I don't think ETA Prime was saying he was first to look at it, more of this is my first look at it. As watcher of that channel I prefer his more gaming focused review, however as always I tend to look at multiple reviews of a product and then form my opinion.
Indeed. I am not defending ETA Prime, but usually "First Look" goes for the channel's first look at a product. Not "world exclusive first look at a product".
Congrats at beating ETA Prime! Your review was top notch and I LOL'd at the 'welcome to glitch fest city, population Intel NUC Pro'. Great to see you sharing helpful revelations like how to install the nVidia driver to avoid a BSoD and for the noise results--this is the kind of detailed goodness in a review that had me Sub to your channel and UnSub from ETA Prime. BTW, I appreciated that you also included the South Pacific paesos price--keep up the awesome work fella.
I do not believe that ETA PRIME means that he's the first ever. He simply means that it is **HIS** first look at a product. There might already have been a gazillion others before him.This look is way better though.
@@Br0adCastYourS3lf I wasn't referring to being the first to review it, I meant Rob's review was much more technically informative and helpful vs ETA Prime who basically does glorified adverts.
It's HDMI 2.1 but not "Full" HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps, 4K120Hz HDR, 4.4.4 chroma) Please highlight this in every review as it's a dealbreaker for many! And yes, you can still get 4K120Hz with HDR at 4.2.0 chroma out of the USB4 / DP1.4 ports with an extra $50 Cable Matters USB-C to HDMI 8K adapter, but at the price the NUC is already it should have HDMI 2.1 full spec PS the NUC 11, 12, and 13 Pro cases all seem to be interchangeable, as are the 3D printed designs available online. You can put a metal case on it if you have an 11th gen.
Okay, is there somewhere this info is listed or is Intel just pulling a fast one? I don't have a 4K120Hz monitor to try it and go off the listed specs.
@@Robtech yes the fake HDMI 2.1 spec is called "TMDS" and the full 48gbps 2.1 spec that supports 4K120Hz with HDR and full 4.4.4 chroma is called "FRL". It's not technically Intel's fault as this horribly misleading stuff is because of HDMI sig's decisions. Every manufacturer is using the misleading naming so they can say they offer HDMI 2.1.
Didn't know this and yes this is a deal breaker for me. Not having all the color information is a big no-no since I work with photos. Thanks for bringing this up.
I enjoyed this review Rob, and it seems fair, though disappointing, as I was hoping for a bit more from the latest '4x4' NUC. I've been a fan of 4x4 NUC's for a long time (multiple gen 5,10, and 11's) but it's getting harder. To be fair, though, since I use mine for work, I have liked the utter reliability (as I type this I'm looking at a NUC5 that's been running non-stop (except for Windows 10 updates) since fall of 2015 without an issue, and the fan is even still quiet), maybe we should accept that these are designed for business cases, and stop hoping for more, at least from their 4x4 design. Incidentally, I have seen a couple of reviews casually state that the 22x42 PCIe3 is also NVMe, but that would be pretty unusual and it's not what the Intel spec sheet says: "... for PCIe X1 Gen3, USB 3.2 Gen2 and SATA SSD expandability."
I don't know why people would want to play games on these things. And to me, the DDR4 makes it more appealing because there's tons of DDR4 out in the world already. The true benefit of the 12 and 13th gen NUC is the core count, 2.5 GbE, gen 4 NVMe, warranty, support... It should perform well as a server and has enough cores to run some VMs. I really only wish it had space for more NVMe and SATA drives.
The biggest different between 12 pro and 13 pro seems to be the i3 option. 12 pro had the 1220P, but 13 pro has the 1315U for us low power enthusiasts!
Not really an upgrade if you have WSK but they are still good systems, its intels support for these systems that makes them shine, they are a priority product and whilst many hackermen are out there doing technical wizardry with the other 4x4s and similar, for a no fuss option (Provided you know your way around a bios at least) these are just a simple drop in "computer at home" replacement really, and its never a bother if you wish to run linux or not, they just work, Most the time (always an asterisk somewhere in the computing world)
I will never buy another Intel NUC. My i5 NUC 12 Pro is terrible. After two replacements (now on the 3rd unit), both rear USB4 ports are still offering any connected device constant disconnects. Regardless of cable used. No excuse for this, given the premium price they charge.
