Intel just injected even more gaming power into its cute, miniature desktop that’s part of its Next Unit of Computing, or NUC, lineup. Unlike the traditional tower that dominates most gaming desktops on the market, Intel’s new NUC 11, introduced at this year’s CES, looks more like an elongated Mac Mini desktop when it rests on its side.
The NUC 11 Enthusiast is the successor to the company’s popular Hades Canyon desktop from 2018. Like its predecessor, the NUC 11 Enthusiast retains the compact stature that’s a signature of Intel’s design, though there are plenty of new technology additions. This year, the NUC 11 Enthusiast packs in the company’s latest 11th-Gen processor and comes with discrete Nvidia RTX 2060 graphics.
Under the hood, you’re getting a quad-core Intel Core i7-1165G7 CPU. While the reliance on Nvidia’s RTX 2000 series may be disappointing for serious gamers who were expecting a more modern RTX 3000 series graphics card, it’s still impressive that Intel was able to pack that much power and performance into a desktop this size. The NUC 11 Enthusiast is also referred to by its codename of Phantom Canyon, which follows previous models like Hades Canyon, Frost Canyon, and Ghost Canyon.
Along with the new processor, NUC 11 Enthusiast gamers will also benefit from Wi-Fi 6 support, Thunderbolt 4 ports, and a wide array of connectivity ports — including six USB-A ports, HDMI 2.0 port, and a Mini DisplayPort 1.4 port, according to Intel’s product page. Sadly, the new HDMI 2.1 standard didn’t make the cut, so you won’t benefit from using any of the new HDMI 2.1-enabled monitors that debuted at CES.
When you’re not gaming or working on large creative projects, the NUC 11 Enthusiast can also fall back onto Intel’s integrated Xe graphics.
If you’re a gamer looking for a more compact rig than what’s traditionally on the market, the NUC 11 Enthusiast could be a great option. Pricing and availability weren’t immediately available, but according to The Verge, SimplyNUC.com had listed the Phantom Canyon at $1,349 on its website in a configuration with 8GB of RAM and 128GB solid-state drive.
Considering that the Hades Canyon, which was a NUC 8 model, still retails for $1,234 on the site, the updated NUC 11 Enthusiast could be a great value for space-conscious gamers. SimplyNUC’s retail configuration doesn’t include a license for Windows 10, so you’ll have to shell out a little bit more money to get started, which isn’t unusual considering Intel’s strategy with NUCs. SimplyNUC.com also allows buyers to augment the amount of memory and storage with a customized build for an additional cost.
In the past, Intel sold its NUCs as either complete kits that will work out of the box, or as part of a solution for tinkerers where you will have to add your own RAM, storage, and operating system. The latter option adds flexibility to enthusiasts in the segment who may be more willing to customize the parts on their desktop to get the most performance.
In addition to the gaming-centric Phantom Canyon model, Intel also updated its more traditional NUC models, which bears more of a direct resemblance to Apple’s square-shaped Mac Mini. These models got an upgrade to 11th-Gen silicon, up from 10th-Gen from last year, along with Wi-Fi 6 support and Intel Xe integrated graphics on the higher-end Core i5 or Core i7 configurations. Enterprises looking to adopt Intel’s NUC can choose configurations with Intel’s vPro silicon.
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.