In June 2023, Intel announced it would no longer design, make, or sell new NUC (Next Unit of Compute) mini-PCs. In July, Asus announced it would keep the NUC design going under an agreement with Intel.
Today at CES 2024, Asus revealed plans to launch its first NUC mini-PC made for gamers. Of course, it will be sold under its Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand, as the Asus ROG NUC.
Asus states in its press release:
The tool-less chassis design allows integration in under 10 minutes, with dimensions of 270 x 180 x 50 mm for uncompromised gaming in a minimalistic form factor. Beyond performance, the ROG NUC pairs seamlessly with the ROG Raikiri PRO controller for a redefined gaming interaction. ARGB lighting and the ROG Armory Crate app allow users to create stunning light shows.
Buyers will be able to get an Asus ROG NUC with either an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor or a Core Ultra 9 185H chip. The GPU choices are either an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 or 4070. You will get support for putting in up to 32GB of RAM, and there will be three M.2 2280 PCIe Gen4x4 slots for SSD storage.
The ASUS ROG NUC can be set up either horizontally or vertically with an included stand. On the front of the mini-PC there will be a SD card reader, and two USB ports, along with audio jacks. In the back, there will be one Thunderbolt 4 port, four USB ports, an HDMI port, two DisplayPorts, and an Ethernet 2.5Gig port.
Asus claims that the ROG NUC can run up to four 4K displays at once with its Thunderbolt 4 port, its HDMI port, and its two DisplayPorts.
Right now there’s no word on when the Asus ROG NUC will be released, nor how much will it cost. There’s also no word on if ASUS will sell the NUC with or without RAM or SSD storage. Hopefully, we will get those answers sooner rather than later.