OnLogic Helix 500: A Linux-Friendly, Fanless + Reliable Edge Computer

For those either needing a well-built, fanless computer that can run fine as a Linux desktop or are looking for an industrial-rated edge computing system, the Helix 500 is an interesting product from OnLogic (formerly, Logic Supply) that fills the space for a dependable, petite PC and ships with Windows, Linux, or even no OS at all if just preferring to load your own operating system of choice.

OnLogic announced the Helix 500 series towards the end of last year as their newest industrial edge computer that is now powered by Intel Comet Lake processors. (If looking for similar AMD-based fanless computing options, OnLogic also offers the ML100G-40 with Ryzen R1505G or V1605B options at this time.) This fanless computer sports dual Gigabit Ethernet adapters, can drive three DisplayPort displays concurrently from the Intel graphics, can be configured with a range of WiFi or cellular wireless connectivity options, and other customizations like a TPM 2.0 module or COM port depending upon your particular use-case.

Besides Windows 10 Pro and IoT editions, OnLogic continues to support using Ubuntu 18.04/20.04 LTS on their devices. Or, if you prefer, you can get the Helix 500 without any operating system if just wanting to load your favorite or customized Linux distribution yourself.

This fanless, mini PC with Intel 10th Gen Core processors can also be fitted with up to 64GB of RAM and dual SSDs. The Helix 500 is rated to operate from 0 to 50 degrees Celsius operating temperature. OnLogic's wonderful aluminum chassis and excellent construction is what we have come to appreciate well from the brand with our past testing of the Karbon 700 and the smaller Karbon 300 -- both of which devices continue to undergo plenty of benchmarking load in our lab and continue operating without fault.

OnLogic backs the Helix 500 with a two-year warranty or can be upgraded to a three-year extended warranty for an additional fee. The pricing on the Helix 500 starts out at $782 USD while if pushing the model to its limits with an Intel Core i9 10900T, maxing out the memory, dual SSDs, 4G LTE mode, and other extras can approach $4k USD pricing. Full specs and pricing are available at OnLogic.com.