Right now, I think the sweet spot is getting a Raspberry Pi 400 for USD$50 ( Microcenter).
A Pi400 is a very capable 4GB ram Linux machine, working out of the box. I have a few, each doing a different job. I just ssh to them with a beefier machine plugged on LLMs tools, and it's really fun and exciting.
Then Mini pcs, you can get a good deal here and there, for a more capable machine with a little bit more flexibility.
ESP32s are also awesome and I have been playing with them but not as a replacement of these light linux servers.
A Pi400 is a very capable 4GB ram Linux machine, working out of the box. I have a few, each doing a different job. I just ssh to them with a beefier machine plugged on LLMs tools, and it's really fun and exciting.
Then Mini pcs, you can get a good deal here and there, for a more capable machine with a little bit more flexibility.
ESP32s are also awesome and I have been playing with them but not as a replacement of these light linux servers.