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Assassin's Intel NUC Review - Page 2

post #31 of 157
3/1/13 at 12:23pm
Set one of these up for my father's bedroom HTPC.

I think they get a bad rep from people who scoff at the price and think that the money can go further with DIY components...I think they miss the point. A small, powerful, well built HTPC can't be made quite like these things.

I do hope these computer become more popular and maybe a bit cheaper...
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post #32 of 157
3/1/13 at 12:41pm
right now Newegg.com has it for 279.99 plus free shipping. if you use V.me from visa you will get a extra 10% up to $50.
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post #33 of 157
3/1/13 at 1:25pm
What's the price as tested/assembled?
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post #34 of 157
3/1/13 at 1:56pm
I cant wait to hear more about this - everything sounds good right now, but want to hear how it is over a week or so of use. The silent part of it really intrigues me - the one I have now currently built is just too loud, especially in low parts.

If this can handle WMC/Live TV, MediaBrowser and XBMC with little problem, Ill be fit to be tied.
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post #35 of 157
3/1/13 at 2:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Puwaha View Post

What's the price as tested/assembled?

 

This is what I bought so you're looking at around $410 before taxes/shipping.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148611

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233377

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856102002

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812196313

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post #36 of 157
3/1/13 at 3:32pm
Thread Starter 
Testing wmc live tv now. So far so good. Screenshots to come...
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post #37 of 157
3/1/13 at 3:46pm
So I guess you either need to use the SSD or get an external HDD for the LiveTV Buffer? What about a DVR drive?
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post #38 of 157
3/1/13 at 4:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lockdown571 View Post

Haha, I had no idea you were even planning on getting one. I really like this devices. It's unfortunate that they aren't about $100 cheaper though. That would be a sweet deal. The advantages of course are a small footprint and near silent operation. My HTPC is quiet, but the fan is noticeable during very quiet parts of movies.

Although, I just installed HyperSpin and am now running various emulators on my i3-2100 machine. So for my 2nd HTPC, instead of getting something nice and quiet like this, I'm thinking about upgrading my old E5400 machine to something more beastly. Oh, sometimes I feel like I've lost it rolleyes.gif

How well do HyperSpin and those emulators run on that proc? Are you using a separate GPU with it?
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post #39 of 157
3/1/13 at 5:58pm
Thread Starter 
Been testing the NUC with WMC Live TV from HDHomerun. Not even a hiccup thus far.








Even tried a little Amazon Prime testing.


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post #40 of 157
3/1/13 at 6:46pm
Who wants to buy me a NUC?
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post #41 of 157
3/1/13 at 6:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mcturkey View Post

How well do HyperSpin and those emulators run on that proc? Are you using a separate GPU with it?

It runs fantastic with the 2100. I did notice some slowdown on Dreamcast the other day but that might have just been a software thing. The same game had been running fine earlier. N64 is flawless so far. 2D games of course run perfectly. I also have an ati 5450 installed. From what I understand the emulators are almost entirely CPU bound though.
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post #42 of 157
3/1/13 at 9:45pm
I'm assuming it does 3d? This seems like a viable option vs. building a htpc.
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post #43 of 157
3/2/13 at 5:25am
Any recommendations on a fan-less and USB 3 NUC? Perhaps I have to wait for the inevitable Haswell version.
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post #44 of 157
3/2/13 at 5:27am
What are the benefits of a NUC over an Ivy Bridge notebook? IB notebooks are sometimes under $400.
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post #45 of 157
3/2/13 at 6:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by BobSalita View Post

Any recommendations on a fan-less and USB 3 NUC? Perhaps I have to wait for the inevitable Haswell version.

Silverstone is coming out with a fanless NUC I believe.
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post #46 of 157
3/2/13 at 6:11am
The most obvious benefits are the small footprint. This looks like it would be a perfect replacement for my aging Dell Zino HD that serves the family room TV. Daggone it, why are there always new and exciting toys? I keep telling myself I won't spend more money on gadgets and then this thing comes along.
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post #47 of 157
3/2/13 at 6:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by captain_video View Post

The most obvious benefits are the small footprint. This looks like it would be a perfect replacement for my aging Dell Zino HD that serves the family room TV. Daggone it, why are there always new and exciting toys? I keep telling myself I won't spend more money on gadgets and then this thing comes along.

