ASUS has announced a new mini PC aimed at productivity and near silent operation, with advanced onboard hardware features designed to keep it competitive in the crowded mini PC field.
The NUC 15 Pro+ is configurable with central processing units (CPUs) in the Intel Core Ultra processor family, as well as an Intel Arc GPU and up to 96GB of DDR5 RAM.
ASUS claimed this unlocks up to 99 trillion operations per second (TOPS), an 18% performance boost over previous ASUS NUC products. The device is aimed at users with both professional and creative needs, with strong capabilities at both multitasking and demanding graphics software.
Despite the performance increase, ASUS claimed the NUC 15 Pro+ operates 1.2 times quieter than its predecessors, having been built to a new air cooling design.
Intel Wi-FI 7 comes as standard in the NUC 15 Pro+ range, which can support download speeds of up to 46Gbit/sec across up to 16 streaming devices across its sizable bandwidth.
ASUS also highlighted the peripheral connectivity of the NUC 15 Pro+, with Bluetooth 5.4 able to connect it to devices from 240 meters away – so it can easily stay connected to headphones or a printer across office and home environments.
Similarly, the mini PC comes with two HDMI 2.1 and two Thunderbolt 4 ports, to support up to four of the best business monitors in 4K resolution.
Monitors draw significant power, particularly if they are set to a high resolution and brightness, so the NUC 15 Pro+ comes with a ‘sync-off’ setting that turns off monitors when the mini PC isn’t being used.
Mini PCs have grown in popularity and are now available from a number of brands including Lenovo and Beelink as well the Apple Mac Mini.
They can be convenient for users looking for a dedicated desktop PC but who don’t have the space for a regular-sized model – the NUC 15 Pro+ is just 144 x 112 x 42mm in size, so will fit neatly on most desks.
Mini PCs can also be beneficial for those who can’t choose an all-in-one PC because they want to upgrade their device down the line with new memory or an SSD.
ASUS has worked with this in mind for NUC 15 Pro+, equipping the device with a spring-loaded hinge so that users can open its chassis without having to unscrew anything and risk damaging the case.
