Intel NUC 11 Pro
We wouldn’t recommend this configuration, but theth barebones system is a finefin base for a tiny business PCP
Intel’s Next Unit of Computing computers have been with us for almost a decade, with the NUC acronym now attached to its range of mini PCs. They’re consistently among the most compelling small-formfactor PCs, thanks to their habit of cramming surprising power into tiny and feature-packed enclosures. With 11th-generation Core chips in place – as the name indicates – Intel has repeated the trick to great effect.
This latest NUC is tiny: 117mm wide, 112mm deep and 37mm tall, while weighing 504g. It’s so small that it’s easy to lose underneath a couple of sheets of paper, and VESA mount support means it seamlessly attaches to the back of a display. The sides and lid are made of plastic, with the base and underlying core hewn from metal, and build quality is tremendous throughout. If you need a tiny PC to withstand a busy office, the NUC will be fine.
That underlying base secures with four screws and the panel is easy to remove. Inside, the motherboard is straightforward: first, you’ll notice two SODIMM memory slots that can accommodate 64GB of memory. The rig has three M.2 slots, with two shorter connectors used for the wireless card and SSD. The third M.2 connector is a full-size 2280 socket that supports PCIe 4, so you’ll be able to install the fastest NVMe SSDs.
You’re not alone
At this point I need to introduce the NUC 11 Pro’s big brother. The NUC 11 Performance shares the same width and length as the Pro, but it’s 19mm taller and its features are geared towards gaming and content creation. In particular, it includes a discrete Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 graphics card while the NUC 11 Pro (which is geared towards business) makes do with the Core processors processors’ integrated graphics chips. It also packs in more ports and offers a 2.5in drive bay, making it a winner for expansion.
The other issue I should flag has nothing to do with the PC – it’s the 120W power supply, which is virtually the same size as the system. While it provides plenty of juice for extra components and peripherals, it’s a cumbersome unit that you’ll need to find a home for.
And while I’m on the subject of caveats, it’s only right to point out that the NUC 11 Pro is one of several superb small-form-factor options. The M1-powered Apple Mac mini ( see issue 318, p54) can’t be ignored, even if it’s larger than the NUC and has poorer upgrade options, while the Asus Mini PC PN50 ( see issue 315, p47) is very accessible and only a little taller than Intel’s unit.
If you seek a neat solution I should finally point to the Dell OptiPlex 7090 Ultra ( see issue 321,
p48), which comes with its own monitor stand to turn any display into an all-in-one PC. It’s safe to say that the NUC 11 Pro has competition.
Speed questions
The NUC 11 Pro on review includes a Core i5-1135G7 processor alongside a 500GB SSD and 8GB of memory in a dual-channel configuration – so, essentially, this desktop PC uses a hardware configuration you’d expect to find in a laptop.
Those components scored 141 in PC Pro’s benchmarks, which if nothing else demonstrates that Intel knows how to squeeze the most power from its chips. If your daily life consists of office applications, email clients and browser-based tools, the NUC 11 Pro will have no problem getting the job done. If you want more power, Insight sells the Core i7 version, with 16GB of RAM, for £662 exc VAT.
Even with the Core i7 in place, though, the NUC 11 Pro falls behind its rivals. The M1 Mac mini scored 223 in our benchmarks, while an eightcore AMD Ryzen 7 4800U inside the Asus returned a score of 213. Both systems are far more adept in tasks that benefit from multiple cores, with the Core i5-1135G7 only having four to call upon. When the Mac mini costs £583 exc VAT and the barebone Asus arrives at £408 exc VAT, it makes those alternatives compelling.
Geekbench provides further evidence of Intel’s weaknesses. The NUC scored 1,391 and 4,869 in the single and multicore tests; in contrast, the Mac mini scored 1,740 and 7,694, while the Asus’ AMD chip is a little slower in the single-core test but matches the Mac mini in the multicore benchmark.
