A SLEEK MINI PC that doesn’t look out of place next to a large-screen TV, the new Intel NUC, code-named Skull Canyon, is a powerful entertainment hub and especially good for gaming.
Desktop computers tend to be large and require their own space, but Intel has designed its NUC platform, which stand for Next Unit of Computing, in such a way that it can sit side by side with a TV like a set-top box.
Earlier generations of NUC computers were designed to be capable of handling general tasks, like browsing web pages and reading social media pages.
But at the Game Developers Conference 2016 in March, Intel announced a new NUC kit, the Skull Canyon.
The new Intel NUC (NUC6i7KYK) has a 45-watt, quad-core 6th generation Intel Core i7 processor and Intel Iris Pro graphics. The new system is designed to unleash performance for intense game play and intensive workloads.
The Intel Iris Pro graphics 580 is so powerful that the new NUC can be used to professionally edit photos and videos. Better still, it allows for total immersion in vividly rendered 3-D gameplay in 4K resolution on three monitors simultaneously.
The Skull Canyon is very thin for a desktop computer with a footprint of only 216mm x 116mm x 23mm. It looks sleek too, with its black chassis boasting a skull logo.
Its i7-6770HQ processor is a 64-bit processor, running at 2.6 GHz. Moreover, the Skull Canyon has a Thunderbolt 3 port that allows a single compact port and single cable to easily connect to 4K displays, high-speed storage and other devices. The port can also be used to connect to high-end, external graphic cards. The provided Thunderbolt 3 port has a data connection speed of 40 Gbps, supports both USB 3.1 and DisplayPort 1.2 protocols, and comes in USB-C shape, just like in new-generation smartphones.
The Skull Canyon also has a full-size HDMI 2.0 port that supports 4K display connection and a Mini DisplayPort 1.2 that supports 8-channel audio (7.1 surround sound).
It has four USB 3.0 ports, two at the back and the two at the front, and an SD card slot that supports up to 512 GB card, plus an Intel Gigabit LAN port for connecting to your home router with a LAN cable. It’s also equipped with Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260 (802.11ac) Wi-Fi adapter and Bluetooth 4.2 adapter.
The 802.11 ac adapter allowed the Skull Canyon to connect to my Linksys WRT1200ACt with no problem. I tested the mini PC in my bedroom on the second floor leaving the router in the living room on the first floor and the connection was still fast. I could stream movies from www.iflix.com and play HD YouTube clips smoothly.
The Skull Canyon connected and displayed to my Full HD TV fine using the HDMI connection. The display was sharp and clean and reading of web pages and text was fine.
The unit that I tested came with Intel SSD M.2 240GB storage and 8GB of DDR4 working memory or RAM. The Skull Canyon has good performance and comes installed with Microsoft Windows 10. All applications ran fast, smooth and quietly. I streamed movies from www.iflix.com without any heat dissipation problems. Full HD movies played fast and smoothly on the system. And 3-D intensive games ran fast as well.
The Skull Canyon can play 3-D games in Full HD 1080p display with over 35 frames per second and in some games, with over 50 fps, which is impressive for a mini PC.
The Skull Canyon is shipped with two lids – one with a skull logo and one plain matte black.
There are two versions on sale. The one with Intel SSD M.2 240 GB and 8 GB RAM retails for Bt29,900 and the one without storage and RAM for Bt24,900.
Key Specs
– OS: Windows 10
– CPU: 6th generation Intel Core i7-6770HQ 2.6 GHz
– Graphics: Intel Iris Pro graphics 580
– RAM: 8 GB DDR4 RAM
– Storage: Intel SSD M.2 240 GB
– Ports: Thunderbolt 3 USB-C, 4 USB 3.0, HDMI 2.0, Mini DisplayPort 1.2, Gigabit LAN, SD card slot, headphone/microphone jack
– Wireless connectivity: Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC8260 (802.11 ac), Bluetooth 4.2
– Dimensions: 216x116x23mm
– Weight: Varies with configurations
This source first appeared on The Nation Life.