Okay, sorry to hear that. I didn't experience that problem and would be happy to point them out if I did. I was gaming for a few hours on this TB4 port and it was stable (same with 12 Pro). My testing time is long, but limited in scope.
if they mange to fit a 10 gig port in it, than they can call it pro in my opinion, oh and an i9 ofcourse while we are here, would be interesting to test this against desktop cpus
Personally I find your reviews (a lot) better than ETA's because you are not shy to criticize design mistakes or shortcomings and provide a proper comparison between mini's, while everything seems to start off from hallelujah in ETA's reviews. That said, I find it a pity you made the imho totally unnecessary reference to ETA's work; Honestly, who cares who gives the first review? Just keep posting your much higher quality reviews. Thanks.
Well, I thought it was funny, since being first doesn't mean much and doing a search only takes 30 seconds. The lack of any critique from mini PC reviewers in general is the bigger problem.
Good Video Rob. I want one due to more cores (high version). On my 5th NUC now. I want to try and place an m.2 22x42 sas adapter with a 2.5 inch 15.6 TB KIOXIA CD8 Enterprise drive. I need capacity and speed ....well I just like the speed. Costly but I don't care.
Might be worth checking if NUC 12 Pro units are selling at a discount as the performance difference isn't massive. Here it's $110AUD below the launch price with bonus 16GB RAM and 500GB NVME at the moment.
I'd barely trust a 'chinese mini-pc' as far as I could throw a rock... But maybe they've improved over the years? I'd expect running firmware updates for security fixes, and AGESA in the case of AMD, at the very least for a few years. Can I expect this level of commitment from the the manufacturers like morefine?
Still an issue. Firmware updates are few and far between usually only to fix existing problems not to keep up to date with Intel and AMD changes. They suit the mainstream that never update the BIOS anyway.
I became interested in the NUCs back when the Ghost Canyon was released. I was amazed at how much they could fit in such a small package. However the price tag was quite high IMO which has carried through with all the Intel NUCs. I almost got a Lenovo mini-PC with Intel processor about 3 years ago but tyring to get one on the Lenovo site with the sale they were offereing was riddled with issues. I ended up getting a Beelink SER5 5600H last year and am quite happy with it. I don't really use it for gaming but for everything else it's been fantastic so far. I watch a lot of videos on the progression of mini-pcs and I think that AMD generally holds the price to performance bar over Intel. Perhaps not in every scenario but they always seem to be one step ahead. So unless Intel does something SPECTACULAR my preference is with the AMD Ryzen chips. Thanks for your continued reviews of these products!
Cannot imagine this with Ryzen 9 7940HS & 780M iGPU! this form suits AMD much more, with a full SD card reader and Biometric fingerprint access with sustainable performance under load.
As long as 4 things are available (Latest CPU, adjustable RAM, adjustable SSD, and decent heat management), I don't worry about the exterior too much. Still great for a home setup.
ETA Prime is the worse for mini pc reviews. That's criminal about the lack of DDR5. My go to for a mini pc is Dell Optiplex Micro, great machines and cheap second hand.
I'm waiting for Ryzen 7040 systems to be released in hopefully a few months time. Amazing that they released a pretty much obsolete system at high end pricing.
Hello. I am considering a NUC + Small Akasa case combination for a portable PC that I can bring to my bandmates' house and run on TV to write and record new songs. I was considering the Akasa Maxwell AC Pro + the i7 13th gen NUC or the Akasa Newton TN + the i7 12th gen. I see that the 12th gen gets less hot, so maybe it's more efficient in a passive case? Can I get more performance out of the 12th gen nuc in the Akasa case? Even if the newer case has a higher TDP? Or not? Which one would you recommend? Is the i5 model better than the i7 for those purposes?
There is always a market for an industrial-quality machine for the specialist market, like digital signage, where you can't afford for something to fail, but you'd have to wonder if you really need something this expensive to do that job. People in an office would buy a Dell or Lenovo that they already have a corporate account with, and home users would want more 'Go!', so who do Intel think they are pitching this to?
The businesses that are cashed up and want reliability and the smallest mini over everything else. These units will be available for five years, so they can easily replace them the same ones and not have to worry about incompatible hardware etc.
Rob, what are the chances that you could get your paws/claws on the Akasa Maxwell AC Pro fanless case, for InteI NUC 13 Pro products? Also, would any Intel N100 or i3-N300/N305 based mini-pc be the perfect substitute for an Nvidia Shield TV Pro while also adding AV1 decoding?
