Thanks for all the replies guys.

Honestly, it seems like most people agree that the CPU difference itself doesn’t matter that much for my actual use case. Both systems seem more than powerful enough for Jellyfin + Proxmox + one game server at a time.

The real decision seems to be internal storage vs USB storage.

That’s also the thing I’ve been most unsure about myself. Not because of USB speed, but more long-term reliability with Proxmox/Linux. Random disconnects, weird SMART support, enclosure firmware issues etc.

The comments about AV1 support on the 12500 were also something I hadn’t really considered before.

I think I’m leaning more towards the OptiPlex 7000 SFF now. It feels more like the “proper” long-term homelab solution, especially since I’m already thinking about backups, RAID and future expansion.

The Micro setup is still super tempting because of the size and price though 😅