Our conclusion? Intel’s single-core performance is its biggest strength, and that bodes well for everyday workloads and less demanding tasks. However, if you want to run tougher applications, including multitasking and creative work, you’ll want either AMD or Apple hardware.
The little things
The NUC is virtually silent when handling low-intensity tasks and no louder than the average work laptop when it tackles more demanding workloads. Speakers, a headset or a busy office will easily offset the noise. Internal temperatures were acceptable, although in extended testing the CPU throttled to 3.2GHz. That’s a little slower than the chip’s all-core Turbo peak, but no surprise given the NUC’s size.
“If your daily life consists of office applications, email clients and browser-based tools, the NUC 11 Pro will have no problem”
Don’t expect a huge amount from Intel’s Iris Xe graphics, either. It’s got the speed to tackle media playback, basic photo editing and casual games, but it only scored
88fps in the GFXBench Car Chase off-screen test – compare that to the Mac mini’s 179fps. In 3DMark’s Fire Strike, meanwhile, the NUC scored 2,685 points, but the Radeon Vega chip in the Asus was about 1,000 points faster.
I was disappointed by Intel’s choice of SSD, which produced sequential read and write scores of 561MB/sec and 502MB/sec. Those results are fine for everyday work, but they’re a long way behind the best NVMe drives.
Still, this is where it’s worth remembering that the NUC 11 Pro can be bought as a barebones system, with the price dropping to £269 exc VAT (from uk.insight.com) for a Core i5-1135G7 version with no memory, storage or OS. A barebones Core i7 rig is £432 and if you only need a system for entry-level tasks, a Core i3 model only costs £206 (both exc VAT).
Port side
The NUC might be tiny, but it’s packed with ports. On the front, it offers two USB-A 3.2 ports with a top speed of 10Gbits/sec, while the rear has another alongside a USB 2 slot.
Impressively, the rear also has two USB-C 4 ports: one of these supports Thunderbolt 4, which means a mighty bandwidth of 40Gbits/sec alongside DisplayPort support, while the other supports Thunderbolt 3. Besides these, you’ll find two HDMI sockets and 2.5Gbits/sec Ethernet.
Connectivity on the inside extends to dual-band Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1, and the NUC 11 Pro has Intel vPro support and TPM 2. Intel also protects this machine with a three-year warranty, which is more generous than the one-year deal provided by Apple and Asus.
Some features are missing, though, namely audio outputs, an infrared receiver and a card reader. If you need those features and want to stick with a NUC, the Performance model includes them all alongside more USB connectivity and a lid that wirelessly charges smartphones and tablets using the open-source Qi standard.
Still, Intel has crammed loads into its smallest NUC, and the features compare well to the competition. The Mac mini is close but has slower networking, while the Asus Mini PC PN50 boasts a microSD slot but is poorer elsewhere.
Small decisions
The latest Intel NUC is a welcome addition to the wealth of small-formfactor PCs now available, with a broad range of features that includes lightning-fast Thunderbolt 4 and superb networking. The minuscule case is solid, the internals can handle everyday computing, and the vast array of designs improve the value and versatility.
The problem for Intel is that its AMD and Apple-based rivals are faster in multicore tasks and often no more expensive. The Intel NUC makes sense if you need the tiniest PC possible, or if its connectivity, vPro certification, warranty, or variety of specifications appeal – but remember that you can find more computing grunt elsewhere.
SPECIFICATIONS
4-core 2.4GHz (4.2GHz burst) Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor 8GB 3,200MHz DDR4 RAM Intel Iris Xe graphics 500GB NVMe M.2 SSD HDMI 2 2 x USB-C 4 (one with Thunderbolt 4, one with Thunderbolt 3) 3 x USB-A 3.2 USB-A 2 2.5Gbits/sec Ethernet Wi-Fi 6 Bluetooth 5 120W external PSU Windows 10 Pro 117x 112 x 37mm (WDH) 504g 3yr limited warranty