01:29 "You still have the dual Thunderbolt 4 ports" Do you happen to know whether each TB4 port is connected to its own TB4 controller in the SOC (40Gbps bandwidth each) or whether they are sharing one TB4 controller (40 Gbps shared)?
@@RobtechBut they will be reverse engineered by the Chinese. Then it will become "designed, engineered and built in China".😂 Why do you think there are so many Chinese mini PCs nowadays?
There aren't any in the wild yet, but there's rumor of a Beelink EQ12 Pro that will feature the N200. When I asked them about it, there was no release date.
I don't think ETA Prime meant "I have the first video" unless I'm misunderstanding something.
Same, I think it’s more “my first look”.
It's a joke...
I don't think ETA Prime was saying he was first to look at it, more of this is my first look at it. As watcher of that channel I prefer his more gaming focused review, however as always I tend to look at multiple reviews of a product and then form my opinion.
Indeed. I am not defending ETA Prime, but usually "First Look" goes for the channel's first look at a product. Not "world exclusive first look at a product".
Great video dude! keep going! I enjoy your mini pcs reviews🎉
Congrats at beating ETA Prime! Your review was top notch and I LOL'd at the 'welcome to glitch fest city, population Intel NUC Pro'. Great to see you sharing helpful revelations like how to install the nVidia driver to avoid a BSoD and for the noise results--this is the kind of detailed goodness in a review that had me Sub to your channel and UnSub from ETA Prime. BTW, I appreciated that you also included the South Pacific paesos price--keep up the awesome work fella.
ETA Prime don't have reviews it has presentations. You can't get any objective opinion from that channel.
I do not believe that ETA PRIME means that he's the first ever. He simply means that it is **HIS** first look at a product. There might already have been a gazillion others before him.This look is way better though.
@@Br0adCastYourS3lf I wasn't referring to being the first to review it, I meant Rob's review was much more technically informative and helpful vs ETA Prime who basically does glorified adverts.
@@petemonster1 I commented at the wrong level. I wanted to comment to Robtech. Apologies. And you're right about ETA Prime doing glorified ads.
It's HDMI 2.1 but not "Full" HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps, 4K120Hz HDR, 4.4.4 chroma)
Please highlight this in every review as it's a dealbreaker for many!
And yes, you can still get 4K120Hz with HDR at 4.2.0 chroma out of the USB4 / DP1.4 ports with an extra $50 Cable Matters USB-C to HDMI 8K adapter, but at the price the NUC is already it should have HDMI 2.1 full spec
PS the NUC 11, 12, and 13 Pro cases all seem to be interchangeable, as are the 3D printed designs available online. You can put a metal case on it if you have an 11th gen.
Okay, is there somewhere this info is listed or is Intel just pulling a fast one? I don't have a 4K120Hz monitor to try it and go off the listed specs.
@@Robtech yes the fake HDMI 2.1 spec is called "TMDS" and the full 48gbps 2.1 spec that supports 4K120Hz with HDR and full 4.4.4 chroma is called "FRL". It's not technically Intel's fault as this horribly misleading stuff is because of HDMI sig's decisions. Every manufacturer is using the misleading naming so they can say they offer HDMI 2.1.
Thanks. Will check this against any future 2.1 spec ports
Didn't know this and yes this is a deal breaker for me. Not having all the color information is a big no-no since I work with photos. Thanks for bringing this up.
DDR4 disappointing
I enjoyed this review Rob, and it seems fair, though disappointing, as I was hoping for a bit more from the latest '4x4' NUC. I've been a fan of 4x4 NUC's for a long time (multiple gen 5,10, and 11's) but it's getting harder. To be fair, though, since I use mine for work, I have liked the utter reliability (as I type this I'm looking at a NUC5 that's been running non-stop (except for Windows 10 updates) since fall of 2015 without an issue, and the fan is even still quiet), maybe we should accept that these are designed for business cases, and stop hoping for more, at least from their 4x4 design.
Incidentally, I have seen a couple of reviews casually state that the 22x42 PCIe3 is also NVMe, but that would be pretty unusual and it's not what the Intel spec sheet says: "... for PCIe X1 Gen3, USB 3.2 Gen2 and SATA SSD expandability."
I don't know why people would want to play games on these things. And to me, the DDR4 makes it more appealing because there's tons of DDR4 out in the world already. The true benefit of the 12 and 13th gen NUC is the core count, 2.5 GbE, gen 4 NVMe, warranty, support... It should perform well as a server and has enough cores to run some VMs. I really only wish it had space for more NVMe and SATA drives.
