers and the community. Check your specific board's compatibility before purchasing.

Which is quieter?

Both can run completely silent in fanless chassis designs. The N100 generates less heat thanks to its 6W TDP, so fanless configurations are more common, more affordable, and less likely to throttle under sustained load. The CWWK firewall boxes and several Beelink models offer fanless N100 designs that handle typical home server workloads without any thermal throttling.

The N305's 15W TDP is higher but still modest by desktop CPU standards. Fanless N305 boxes exist from CWWK, Topton, and others, and they work well for typical home server workloads. Under sustained full-core load (like a long transcoding session or compilation), some fanless N305 enclosures may thermal throttle. A model with a small, quiet fan can avoid this entirely.

For most home server use, where the CPU is idle 90%+ of the time, both run fanless and silent.

Should I buy now or wait for newer CPUs?

If you need a home server now, buy now. The N100 and N305 (or their Twin Lake successors, the N150 and N355) are mature, well-supported, and affordable. Waiting for the next generation means your projects sit idle while the performance gains will be incremental (5-10% per generation for efficiency cores).

The home server community has two years of real-world experience with Alder Lake-N at this point. Driver support, BIOS maturity, and community documentation are excellent. These are proven platforms.

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Conclusion

The Intel N100 and N305 are both excellent low-power CPUs for home servers, but they serve different audiences and different workloads.

The N100 is the budget-friendly efficiency champion. It delivers strong performance for Docker containers, single-user media streaming, NAS file serving, Home Assistant automation, and DNS filtering. It idles at 6-8W, costs $130-190 for a complete mini PC, and has the widest selection of affordable hardware. For the majority of home server builders, the N100 is all you need.

The N305 doubles the core count for users who need serious virtualization, multi-user media transcoding, or high-throughput encrypted networking. It excels when running Proxmox with 4+ VMs, serving a busy household with simultaneous Plex streams, or acting as a multi-role server handling NAS, Docker, and firewall duties simultaneously. The $70-170 premium is justified when your workload genuinely demands 8 threads.

Our recommendation: Start with the N100. If you find yourself consistently hitting CPU limits (unlikely for most users), the upgrade path to an N305-based system is straightforward and inexpensive. The $6.57 per year electricity difference is negligible, so let your workload, not your power bill, drive the decision.

For a deeper technical comparison including benchmark numbers across the full N-series lineup (N97, N100, N200, N305), see our Intel N97 vs N100 vs N305 deep-dive. Once you have chosen your CPU, check out our 2026 mini PC buyer's guide for the latest models and deals. And when your server is up and running, our ultimate power consumption guide will help you squeeze every last watt out of your setup.