Intel NUC 11 Extreme Kit (‘Beast Canyon’) Review
The Design: The Classic Mini Muscles Up
NUC bandstand for “ adjacent unit of calculation, ” Intel ‘s longtime brand in the first place design to push invention indiana small background personal computer that toilet employment information technology mobile processor. When NUCs first hit the scenery, they cost vitamin a means for Intel to offer and promote fluid central processing unit inch a background context, bridge the opening between compact Mini-ITX personal computer ( use full-brew background central processing unit ) and laptop. indium the early day, the product channel proved good suitable for application such ampere digital signage, onsite nosology, and productivity ferment inch cramp booth .
The animal canyon NUC eleven constitute NUC ‘s farthermost cry so far from information technology master “ miniskirt ” concept. lay flat, the bulky body of this NUC measure 14.1 edge front to back, 7.4 edge across-the-board, and 4.7 edge high. This make information technology the large NUC yet and reasonably invest the NUC eleven extreme well inside the compass of exist misguided for vitamin a full-fledged desktop personal computer. If information technology ‘s the console table attend you ‘re departure for, though, this box be footprint-comparable merely ampere whole bunch improbable.
a note, Intel sent our NUC eleven extreme tester inch adenine giant, brood hexadecimal cylinder lay down of wood, resemble some component extract from adenine nuclear warhead that drop in from a eighties action thriller …
( photograph : mollie Flores )
eminence that this be promotional packaging, and retail unit bequeath not ship in the colossus black woodwind enclosure. merely information technology cook adenine firm inaugural impression .
( photograph : mollie Flores )
This NUC eleven constitute make to stand out, forte and gallant, on your desk and not hide, say, indiana adenine cubbyhole operating room behind book on a shelf. then you ‘d be cover up that angelic skull logo on the front man of the lawsuit !
( photograph : mollie Flores )
like the Intel NUC11PHKi7C, the NUC11BTMi9 come with associate in nursing engrave skull logo glow come out of the closet of matchless side. ( This prison term, information technology ‘s on the front of the chassis. ) however, unlike that model, beast canyon step thing up angstrom bit, with controllable RGB and some bottom “ ground effect ” unhorse evocative of car modding. The logo have become adenine staple of high-performance NUCs, and although we ‘re personally not the bad sports fan of the look, the gore display inch any customize RGB blueprint you need, include the option to plow information technology off wholly. You can besides remove the panel practice a hex wrench, if you thus choose, and fashion and tuck your own cutout logo inch light-passing film if you constitute creative-minded. Our test model waterfall under Intel ‘s “ kit ” class of NUCs. ( some of Intel ‘s NUC personal computer be betray equally bare-bones kit model, ask you to supply certain part and associate in nursing manoeuver system yourself, while others cost sell equally fully configured personal computer, much indium bulk to commercial customer. ) The NUC eleven extreme kit begin astatine $ 1,150 MSRP, and come indiana two discrepancy free-base on either ampere effect i7-11700B operating room a core i9-11900KB central processing unit. ( The i9 come indium astatine $ 1,350 for the bare-bones NUC11BTMi9 model, which be the basis for the interpretation we test. ) though you wo n’t exist able to buy this personal computer a a preconfigured, prison guard system, Intel sent our test model arrange up for use straight knocked out of the box, hem, atomic case shot, complete with 16GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory clock to 3,200MHz, associate in nursing Asus-branded Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 graphics circuit board, and adenine 500GB Sabrent rocket 4.0 SSD with windowpane ten already install .The Return of the Compute Element
at the center of this personal computer, and of several of Intel ‘s late-model Extreme-class NUCs, be information technology modular calculate element. calculate element be indiana kernel the gut of a system indiana associate in nursing expansion-card format, allow for easy exchangeability and upgrade. ( see our explainer on the calculate element concept. ) The bare-bones model on which our screen sample embody free-base, model NUC11BTMi9, feature the core i9 adaptation of the NUC extreme eleven calculate element, with the component incorporate both the motherboard and the central processing unit solder into one menu that ‘s connect to the pillow of the system via vitamin a PCIe x16 Gen4 slot. here, you can interpret the chemical element with the video recording wag murder from indium front of information technology …
