Year 2026 - What's the sweet spot these days for a used eBay computer for Blue Iris

Sybertiger

Sybertiger

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Jun 30, 2018
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Was just curious what's recommended these days for a used HP or Dell computer to run Blue Iris. I'm still going strong with my Dell Optiplex 7040 i7-6700 that I've had running BI since 2018 with 13 cams. Wondering what most would go with now if they had to buy a used PC on eBay. Also, curious about the need or lack of need of a graphics accelerator board that might be added later. Not that I need Win11 as Win10 has been running fine on my Dell 7040 but I know it cannot be upgraded to Win11. Any good examples you see on eBay at the moment? My guess is that upwards of $250 would be what one would spend for a headless used computer.
 
Arjun said:
Look no further -

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Seems pretty pricey compared to a used one on eBay. Maybe something more along to lines of THIS.
 
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Sybertiger said:
Seems pretty pricey compared to a used one on eBay. Maybe something more along to lines of THIS.
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Occasionally Dell runs sales on their website which brings it around the ebay price territory

Dell provides a keyboard and mouse complimentary, Windows license, and 90 day warranty
 
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ebay.us

Dell OptiPlex 7070 MT (i7-9700 - 16GB RAM - 512GB SSD - Win11Home - 2x RX 550) | eBay

Storage : 512GB SSD. -RAM : 16GB. Scratches/Scuffs on case. -Processor : i7-9700 3.0GHz.
ebay.us
this could handle an aftermarket graphics card, but only 1- 3.5" bay. deal breaker for me.
I got a Precision 3630 MT. has the SSD on the motherboard, and 3-3.5" drive bays.
the newer ( used/offlease) stuff you get the less 3.5" drive bays you will find because everyone is going 2.5" SSD or onboard SSD.
Optiplex used to house 2 or 3 3.5" drive bays back on the 7020 or 9020 series.
then they started shrinking.
 
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I'd probably be inclined to try something in the 9th, 10th or 11th generation, the new intel chips are like 14th gen.
I was skeptical of HP being more familiar with Dell, but the older HP SFF elitedesks will run W 11 in 8th gen or newer configurations.
I ran the Condos 18 security cams with one ( HP Elitedesk G4 800 SFF Core i5 8500) and it was super stable and didn't crash.
 
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Keep in mind that unless you plan to run a lot of BI AI a graphics card is not needed. Most intel computers can run a few BI AI instances without a problem.

If you are using the camera AI for motion detection, then the graphics card is an expensive space heater.
 
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wittaj said:
Keep in mind that unless you plan to run a lot of BI AI a graphics card is not needed. Most intel computers can run a few BI AI instances without a problem.

If you are using the camera AI for motion detection, then the graphics card is an expensive space heater.
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On two of my newer cams I went with using their built-in AI but only because I felt that they would do better than my current BI 5: the last release that still supports Deep Stack.

The reason for starting this 2026 thread was to explore an updated machine then moving to Win11 and BI 6 with newer AI options. I don't know that I need to go to BI 6 as I haven't kept up with all the discussions on what BI 6 offers over my current setup and if there are compelling reasons.

I know my current BI server cannot be upgraded to Win11...not that I have to have it.
 
Sybertiger said:
On two of my newer cams I went with using their built-in AI but only because I felt that they would do better than my current BI 5: the last release that still supports Deep Stack.

The reason for starting this 2026 thread was to explore an updated machine then moving to Win11 and BI 6 with newer AI options. I don't know that I need to go to BI 6 as I haven't kept up with all the discussions on what BI 6 offers over my current setup and if there are compelling reasons.

I know my current BI server cannot be upgraded to Win11...not that I have to have it.
Click to expand...
Keep in mind that you likely can update your machine to Win11 if desired with Rufus .... I did it on mine easily (i7-6700 Optiplex7040)
 
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rdxny said:
Keep in mind that you likely can update your machine to Win11 if desired with Rufus .... I did it on mine easily (i7-6700 Optiplex7040)
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Thanks, I'd forgotten about that possible option.
 
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