Intel NUC (Next Unit of Computing)

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Ultimate Geek

#813502 8-May-2013 09:23

freitasm:
mcraenz: Will these units do1080i? I.e. FreeviewHD? could make as nice MediaPortal client.

YES!

You were testing an i3 unit though right? Has anyone tried the (much cheaper) Celeron box?

networkn

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#813509 8-May-2013 09:35

CYaBro:
networkn:
CYaBro:
networkn: I had a look at them, the product and idea is cool, but the pricing is just too high. By the time you add HDD and OS, it's not much cheaper than any other PC.

It's not supposed to be cheaper than any other PC, it's about the size, speed and power consumption.

I'm busy installing 13 of these for a client of mine, replacing some older HP SFF units, and they are perfect for the job.
The price per unit worked out about $100 cheaper than replacing with similar spec'd HP SFF units.
However these NUCs have the SSD in them so are actually much faster than the HP SFFs.

Well they are underpowered compared to the HP SFF and have far inferior warranties. I understand they are smaller, and I understand the attraction in that, I have a couple of customers who may buy them as remote workstations. It's also worth noting that you require an HDMI Compatible monitor as the adapters we tried with the monitors we had wouldn't work (3 adapters and 3 monitors. Makes them not retrofitable into some environments.

Why are they underpowered?
I compared to an HP SFF i3 model with 4GB RAM and 250GB HDD.
Intel NUC is an i3 with 4GB RAM and a 120GB SSD.

Both the HP and the Intel have a 3 year warranty but the Intel SSD I put in the NUCs have a 5 year warranty and the RAM has a lifetime warranty so I'd say the NUCs have a better warranty.

I've used HDMI to DVI cables to connect to the monitors that don't have HDMI and it works perfectly (You do however have no audio which is the only downside I can see)

Sorry I thought you were comparing an I5 to the NUC i3, I never pay any attention to anything under an I5 with HP. In terms of warranty, I was talking your RTB warranty vs HP NBD Onsite. I consider that superior.

freitasm

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#815310 10-May-2013 15:43

If you don't have an Intel NUC or didn't get the original box:

CYaBro

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#815317 10-May-2013 16:00

We've been pulling out the little music player and sticking them in peoples filing cabinets and in rooms, and other places like that, that are normally dark so when someone comes along and opens the filing cabinet, or turns on the light in the dark room, they get a nice tune played to them.
Your glove box is also a good place. :)

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Shindig

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#821563 18-May-2013 12:41

I have noticed a few locks up under windows backup.
Case gets noticeably hotter.
Just chucked me off RDP and have to reboot.

The little things make the biggest difference.

freitasm

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#821585 18-May-2013 13:14

Shindig: I have noticed a few locks up under windows backup.
Case gets noticeably hotter.
Just chucked me off RDP and have to reboot.

As posted in my review, change the BIOS settings to base temp 60c and minimum fan to 50%. This should keep it cool all the time.

nzgrover

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Wannabe Geek

#822248 20-May-2013 09:43

I've been looking to do the HTPC thing and the NUC looks like an awesome device to get into it with so I have a couple of questions.
I was hoping to use linux and XBMC or Plex. Has anybody used those on the NUC?
Is this a good price/configuration? https://www.ascent.co.nz/productspecification.aspx?ItemID=413975

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freitasm

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#822255 20-May-2013 09:59

The NUC uses standard Intel drivers. If you have those for Linux then it should work. Worth just doing a search on Intel support page for Intel NUC BOXDCCP847DYE and there's nothing for Linux there.

CYaBro

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#822259 20-May-2013 10:01

The i5 model should be available in the next few weeks and should only be around $100 more than the i3 version.

Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

nzgrover

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Wannabe Geek

#822303 20-May-2013 11:11

Thanks for your replies!
I poked about on the net a bit more and found a link to this:
http://intelbettertogether.com/default/Public/English/NUCWhitepapersGuides.aspx
Which includes a white paper titled "Building an Intel Next Unit of Computing Personal Computer on the Linux Platform" which steps through installing Linux Mint on the NUC, and subsequently installing XBMC!

I couldn't find a release date for the i5/i7 models; is there a real need for the extra power for HTPC applications? Maybe if I wanted to run games via Steam or the like?

Shindig

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#830842 5-Jun-2013 10:16

Thanks for posting up that SpeedFan util freitasm

It will come in handy

The little things make the biggest difference.

freitasm

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#830846 5-Jun-2013 10:19

I've noticed that my Centrino wireless still "disconnects" from the network now and then. Basically it's all connected, nice speeds (200 Mbps and up) and working but suddenly it reports a connection to the network but not traffic flowing.

It's not interference (one wireless network only around here), not a router problem (other devices can connect fine and traffic continues to flow).

If I disabled and enable the wireless adapter it works fine (or if I restart the NUC).

Running with latest drivers, but will have to check settings such as power, etc...

dacraka

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#830853 5-Jun-2013 10:41

Most of the time my Centrino wireless says "Limited" connection after waking from sleep and I have to wait 60 seconds before it fixes itself.
By the way the new Intel NUC i5 is released http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/motherboards/desktop-motherboards/nuc.html