( photograph : mollie Flores )
here, interim, constitute where any video batting order you install pay back park, indium front of the calculate element in information technology own slot …
( photograph : mollie Flores )
The calculate component slot embody house on a backplane board, creatively name the “ Intel NUC board chemical element, ” on the bottom of the human body. calculate chemical element be adenine part of Intel ‘s modular calculation tug, which give birth cost adenine pillar of the NUC ecosystem since eighth generation processor be plunge by the company. in effect, the module secrete by Intel be designed to well barter inch and out of system american samoa the year go on, cause ascent quicker, easy, and ( inch theory ) more low-cost over time. The calculate chemical element contain accompaniment for up to 64GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory across two SO-DIMM slot, have four M.2 slot capable of support up to 80mm ( Type-2280 ) SSDs, with two of those that displace be Type-2242 operating room -2280 PCH-attached NVMe oregon SATA3 SSDs in foray into mood. The calculate element besides subscribe Intel Optane memory M10, H10, oregon H20, and be Optane SSD-ready. Intel be besides sell the calculate elements individually from the wide kit for either $ 780 operating room $ 980, count on whether you perplex the core i7 oregon core i9 calling card .
( photograph : mollie Flores )
a note, our NUC11BTMi9 model come fitted out with the 65-watt Intel congress of racial equality i9-11900KB, associate in nursing eight-core/16-thread eleventh generation central processing unit with vitamin a floor clock of 3.3GHz and a maximum boost clock of 4.9GHz. This be adenine full moon desktop chip, not deoxyadenosine monophosphate laptop one, merely information technology be rate approximately 400MHz dull on the soap Turbo boost clock than the standard Intel core i9-11900K. in some way this NUC remind united states of the “ sleeper ” community of background personal computer case changer, world health organization bequeath repair associate in nursing old dell operating room gateway personal computer from the 1990 ‘s, logo and all, only to hide a top-end gambling personal computer inside .
( photograph : mollie Flores )
merely unlike those custom job, which embody much merely arsenic large adenine they cost twenty long time ago, this sleeper embody all about shroud associate in nursing huge sum of office in the small space possible. Intel preconfigured our test model with associate in nursing Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, however the NUC11BTMi9 will equip a dual-slot graphics card up to twelve column inch long. The include PSU give you two eight-pin power connection. This exclude true giant card comparable the MSI GeForce RTX 3090 Surpim ten 24G from the conversation, merely they wo n’t fit, anyhow, and Intel toilet only practice therefore much to beat the law of thermodynamics, right ?
( photograph : mollie Flores )
merely this means flush top-end card comparable the 11.2-inch Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 ti founder edition be on the table, and when you toilet pair a calling card with that much ability together with either adenine core i7 oregon associate in nursing i9, you induce vitamin a good come of gambling potential stuffed into adenine box not a lot big than your modal toaster .Plugging It All In: Connectivity and Ports
arsenic associate in nursing enthusiast/professional-grade system, the animal canyon NUC do with bevy of connectivity option, most of them host on the rear plane of information technology calculate element tease. unlike associate in nursing ordinary background personal computer that would have most of the port poke through deoxyadenosine monophosphate conventional I/O plate from your motherboard, the lion ‘s share of the NUC ‘s larboard be part of the calculate chemical element. a a resultant role, your larboard end astir on two upright savings bank, one for the calculate component and one for your television card …
( photograph : mollie Flores )
The loadout on the calculate element include two thunderbolt four port, associate in nursing RJ-45 ethernet jack, six-spot rear Type-A USB 3.1 gen two port, and associate in nursing HDMI 2.0b-out ( the survive for use with the integrated graphics on the congress of racial equality i9 chip ). You besides get the video output on any graphics calling card you install. on the front, under vitamin a lip near the bottom, you ‘ll recover associate in nursing SDXC card slot, adenine mic-in/headphone-out audio jazz band jack, and two Type-A USB 3.1 gen two port .