The biggest different between 12 pro and 13 pro seems to be the i3 option. 12 pro had the 1220P, but 13 pro has the 1315U for us low power enthusiasts!
Not really an upgrade if you have WSK but they are still good systems, its intels support for these systems that makes them shine, they are a priority product and whilst many hackermen are out there doing technical wizardry with the other 4x4s and similar, for a no fuss option (Provided you know your way around a bios at least) these are just a simple drop in "computer at home" replacement really, and its never a bother if you wish to run linux or not, they just work, Most the time (always an asterisk somewhere in the computing world)
I will never buy another Intel NUC. My i5 NUC 12 Pro is terrible. After two replacements (now on the 3rd unit), both rear USB4 ports are still offering any connected device constant disconnects. Regardless of cable used. No excuse for this, given the premium price they charge.
Okay, sorry to hear that. I didn't experience that problem and would be happy to point them out if I did. I was gaming for a few hours on this TB4 port and it was stable (same with 12 Pro). My testing time is long, but limited in scope.
if they mange to fit a 10 gig port in it, than they can call it pro in my opinion, oh and an i9 ofcourse
while we are here, would be interesting to test this against desktop cpus
ETAPrime has million + subscribers because he just does good reviews doesn't call anyone out for views .....
How does calling someone out = views? Not in the title, thumbnail or description. Please enlighten me.
Personally I find your reviews (a lot) better than ETA's because you are not shy to criticize design mistakes or shortcomings and provide a proper comparison between mini's, while everything seems to start off from hallelujah in ETA's reviews. That said, I find it a pity you made the imho totally unnecessary reference to ETA's work; Honestly, who cares who gives the first review? Just keep posting your much higher quality reviews. Thanks.
Well, I thought it was funny, since being first doesn't mean much and doing a search only takes 30 seconds. The lack of any critique from mini PC reviewers in general is the bigger problem.
Congrats Rob, always excited see your review! 😊
Easily the best reviewer of these Mini PC's
Good Video Rob. I want one due to more cores (high version). On my 5th NUC now. I want to try and place an m.2 22x42 sas adapter with a 2.5 inch 15.6 TB KIOXIA CD8 Enterprise drive. I need capacity and speed ....well I just like the speed. Costly but I don't care.
Might be worth checking if NUC 12 Pro units are selling at a discount as the performance difference isn't massive. Here it's $110AUD below the launch price with bonus 16GB RAM and 500GB NVME at the moment.
I'd barely trust a 'chinese mini-pc' as far as I could throw a rock... But maybe they've improved over the years? I'd expect running firmware updates for security fixes, and AGESA in the case of AMD, at the very least for a few years. Can I expect this level of commitment from the the manufacturers like morefine?
Still an issue. Firmware updates are few and far between usually only to fix existing problems not to keep up to date with Intel and AMD changes. They suit the mainstream that never update the BIOS anyway.
DDR4… sigh
I became interested in the NUCs back when the Ghost Canyon was released. I was amazed at how much they could fit in such a small package. However the price tag was quite high IMO which has carried through with all the Intel NUCs. I almost got a Lenovo mini-PC with Intel processor about 3 years ago but tyring to get one on the Lenovo site with the sale they were offereing was riddled with issues. I ended up getting a Beelink SER5 5600H last year and am quite happy with it. I don't really use it for gaming but for everything else it's been fantastic so far.
I watch a lot of videos on the progression of mini-pcs and I think that AMD generally holds the price to performance bar over Intel. Perhaps not in every scenario but they always seem to be one step ahead. So unless Intel does something SPECTACULAR my preference is with the AMD Ryzen chips. Thanks for your continued reviews of these products!
AMD does indeed do well in the mid to high end. Unfortunately, they're completely absent in the budget segment, so it's Intel or bust there.
First look doesn't mean first to review, it means the review is based on first impression and brief use.
Nonsense. There was no follow up and the video was as long as the others. He'd sell his first born son for 50c if it gave him more views.
So ...... NUC13 based on 13th gen refresh having DDR5 support?
I can picture Intel pulling this.
Cannot imagine this with Ryzen 9 7940HS & 780M iGPU! this form suits AMD much more, with a full SD card reader and Biometric fingerprint access with sustainable performance under load.
As long as 4 things are available (Latest CPU, adjustable RAM, adjustable SSD, and decent heat management), I don't worry about the exterior too much. Still great for a home setup.
