It’s a sad day for fans of Intel’s Next Unit of Compute (NUC) systems, as HarwareLuxx has received word from the company that it is no longer investing in these small-form-factor products and will be distancing itself from the business pretty much entirely. The decision comes around half a year after Intel released its collection of NUC 13 Extreme products, which marked the 10-year anniversary of the family with a Raptor Canyon kit and more. Intel says it will continue to support existing products on the market, while other publications have pointed out that this basically implies Intel has exited the PC business.
“We have decided to stop direct investment in the Next Unit of Compute (NUC) Business and pivot our strategy to enable our ecosystem partners to continue NUC innovation and growth,” reads a statement from an Intel spokesperson.
“This decision will not impact the remainder of Intel’s Client Computing Group (CCG) or Network and Edge Computing (NEX) businesses. Furthermore, we are working with our partners and customers to ensure a smooth transition and fulfillment of all our current commitments – including ongoing support for NUC products currently in market.”
…the NUC line has grown over the years from small boxes to all kinds of form factors. That has led to a strange market dynamic. As it was doing in the server business, Intel was in a position to compete with its major OEM customers. That brings us to the key question: does Intel add value by competing on motherboard and chassis design, rather than chip design? For the past few years as the mini PC space has flourished perhaps the answer has been no.