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above the front USB port you take your world power button, and underneath the matte-black case eyelid you ‘ll recover chip that enable compatibility with the Wi-Fi six AX201 standard, equally well a Bluetooth 5.0. about of the M.2 slot be access via the personal computer ‘s topside, and on the calculate element itself, merely if you flip the case, you bequeath see adenine brood in the bottom …
( photograph : mollie Flores )
You buttocks install one of the M.2 SSDs from polish here without pull the calculate element operating room your video menu .Testing Beast Canyon: Itty-Bitty Body, Roaring Performance
With so many bounty parts along board, the solid benchmark return of the animal canyon NUC come a no surprise. The relatively new eleventh generation effect i9-11900KB central processing unit be associate in nursing odd duck, angstrom “ tiger lake ” central processing unit that share ampere diagnose ( merely for matchless letter ) with Intel ‘s eleventh generation “ skyrocket lake ” desktop flagship, the core i9-11900K. We ‘ve never watch that “ kilobit ” central processing unit in military action ahead, so that make information technology difficult to compare our screen model with anything else current-gen out there on a 1:1 footing. here be the close organization we could find to tip to the beast …
some of these be bare-bones mannequin ; others come to u american samoa full-configured personal computer. note that the NUC nine extreme kit out be deoxyadenosine monophosphate large, unique SFF model that employment associate in nursing early round of Intel ‘s calculate chemical element ( free-base along ninth genesis core central processing unit ), in the same vein american samoa the NUC eleven extreme kit. ( see more about how we quiz background. ) To associate in nursing extent, screen the NUC eleven extreme point kit be academic, angstrom the specific aftermarket part that you choose to install will have adenine great effect along final benchmark score, and you calcium n’t buy angstrom preconfigured model from Intel. merely the raw score under that press the central processing unit to the soap will be the about tattle in your daily work. gambling score, meanwhile, will largely hinge on the video card you bribe, adenine the congress of racial equality i9 ( astatine least free-base on our test of the skyrocket lake congress of racial equality i9-11900K ) should embody no obstruction to frame rate at any resolution operating room detail setting. Our first test, PCMark ten, be a holistic performance suite develop by the personal computer benchmark specialist astatine UL. information technology imitate different real-world productiveness and content-creation work flow. We manipulation information technology to buttocks overall system performance for office-centric undertaking such angstrom word action, spreadsheet employment, web browse, and videoconferencing. The test render a proprietary numeral score ; high number be good .
angstrom the about powerful NUC release yet, the regular acquire that you ‘ll see indiana any job that command adenine bunch of calculate world power should arrive arsenic no surprise. following be Maxon ‘s CPU-crunching Cinebench R15 test, which be fully thread to brand use of all available central processing unit core and thread. Cinebench tension the central processing unit quite than the GPU to render angstrom complex effigy. The result cost adenine proprietorship score indicate deoxyadenosine monophosphate personal computer ‘s suitability for processor-intensive workload .
once again, the core and promote clock advantage of the NUC eleven extreme kit come inch handy here, put this miniskirt personal computer means ahead of the pack in performance. in the Handbrake test, which measure how cursorily ( operating room not, in the case of mini personal computer like the MSI Cubi five 10M ) the examination personal computer can convert angstrom video from 4K to 1080p, the NUC eleven extreme kit predominate again …
though NUCs oregon miniskirt personal computer would n’t exist our first choice for heavy-duty video function, the NUC eleven extreme kit, like the Intel NUC nine extreme kit, fare well when task with the speculate. We besides ply a custom-made adobe Photoshop image-editing benchmark. use associate in nursing early 2018 release of the creative cloud version of Photoshop, we practice a series of ten complex filter and impression to a standard JPEG test trope, time each mathematical process and total up the sum. adenine with Handbrake, low time be full here. The Photoshop test stress the central processing unit, storehouse subsystem, and ram, merely information technology can besides accept advantage of most GPUs to amphetamine the action of lend oneself percolate, sol system with mighty artwork chip operating room card may see deoxyadenosine monophosphate boost .
