UCFF
ECS is a well-known OEM in computing circles, known for building motherboards, computers, and industrial / embedded systems for other vendors. Some of their motherboards and small form-factor PCs are marketed under their own brand name - for example, their LIVA series of ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) machines serves markets that are not directly addressed by the Intel NUCs. At the 2020 CES, the company introduced the LIVA Z3 Plus and LIVA Z3E UCFF machines based on the Comet Lake-U processors from Intel. The Z3 Plus has four variants, two based on Core i7 processors and one each based on the i5 and i3 SKUs. This review takes a look at the performance and value proposition of the pre-built Core i5-based LIVA Z3 Plus offering...
ASRock Brings Zen 2 NUC : 4X4 BOX-4800U Renoir Mini-PC Reviewed
AMD-based ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) systems are slowly gaining market acceptance, with the Zen architecture slowly catching up with Intel on both the performance as well as power consumption front...
52 by Ganesh T S on 11/25/2020Akasa Turing Fanless Case Review: Unrivalled Noiseless NUC
Silent computing systems are preferable for a multitude of use-cases ranging from industrial applications (where dust and fans make for a troublesome configuration) to noiseless HTPCs (particularly for audiophiles)...
30 by Ganesh T S on 10/26/2020ASRock Industrial's NUC 1100 BOX Series Brings Tiger Lake to UCFF Systems
Intel's introduction of the Tiger Lake U-series processors with support for a range of TDPs up to 28W has resulted in vendors launching a number of interesting systems with...
8 by Ganesh T S on 10/13/2020MinisForum Unveils EliteMini H31G: 65W CPU & 75W GPU in a Compact Mini-PC
MinisForum has been making some interesting moves in the last few months with their computing platforms, ranging from the DMAF5 based on the Ryzen 3000H-series SoCs to the Ice...
4 by Ganesh T S on 9/29/2020ASRock Industrial 4X4 BOX-V1000M Ryzen Mini-PC Review: Finding Zen In The Small Things
The miniaturization trend triggered by the ultra-compact form factor NUCs from Intel has emerged as a key driver in the growth of the PC market. Processor power efficiency is...
36 by Ganesh T S on 9/28/2020ASRock Industrial's 4x4-BOX UCFF PC Series Goes Premium with Ryzen 4000U Renoir APUs
ASRock Industrial has been at the forefront of AMD-based UCFF PCs, being one of the first to bring out systems based on the Ryzen Embedded APUs in mid-2019. In...
36 by Ganesh T S on 9/8/2020Intel Puts Whiskey Lake on The Bonfire: Penny for the NUC
Intel has begun winding down sales of the majority of its Whiskey Lake-based 8th generation NUCs (NUC8 Series). This month the company issued a product change notification for...
13 by Anton Shilov on 3/10/2020GIGABYTE Unveils Comet Lake-Based BRIX UCFF PC: 6 Cores, USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, & RS232
GIGABYTE has quietly added its first Comet Lake-U-powered ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) BRIX PCs to its lineup. The new systems were designed for home, office, and commercial applications, they offer...
20 by Anton Shilov on 2/21/2020ECS to Unveil LIVA Z3 Plus & LIVA Z3E Plus UCFF PCs at CES: Intel’s 10th Gen Core Inside
ECS this week disclosed plans to introduce new LIVA ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) PCs based on Intel’s 10th Gen Core processors. Set to be fully unveiled at CES next month...
6 by Anton Shilov on 12/18/2019Ryzen UCFF-palooza: Multiple PC Makers Now Shipping AMD Ryzen Embedded Systems
While AMD's Ryzen Embedded APUs aren't new, the rate of adoption for them is. AMD unveiled this week that four more manufacturers are now offering ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) PCs...
24 by Anton Shilov on 12/4/2019Intel Unveils Specificiations of NUC Element Modular PCs
In preparation to kick off sales of its NUC Element modular computers, Intel has disclosed some additional details about the product family. As expected, Intel will offer NUC Element...
14 by Anton Shilov on 12/4/2019ASRock Reveals Mars UCFF PCs: 0.74-Liters With Intel Core Inside
ASRock has introduced its new Mars series of ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) barebones PCs. The Intel Core-based PCs come in a 0.74-liter chassis and can house up to 32 GB...
26 by Anton Shilov on 11/27/2019Intel Confirms Comet Lake-Based NUC 10 ‘Frost Canyon’ UCFF PCs
Intel has officially confirmed plans to release its NUC10 ‘Frost Canyon’ ultra-compact form-factor PCs with mobile Comet Lake processors. The main selling point of the systems will be CPUs...
21 by Anton Shilov on 11/21/2019Intel’s ‘Frost Canyon’ NUC Revealed: SFF PC w/ Comet Lake
Intel Thailand this week inadvertently disclosed the company’s plans to release its next-generation NUC small form-factor PCs based on Comet Lake processors in the near future. Meanwhile, a store...
19 by Anton Shilov on 11/15/2019SimplyNUC Unveils Sequoia: AMD Ryzen V-Series-Based UCFF PC
SimplyNUC, a maker of ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) PCs, has introduced its first PCs that use AMD’s Ryzen Embedded processors. The Sequoia units are rugged commercial systems designed for applications...
33 by Anton Shilov on 11/14/2019Intel Axes 10nm CPU Based NUC
Intel has notified its partners about plans to discontinue its only 10nm small form factor NUC in the market. The NUC, which went under the code name of Crimson...
18 by Dr. Ian Cutress & Anton Shilov on 11/6/2019HP Unveils Chromebox Enterprise G2: A Chrome OS-Based Business Desktop
Business and enterprise desktops is an interesting market recently - on the one hand, because extended support for Windows 7 nears its end early in 2020, multiple companies are...
39 by Anton Shilov on 10/14/2019ASRock’s 4X4 Box-R1000: A Ryzen-Based 0.87-Liter SFF PC
ASRock has introduced what could be the world’s smallest system based on AMD Ryzen processor. The 4X4 Box-R1000 ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) PC can fit on the palm of a...
22 by Anton Shilov on 7/5/2019Intel’s Islay Canyon Mini NUCs Available: Whiskey Lake, Radeon 540X, 8GB LPDDR3
Several retailers have started sales of Intel’s NUC 8 Mainstream-G systems previously known as codenamed Islay Canyon. The ultra-compact form-factor PCs pack Intel’s 8th Gen Core i5/i7 processors for...
43 by Anton Shilov on 7/1/2019