ETA Prime is the worse for mini pc reviews. That's criminal about the lack of DDR5. My go to for a mini pc is Dell Optiplex Micro, great machines and cheap second hand.
That big powerbrick is also inexcusable. Why not powering via USB?
What is the price of the 1360P Intel NUC 13 i7
The plastic case is really a turn-off.
No DDR5? Wow. Goodbye Intel.
I'm waiting for Ryzen 7040 systems to be released in hopefully a few months time.
Amazing that they released a pretty much obsolete system at high end pricing.
Think we all are. We're gonna be waiting a while though I think 😞
How to build a good Mini-PC?
Hello. I am considering a NUC + Small Akasa case combination for a portable PC that I can bring to my bandmates' house and run on TV to write and record new songs. I was considering the Akasa Maxwell AC Pro + the i7 13th gen NUC or the Akasa Newton TN + the i7 12th gen. I see that the 12th gen gets less hot, so maybe it's more efficient in a passive case? Can I get more performance out of the 12th gen nuc in the Akasa case? Even if the newer case has a higher TDP? Or not? Which one would you recommend? Is the i5 model better than the i7 for those purposes?
Should be almost the same. The power draw is similar.
There is always a market for an industrial-quality machine for the specialist market, like digital signage, where you can't afford for something to fail, but you'd have to wonder if you really need something this expensive to do that job. People in an office would buy a Dell or Lenovo that they already have a corporate account with, and home users would want more 'Go!', so who do Intel think they are pitching this to?
The businesses that are cashed up and want reliability and the smallest mini over everything else. These units will be available for five years, so they can easily replace them the same ones and not have to worry about incompatible hardware etc.
How much is it?
Crappy memory, glitchy graphic, damn Intel All iclusive
One of the problems of Intel NUC is the use of DDR4, which should be abandoned. DDR4 is not relevant anymore.
Would be really funny if the new NUC essential with an N305 would get DDR5.
Looks like no chance of that. I hope it gets released though. Q1 is almost over and no Essential info yet unfortunately.
Rob, what are the chances that you could get your paws/claws on the Akasa Maxwell AC Pro fanless case, for InteI NUC 13 Pro products?
Also, would any Intel N100 or i3-N300/N305 based mini-pc be the perfect substitute for an Nvidia Shield TV Pro while also adding AV1 decoding?
Slim to none. Not sure of the Nvidia Shield's capabilities, but as an AV1 media player the N100 is plenty powerful.
@@Robtech Ah, too bad. Thanks for confirming about the N100. Cheers mate.
What about DDR5? The CPU supports this memory.
But the mini does not
01:29 "You still have the dual Thunderbolt 4 ports"
Do you happen to know whether each TB4 port is connected to its own TB4 controller in the SOC (40Gbps bandwidth each) or whether they are sharing one TB4 controller (40 Gbps shared)?
Individual controllers
@@Robtech Excellent. Thanks.
DDR4?! ahhhh geez.
Large power brick..where is USB C power..geez X 2
Is there room for an SSD with a heatsink?
No, needs a flat drive
Great review! quick question though, are they using thermal paste or liquid metal on the cpu fan heaksink ?
Thermal paste
@@Robtech Thx
No information on Availability!?
The PR document only said April onwards. No exact dates
Nucs are also made in China too are they not?
Yes, but not designed/engineered there.
@@RobtechBut they will be reverse engineered by the Chinese. Then it will become "designed, engineered and built in China".😂 Why do you think there are so many Chinese mini PCs nowadays?
Do you think we'll get a look at a N200 mini pc soon? Thanks!
There aren't any in the wild yet, but there's rumor of a Beelink EQ12 Pro that will feature the N200. When I asked them about it, there was no release date.
@@Robtech Thanks!
Danke!
Vielen Dank!
where can i buy this can someone give me a USA link to purchase
Should be hitting stores from next month onwards.
cons: ITS VERY EXPENSIVE
Kinda happy this is the final generation of inefficient Intel CPUs. Going to hold out one more generation.
The die shrinking gen is always the most interesting.
Hi,does it fit Samsung 980 PRO 1 TB Heatsink?The built-in coolers NUC 13 Pro Arena Canyon of NVMe ,don't they get in the way? Thanks!
Probably not. It's been designed to use the provided thermal pad which dissipates heat to the bottom lid.
@@Robtech Thanks!
lost one of your few viewers, just review tech and leave the youtuber beef somewhere else.
🤷♂️ Bye!
8th