AI Tools & Local AI

Sheet note: New in AI: prices are USD per month for the stated entry route, using monthly billing. Zero can mean a limited free tier, free local software on existing hardware, or unpriced invite/early-access signup; read each row. Jev API calls are paid, and Fable requires paid credits above its Pro base. New-section scores include usefulness per dollar, novelty and access friction, with brand recognition at zero weight. They are provisional editorial synthesis, not a measured community poll. Dates distinguish launches from updates and report editions. Original four sections, preserved unchanged, use the following methodology: Prices mix USD/month subscriptions, USD per 1M uncached input tokens for APIs, and one-time hardware. API output rates are in Price basis; API access has no included monthly allowance. Compare value only within the same kind and workload: the site-wide perf/price index cannot rank these billing units together. Listed API ordering assumes 1M input plus 1M output; other kinds use perf/price within kind. GPU prices exclude a host PC; Framework is a refurbished barebone, while other boxes are complete. Scores are editorial, brand recognition has zero weight, and price is not baked into perf. Hardware scores combine reported 7B Q4 decode with model-fitting memory; missing measurements use memory/bandwidth proxies. Cross-build benchmarks are indicative, not controlled comparisons. Subscription and new-model scores are provisional usefulness judgments, not a measured consensus poll. Used and marketplace offers can expire; SOURCES.md records evidence and limitations. GPU and box prices are the in-stock price on the check date; the 2026 memory squeeze keeps them volatile, and used 3090 asks are far above their 2025 level, so treat the hardware sections as a snapshot.

Sheet note: New in AI: prices are USD per month for the stated entry route, using monthly billing. Zero can mean a limited free tier, free local software on existing hardware, or unpriced invite/early-access signup; read each row. Jev API calls are paid, and Fable requires paid credits above its Pro base. New-section scores include usefulness per dollar, novelty and access friction, with brand recognition at zero weight. They are provisional editorial synthesis, not a measured community poll. Dates distinguish launches from updates and report editions. Original four sections, preserved unchanged, use the following methodology: Prices mix USD/month subscriptions, USD per 1M uncached input tokens for APIs, and one-time hardware. API output rates are in Price basis; API access has no included monthly allowance. Compare value only within the same kind and workload: the site-wide perf/price index cannot rank these billing units together. Listed API ordering assumes 1M input plus 1M output; other kinds use perf/price within kind. GPU prices exclude a host PC; Framework is a refurbished barebone, while other boxes are complete. Scores are editorial, brand recognition has zero weight, and price is not baked into perf. Hardware scores combine reported 7B Q4 decode with model-fitting memory; missing measurements use memory/bandwidth proxies. Cross-build benchmarks are indicative, not controlled comparisons. Subscription and new-model scores are provisional usefulness judgments, not a measured consensus poll. Used and marketplace offers can expire; SOURCES.md records evidence and limitations. GPU and box prices are the in-stock price on the check date; the 2026 memory squeeze keeps them volatile, and used 3090 asks are far above their 2025 level, so treat the hardware sections as a snapshot.

Sheet note: New in AI: prices are USD per month for the stated entry route, using monthly billing. Zero can mean a limited free tier, free local software on existing hardware, or unpriced invite/early-access signup; read each row. Jev API calls are paid, and Fable requires paid credits above its Pro base. New-section scores include usefulness per dollar, novelty and access friction, with brand recognition at zero weight. They are provisional editorial synthesis, not a measured community poll. Dates distinguish launches from updates and report editions. Original four sections, preserved unchanged, use the following methodology: Prices mix USD/month subscriptions, USD per 1M uncached input tokens for APIs, and one-time hardware. API output rates are in Price basis; API access has no included monthly allowance. Compare value only within the same kind and workload: the site-wide perf/price index cannot rank these billing units together. Listed API ordering assumes 1M input plus 1M output; other kinds use perf/price within kind. GPU prices exclude a host PC; Framework is a refurbished barebone, while other boxes are complete. Scores are editorial, brand recognition has zero weight, and price is not baked into perf. Hardware scores combine reported 7B Q4 decode with model-fitting memory; missing measurements use memory/bandwidth proxies. Cross-build benchmarks are indicative, not controlled comparisons. Subscription and new-model scores are provisional usefulness judgments, not a measured consensus poll. Used and marketplace offers can expire; SOURCES.md records evidence and limitations. GPU and box prices are the in-stock price on the check date; the 2026 memory squeeze keeps them volatile, and used 3090 asks are far above their 2025 level, so treat the hardware sections as a snapshot.

Sheet note: New in AI: prices are USD per month for the stated entry route, using monthly billing. Zero can mean a limited free tier, free local software on existing hardware, or unpriced invite/early-access signup; read each row. Jev API calls are paid, and Fable requires paid credits above its Pro base. New-section scores include usefulness per dollar, novelty and access friction, with brand recognition at zero weight. They are provisional editorial synthesis, not a measured community poll. Dates distinguish launches from updates and report editions. Original four sections, preserved unchanged, use the following methodology: Prices mix USD/month subscriptions, USD per 1M uncached input tokens for APIs, and one-time hardware. API output rates are in Price basis; API access has no included monthly allowance. Compare value only within the same kind and workload: the site-wide perf/price index cannot rank these billing units together. Listed API ordering assumes 1M input plus 1M output; other kinds use perf/price within kind. GPU prices exclude a host PC; Framework is a refurbished barebone, while other boxes are complete. Scores are editorial, brand recognition has zero weight, and price is not baked into perf. Hardware scores combine reported 7B Q4 decode with model-fitting memory; missing measurements use memory/bandwidth proxies. Cross-build benchmarks are indicative, not controlled comparisons. Subscription and new-model scores are provisional usefulness judgments, not a measured consensus poll. Used and marketplace offers can expire; SOURCES.md records evidence and limitations. GPU and box prices are the in-stock price on the check date; the 2026 memory squeeze keeps them volatile, and used 3090 asks are far above their 2025 level, so treat the hardware sections as a snapshot.

Sheet note: New in AI: prices are USD per month for the stated entry route, using monthly billing. Zero can mean a limited free tier, free local software on existing hardware, or unpriced invite/early-access signup; read each row. Jev API calls are paid, and Fable requires paid credits above its Pro base. New-section scores include usefulness per dollar, novelty and access friction, with brand recognition at zero weight. They are provisional editorial synthesis, not a measured community poll. Dates distinguish launches from updates and report editions. Original four sections, preserved unchanged, use the following methodology: Prices mix USD/month subscriptions, USD per 1M uncached input tokens for APIs, and one-time hardware. API output rates are in Price basis; API access has no included monthly allowance. Compare value only within the same kind and workload: the site-wide perf/price index cannot rank these billing units together. Listed API ordering assumes 1M input plus 1M output; other kinds use perf/price within kind. GPU prices exclude a host PC; Framework is a refurbished barebone, while other boxes are complete. Scores are editorial, brand recognition has zero weight, and price is not baked into perf. Hardware scores combine reported 7B Q4 decode with model-fitting memory; missing measurements use memory/bandwidth proxies. Cross-build benchmarks are indicative, not controlled comparisons. Subscription and new-model scores are provisional usefulness judgments, not a measured consensus poll. Used and marketplace offers can expire; SOURCES.md records evidence and limitations. GPU and box prices are the in-stock price on the check date; the 2026 memory squeeze keeps them volatile, and used 3090 asks are far above their 2025 level, so treat the hardware sections as a snapshot.

Curated AI Tools & Local AI stories, filtered by MinMaxxer. Snapshot as of 2026-09-28 — refreshed by our editors, not live.