Intel NUC – Power in the palm of your hand
From school and university computer labs to government and nonprofit organizations, Intel NUC form factor is perfect for small spaces
For people who have been using PCs since its inception, the main problem was its power consumption. Imagine how much power these desktop PCs have drained and remember how many cooling fans we used to put inside our system units?
It was a tough task for PC manufacturers and PC designers, and engineers were kept busy by their bosses to find solutions to get rid of this heavy consumption of power. Since the 90s (or even before that), engineers were trying their best to produce high performing computers with low power consumption using many technologies. With the current trend of a greener world, all the form factors of computers from desktop PCs to Ultrabooks are trying to adopt green technologies. And we must not forget the golden rule; the size of the device must be minimal too.
Over the years, Intel has been in the forefront of delivering revolutionizing technology innovations which not only changed industries but also the lifestyles of many people across the globe. As the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of Moore’s Law, the cornerstone of technology innovation in the modern world which was envisioned by the Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Intel Corporation, Gordon Moore; the company is striving forward to invent more products and solutions for the next 50 years.
With the launch of Intel NUC (Next Unit of Computing) PC Kit, the world’s largest semiconductor chipmaker came back into the game of producing smaller computers with a true commercial value. There are currently five generations of NUC PCs by Intel, named after their processor architectures; Sandy Bridge, Ivy Bridge, Bay Trail, Haswell and Broadwell –U.
Intel launched the NUC PC kit in Sri Lanka last year and according to the Intel Sri Lanka Country Business Manager, Indika De Zoysa, the sales forecasts so far for the unit in Sri Lanka have been very positive. He believes the NUC PC kit could be defined as a hybrid model of existing desktop PCs.
“Over a period of time, the desktop PC has been evolving. You had the traditional desktop PC and then it transformed into a smaller form factor. Now people are looking fordevices that are powered by green technologies. People are concerned about power consumption, space, storage capacity, connectivity and so forth. NUC PC kit is a unit which has evolved in a way to replace the desktop PC in a more versatile way; I would say that it is a hybrid version of the desktop PC,” he stated.
The Intel NUC comes in two forms: the board and the kit. Intel NUC board comes with a 4-inch by 4-inch motherboard with a soldered on processor that you will have to integrate into a case. While The Intel NUC kit comes with a 4-inch by 4-inch motherboard, soldered on processor, enclosure around the board, a power brick, VESA mounting bracket, wireless antennae (integrated into the chassis), Intel brand sticker, and option for a power cord (this comes with 4th generation models only).
“This small unit can be powered by a car battery, truly demonstrating the NUC’s reduced power consumption. The technology that has been used in this unit is similar to the technology used in laptops and Ultrabooks so a user can positively expect high-performance from a NUC with lower power consumption,” said De Zoysa.
From home theater systems to digital jukeboxes to gaming and beyond, Intel NUC is customizable for the way you compute today. Indika said that NUC’s embedded ‘Intel Smart Connect’ helps not just consumer usage but corporate usage too. “You can plug a NUC to the back of your home TV screen and convert it into a ‘Smart TV.’ While doing that, you can plug your PC’s power chord into the NUC and continue your work using your desktop PC. What Intel is really doing here is redefining the term ‘Mobility’. You can practically carry your desktop PC with you, thanks to Intel’s NUC PC kit. The NUC would be very beneficial for a commercial space, for instance it would be able to entirely power up digital signage or information kiosks,” he opined.
The Intel NUC has picked up really well across the globe since its official launch in 2013.
“We are seeing a big momentum across the globe now and especially in matured markets, the NUC PC kit is doing really well. In emerging markets also, we have been aggressively promoting this unit over the last few months,” Indika De Zoysa said.
“In Sri Lanka the demand for the NUC from consumers is increasing and the corporate sector is now showing their interest as well. We are currently refurbishing our NUC supply chain for the next couple of years and we are expecting that the interest of big corporates for NUC kits would increase after the strengthening of our supply chain.”
NUC PC kit is actually what you call a ‘barebone’ computer which means that it is a partially assembled platform or an unassembled kit of computer parts, allowing more customization and lower costs than a retail computer system. “If you take the NUC kit, it is designed as a customizable platform. It has given space for consumer to upgrade it,” said De Zoysa.
NUC is a fun product. It is part hobbyist project, part low-end gaming PC, and part miniature workstation. It offers enough power for anyone who doesn’t need a quad-core CPU or a dedicated graphics card. The NUC stands as proof that traditional, mid-tower PCs deserve to go by the wayside for the average consumer. The system is speedy, small, power-efficient and quiet. It strips away years of legacy cruft and provides only the essentials that most users need to be productive and have a rewarding computing experience
