Is the NUC platform the future of the Mac Mini?

Have you seen this thread, NUCs are mentioned toward the end, one user (post #43) considers his the perfect HTPC:

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1444932/4-x-4-x-2-intel-i3-mini-computer-with-dual-hdmi-or-thunderbolt/0_40

I think you're on to something, the most salient question for you will probably be, how long are you willing to wait?

You're not being overly hopeful. Haswell in some form will be coming to the Mini, it's the natural progression of what have already been pretty special, if not unrivaled, machines going back to 2010 or so. Powerful, slim, quiet and cool, I never hear my 2011s from the couch, there's enough space inside for two of your own drives, even the ability to roll your own Fusion drive of an SSD paired with a large 2.5" HD if you want, gigabit, Thunderbolt, FW800, USB 3, etc. Working against the NUC/Haswell update? The Ivy Bridge Minis with HD4000 graphics have only been out a couple of months and right now they can handle anything you throw at it in terms of HTPC (not that Apple cares at all about the Mini as HTPC, it does not.) Apple almost certainly feels no pressure to update the Mini for a good long while--looking back, previous updates were June 2010, then July 2011 and finally October 2012. While Apple would definitely be attracted to something silent and fan-less in a tweaked Mini form factor that will not be all that user-upgradeable, a positive in Apple's eyes, I'm also pretty confident the next Mini will not step back from what it currently offers, that means you can count on Thunderbolt and HDMI (or two Thunderbolt ports), several USB 3 ports and no external power brick. I hope Apple keeps throwing us the firewire 800 bone, it's been a nice treat on the 2011s and 2012s.

Can you wait until the Fall?

I get that it can be fanless, and it's smaller (does anyone consider the Mac Mini to be too big?) but the NUC kit I looked at on newegg.com had considerably less ports and an external brick power supply. IMO, the current Mac Mini design/platform seems like the better HTPC platform. I just bought an open box 2012 base Mac Mini and haven't configured it yet, but I was under the impression that for most HTPC purposes the fan probably shouldn't even kick on. In my case I might use it as a Plex transcoding server, so I am worried about how loud/high-pitched the fan might be, but I doubt a NUC would be a good platform as a transcoding server.

No, not at all, it's an incredible little package, no need for it to be any smaller, that's what an Apple TV is for...I hope the Mini retains its current form factor because I like that as shipped it brings so much to the table, and I don't want to lose the space inside for two drives of my own choosing...

Agreed, if Apple goes Haswell NUC it would be with something customized. But, as you'll probably figure out once you get your Mini up and running, its fan does present a minor inconvenience, it's intake is on the bottom, so most of us elevate our Minis a bit, and dust and gunk does get stuck at the metal mesh just inside the black bottom disc. Now imagine the same Mini with greater processing power without any need for a fan? That would be a very elegant, very Apple-like evolution.

Who gave you that impression, not someone in this forum I hope? The fan most definitely revs up with a 2011 or 2012 Mini when doing something intensive like a Handbrake transcode or playing back a blu-ray, two things one would do with an HTPC quite often. But, whether you'll even hear that over ambient room noise sitting 10 feet away, I doubt. I don't ever hear mine over and above the most quiet of passages, (and I even turn my fan speeds up a little bit on purpose just to keep the Mini as cool as possible.)

A Haswell NUC? Haswell is supposed to be a significant step up from Ivy Bridge, where Ivy Bridge (2012 Mini) was just an iterative step up from Sandy Bridge (2011 Mini.) Haswell should do a killer job transcoding media, but, I think what you'll find is that your 2012 Mini will probably already be overkill for your HTPC needs, it'll do live transcodes just fine, barely breaking a sweat.