It's contagious! tongue.gif
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post #48 of 157
3/2/13 at 7:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by FantaXP7 View Post

It's contagious! tongue.gif

Yep - every time I see the NUC, I want one. Then I remember the 42U rack full of other expensive toys I've got, and realize my wife does not have that much patience for my habit. In terms of cost/benefit, the NUC is really only logical if you are severely space constrained to where the unit needs to be strapped to the back of a display - otherwise, any number of cheaper options exist that would have the same or better capabilities, if you're willing to give up the tiny form factor.
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post #49 of 157
3/2/13 at 11:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by assassin View Post


Even tried a little Amazon Prime testing.

Are you running Amazon Prime in a browser or from within WMC?
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post #50 of 157
3/2/13 at 12:29pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by bgthree View Post

Are you running Amazon Prime in a browser or from within WMC?

Browser.
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post #51 of 157
3/2/13 at 4:51pm
New NUC out.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856102004

Intel Celeron 847 1.1GHz

There is suppost to be another i5 model coming out in april and in late summer a haswell one.
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post #52 of 157
3/2/13 at 5:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by space2001 View Post

New NUC out.
There is suppost to be another i5 model coming out in april and in late summer a haswell one.

Source?
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post #53 of 157
3/2/13 at 7:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by space2001 View Post

New NUC out.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856102004

Intel Celeron 847 1.1GHz

There is suppost to be another i5 model coming out in april and in late summer a haswell one.

Now THAT is a more compelling price. Would it be able to handle 1080p? I'm not as familiar with Intel chips as I am AMD.
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post #54 of 157
3/2/13 at 8:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by gewbert View Post

Now THAT is a more compelling price. Would it be able to handle 1080p? I'm not as familiar with Intel chips as I am AMD.

I've done extensive testing on the Celeron 847 mini-ITX motherboard. I think there's a thread around here somewhere. The short answer is yes with the exception of the internal XMBC player in Windows 7. Anything else that uses HW acceleration shows 1080p smooth as butter. I tried some high bit-rate MKVs H.264 and VC-1 and they all played great. The integrated GPU is reported by HWInfo as the Intel 2000 HD. There's a thread in the XBMC forum where a user of the Lenovo Q190 (Celeron 887, same GPU) shows it supports SBS 3D which was a surprise.

Celeron 847 threads:
Here: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1438912/mini-itx-motherboard-with-sandy-bridge-mobile-celeron-847-and-intel-hd-graphics
XBMC forums: http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=143433
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post #55 of 157
3/3/13 at 10:07am
Thanks for the write up, Assassin.
The three USB ports; are they sharing resources such that it would be difficult to run two USB at full stream?
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post #56 of 157
3/3/13 at 4:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by amarshonarbangla View Post

Source?

http://techreport.com/news/24178/new-cheaper-intel-nuc-coming-next-month
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post #57 of 157
3/4/13 at 5:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by StardogChampion View Post

I've done extensive testing on the Celeron 847 mini-ITX motherboard. I think there's a thread around here somewhere. The short answer is yes with the exception of the internal XMBC player in Windows 7. Anything else that uses HW acceleration shows 1080p smooth as butter. I tried some high bit-rate MKVs H.264 and VC-1 and they all played great. The integrated GPU is reported by HWInfo as the Intel 2000 HD. There's a thread in the XBMC forum where a user of the Lenovo Q190 (Celeron 887, same GPU) shows it supports SBS 3D which was a surprise.

