Intel NUC 13 Excessive PC Assessment: Raptor Canyon Pushes Limits
| Intel NUC 13 Excessive – Beginning at $1179 ($1549 w/ Core i9-13900K) The brand new Intel NUC 13 Excessive is the quickest, maximum robust NUC but, however it is usually the most important. |
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Intel has constantly up to date and upgraded its sequence of NUC small shape issue PC programs through the years. What began as a distinct segment circle of relatives of mainstream mini-PCs that featured cellular {hardware} and would slot in the palm of your hand, expanded and morphed into a couple of households of mini PCs, which run the gamut from low-power compute sticks to high-performance gaming programs. In its tenth 12 months of lifestyles, Intel is increasing the NUC circle of relatives all over again, with its maximum robust gadget to this point – by means of a long way – the NUC 13 Excessive.
We’ve checked out quite a few previous-gen NUC Excessive programs. Every one used to be significantly higher than the unique 4” sq. Subsequent Devices of Computing that spawned the class, however they remained a lot more compact and had considerably smaller footprints than the rest DIYers may construct with off-the-shelf parts. The NUC 13 Excessive, alternatively, includes a redesigned Compute Part with a full-on desktop socket, along side a brand new slot backplane and chassis, which are all higher (and extra succesful) than previous-gen merchandise. Actually, the NUC 13 Excessive is designed to deal with graphics playing cards which are 3-slots broad and as much as 12 inches in period. That on my own moderately pushes the boundary of what one would imagine “small shape issue”, however we’re getting forward of ourselves. Let’s check out the specifications, move within the NUC 13 Excessive, after which see what it might probably do…
Intel NUC 13 Excessive “Raptor Canyon” Options & Specs
Please observe that the spec listing above is damaged into two sections; the highest part is devoted to the NUC 13 Excessive Compute Part itself, and the ground part to the chassis. Intel plans to promote barebones NUC 13 Excessive kits, which encompass the Compute Part, chassis, and both a Core i9-13900K, Core i7-13700K, or a Core i5-13600K, along with the NUC 13 Excessive Compute Part by itself to choose companions.
The NUC 13 Excessive Compute Part in reality homes a regular LGA1700 desktop socket for Raptor Lake-based thirteenth Gen Core processors. That socket is living on a compact PCB, with headers and sockets populating each side, and back-panel IO on the rear. Even though the Compute Parts will come pre-populated with thirteenth Gen Core desktop processors, the motherboards use cellular SO-DIMMs, with enhance for as much as 64GB of RAM at DDR5-5600 speeds. The board additionally homes a couple of SATA ports, a few further USB headers, RGB lighting fixtures headers, and triple M.2 slots (at the bottom). Our configuration didn’t come with any RGB lighting fixtures, alternatively.
To chill the CPU, VRM, and chipset, the NUC 13 Excessive Compute Part includes a rather huge array of heasink fins, and a few heat-plates. There’s one heat-plate put in for the VRM and chipset, and every other for the CPU, which can be related to a big heatsink array by way of a trio of heatpipes. The CPU heat-plate has a barrel-type fan connected. And the bigger heatsink that juts out off to the facet, is cooled by means of probably the most huge side-mounted fanatics built-in into the chassis. There’s a 2d side-mounted fan, that attracts air around the GPU and the PSU fan, is living simply at the back of the Compute Part at the reverse facet of the chassis.
As for the back-panel IO, there are six USB 3.2 Gen2 Kind-A ports, twin Thunderbolt 4 / USB 4 ports, an HDMI 2.1 TMDS output, a trio of three.5mm audio ports, a few WiFi antenna issues, and twin multi-gig RJ45 LAN jacks. WiFi (and Bluetooth) comes by the use of an Intel AX1690i 802.11ax 2×2 controller, and the stressed LAN ports are powered by means of Intel 2.5GbE (i226-V) and Marvell / Aquantia 10GbE (AQC113) LAN controllers.
The highest entrance of the chassis could also be house to every other pair of USB 3.2 Gen1 Kind-A ports, one Gen2x2 USB-C port, a three.5mm audio jack, and a lighted chronic button.
All of the chassis is ready 12” x 12” x 5”, and save for the entrance panel, it’s vented throughout. The highest, facet, and backside are made from steel mesh, with the bigger facet panels additionally that includes a crisscross steel development for extra taste and tension. The patterns appears respectable, however we might have most popular a cleaner, all-mesh glance. The again of the gadget doesn’t have any designated vents or mesh, however the PSU and graphics card each exhaust air out the again.
Opening the NUC 13 Excessive chassis couldn’t be more straightforward. Disengage a unmarried thumbscrew at the skinny top-panel, and it pops proper off. As soon as that panel is got rid of, the facet panels come proper off, and the ground panel may also be got rid of as neatly. All cables are pre-routed or have anchor issues to stay issues protected and out of the way in which the place imaginable.
Intel’s Compute Part within the NUC 13 Excessive has been redesigned to deal with extra robust {hardware} – in this case, desktop-class Raptor Lake processors. And the backplane, which connects the Compute Part to the NUC’s enlargement slots has been redesigned, to carry the PEG slot all the way down to the bottom. You’ll understand that the GPU is in reality fixed the wrong way up. This necessitates using further (integrated) brackets to verify the GPU is held securely in position, which provides some further steps right through meeting, however in follow the whole lot labored correctly in our exams.
Intel’s NUC Studio instrument can also be to be had for the NUC 13 Excessive, for customers that wish to tweak the gadget or track {hardware} well being information from inside Home windows. We encountered some snags working the present model of the app, however compatibility fixes are within the works.
And with all that mentioned, let’s see how the NUC 13 Excessive plays…