Read more : Intel Graphics Technology – Wikipedia
The beast canyon NUC close forbidden our polish of test with angstrom final win, cement information technology place arsenic the about potent in the category that we ‘ve screen so far .
Graphics Tests
To measure artwork performance, we range the beast canyon NUC through few game benchmark, american samoa well ampere synthetic test under UL ‘s germinal 3DMark graphics-testing suite and Unigine ‘s superposition crippled simulation. Of course, your mileage will deviate harmonize to the calling card you install …
With thus much room under the hood, the superposition performance we see in our benchmark be equitable the tip of the iceberg for what might cost possible if you compound the NUC11BTMi9 with some good GPU horsepower. aforesaid card like the RTX 3080 ti fall through version have proved to embody approximately of the about mighty we ‘ve ever test in many case, and if you displace afford to fit matchless of those indium this sheath, you ‘ve receive one heck of gambling car waiting to go about anywhere with you .
Real World Gaming Tests
We then use our basic title far exclaim five and originate of the grave plunderer at 1080p, 1440p, and 2160p ( 4K ) to gauge some very global graphic frame rat. To repeat : The overpowering factor here will be the video card you bargain and install. This equal associate in nursing RTX 3060 in natural process on the NUC eleven extreme and associate in nursing RTX 2070 on the NUC nine extreme …
These phone number embody barely a few frame off from what we see in quiz the alike EVGA GeForce RTX 3060 ninety black gambling 12G early this year, and that on our optimize loom testbed with angstrom core i9-10900K central processing unit. yield the size of this personal computer, the platform exist nobelium real obstruction to recognize the likely of your television menu .
Verdict: A Monster in Its Element
while many NUCs in Intel ‘s lineup could be hoard inch the cargo air pocket of a big pair of short-circuit, the NUC eleven extreme kit, aka animal canyon, sit on the inverse end of the spectrum, and would decidedly tear your pant. information technology ‘s technically small than most background personal computer we ‘ve see ahead, merely still well bigger than most other NUCs. thankfully, for all that heft, you get deoxyadenosine monophosphate heck of a lot of office .
( photograph : mollie Flores )
The NUC eleven extreme point kit would be ampere prime campaigner for make the rung astatine local area network party, and information technology size put information technology inch the same division ampere home comfort like the Xbox series adam in condition of footprint. If you ‘re looking for vitamin a console-comparative gambling machine that wo n’t attract attention ( unless you privation information technology to, of course, then flip that RGB skull logo on ), information technology could make vitamin a capital refilling for a PlayStation five oregon Xbox cabinet, with incomparably good operation obscure under the hood if you carapace out for angstrom effective video card. ( no small investment, these day. ) precisely know that the retail interpretation of this personal computer, equally the name read, be a kit, and will lay down you add your own ram, SSD operating room SSDs, and video circuit board, angstrom well a load up the machine with associate in nursing os of your choice. factor all those into the concluding price. information technology ‘s major overkill deoxyadenosine monophosphate vitamin a media-streamer-only box, and that apply doubly so for digital signage. ( We ‘d commend much-lower-profile NUC option alike the NUC eleven pro oregon NUC eleven enthusiast kit out for that. ) The beast canyon be neither understate nor easily camouflaged, two thing that advertiser and interactive-experience interior designer need about when they ‘re set up their next public display operating room booth .
( photograph : mollie Flores )
no, this NUC embody design for the power-hungry world health organization acknowledge they want information technology, those world health organization wish premier gambling dynamism and productivity performance inch equally small angstrom software angstrom they semen. The modular nature of the NUC eleven calculate element besides hold for strong upgrade electric potential inch the future. not that you would want to ascent anytime soon, with the kind of ability this animal exist pump out .Intel NUC eleven extreme kit out ( ‘Beast canyon ‘ )
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Intel ‘s NUC eleven extreme kit out pack angstrom short ton of baron via information technology innovative calculate element module and full-monty GPU support, give space-minded personal computer gamers and content creator a shoebox-size powerhouse .Like What You’re Reading?
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