Celeron 847 threads:
Here: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1438912/mini-itx-motherboard-with-sandy-bridge-mobile-celeron-847-and-intel-hd-graphics
XBMC forums: http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=143433
If it's anything like the Dell Zino HD, I'd prefer to go with the better CPU and integrated graphics for $100 more. Lots of people bought the Zino expecting it to be the next big thing, just like the NUC. Unfortunately, many of them soon discovered that the lower-powered CPU and graphics just didn't hold up to expectations. I upgraded my Zino with the better CPU and Radeon GPU and I'm still using it today for streaming Blu-Ray rips from my server using XBMC.

The moral to the story is pony up the extra cash and go with the better CPU. I'm not saying that the Celeron version of the NUC isn't up to the task, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Perhaps when the Celeron NUC gets into the hands of more testers this notion will disappear. I just know that spending the extra $100 or so on the Zino upgrades was the better decision.
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post #58 of 157
3/4/13 at 5:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by StardogChampion View Post

I've done extensive testing on the Celeron 847 mini-ITX motherboard. I think there's a thread around here somewhere. The short answer is yes with the exception of the internal XMBC player in Windows 7. Anything else that uses HW acceleration shows 1080p smooth as butter. I tried some high bit-rate MKVs H.264 and VC-1 and they all played great. The integrated GPU is reported by HWInfo as the Intel 2000 HD. There's a thread in the XBMC forum where a user of the Lenovo Q190 (Celeron 887, same GPU) shows it supports SBS 3D which was a surprise.

Celeron 847 threads:
Here: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1438912/mini-itx-motherboard-with-sandy-bridge-mobile-celeron-847-and-intel-hd-graphics
XBMC forums: http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=143433
Quote:
Originally Posted by captain_video View Post

If it's anything like the Dell Zino HD, I'd prefer to go with the better CPU and integrated graphics for $100 more. Lots of people bought the Zino expecting it to be the next big thing, just like the NUC. Unfortunately, many of them soon discovered that the lower-powered CPU and graphics just didn't hold up to expectations. I upgraded my Zino with the better CPU and Radeon GPU and I'm still using it today for streaming Blu-Ray rips from my server using XBMC.

The moral to the story is pony up the extra cash and go with the better CPU. I'm not saying that the Celeron version of the NUC isn't up to the task, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Perhaps when the Celeron NUC gets into the hands of more testers this notion will disappear. I just know that spending the extra $100 or so on the Zino upgrades was the better decision.


Thanks for the input. I think I'll stay clear until more info comes out. I just want something that works, not something that might work and might not at times (need high WAF).
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post #59 of 157
3/5/13 at 8:29am
Yes thanks for the write up Assassin. I'm glad others are enjoying the NUC. I have had mine for about 2 weeks now and it been rock solid stable.

NUC I3 DC3217IYE
CORSAIR 4GB DDR3 1333 - in bottom sodimm slot
Crucial m4 64GB mSATA
Intel Network 6235
AVerMedia AVerTV Hybrid Volar Max
Windows 7 32 bit with the video mem set to 512 in bios

The only real issue is the F2 to enter bios bug but Intel is working on a fix in the next bios [currently bios 36]
I have built a number of HTPC's and this one is by far the nicest.
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post #60 of 157
3/5/13 at 12:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kajel View Post

Yes thanks for the write up Assassin. I'm glad others are enjoying the NUC. I have had mine for about 2 weeks now and it been rock solid stable.

NUC I3 DC3217IYE
CORSAIR 4GB DDR3 1333 - in bottom sodimm slot
Crucial m4 64GB mSATA
Intel Network 6235
AVerMedia AVerTV Hybrid Volar Max
Windows 7 32 bit with the video mem set to 512 in bios

The only real issue is the F2 to enter bios bug but Intel is working on a fix in the next bios [currently bios 36]
I have built a number of HTPC's and this one is by far the nicest.
Can you explain the F2 bug? Can you enter BIOS via the Delete key? I like to use the Lenovo 5902 keyboard/trackpad remote with my HTPCs and it lacks function keys.

Just curious, but why 32-bit for Win 7 instead of 64-bit? Also seems a shame to resort to wireless when you have a nice Intel gigabit NIC onboard.
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