Resisted a few of times and this is the lowest I have seen.
Intel BOXDN2820FYKH0 NUC Barebone Kit - Celeron N2820 with HD Graphics (up to 2.39GHz) with HDD Space Retail Kit - Support 2.5" HDD - 1x HDMI - USB3.0 - GLAN - Intel Wireless-N 7260BN (802.11bgn, Bluetooth 4.0, WiDI)
jv, I login just to +1, but accidently - as my phone screen is too small. I can't redone that. My apologise.
Balanced out for you tghlc. I've also raised a dispute with Paypal about it using the chat transcript I posted below.
She finished the chat off with a 'Good luck' also :S
Haha, Paypal T&Cs are not law binding in anyway, they don't even enforce it themselves. It's all for show to make them look professional, contact them for customer service and you'll know.
Is this good enough to run Plex? If not any recommendation which server is good for plex?
It will run the players fine, probably even serve files ok too, but I wouldn't use it if you wanted to transcode. The Celeron in it is essentially a tablet chip.
Intel discontinued this product just months after release due to a flaw in processor's design.
Mwave already know this, that is why they dropped the price…
(but they don't want you to know)
whats wrong with it? is it this stuff?
USB problems with N2820: Indeed, with the first released versions of this NUC, the BIOS and USB 3.0 had issues, as you all know. However, the latest BIOS version 0032 (https://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&Dwnl…) should have resolved those problems. (And if you have Windows 7, the updated USB 3.0 driver at https://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&Dwnl… is recommended.)
Details for the noobs of us please?
May make a handy little plex/steam (streaming) client for not much
Who cares if it has been discontinued. lol. Its a bargain.
Discontinued products of this sort doesn't really matter as all the parts are used by other manufacturers which use Intel chips, therefore drivers will continue to be available.
If you say "Oh this phone is discontinued" then you may not want to buy it, as the phone will most likely get no more updates. Since a phone is very closed market, therefore other phone's software will not work on your phone, so you are pretty much screwed.
I think the key aspect of his statement was that the design is flawed. It's one thing to buy a 100% working discontinued product, its another to buy a defective one.
If it can be resolved with software updates or if there was a hardware revision to resolve it (and this was that revision) then your point stands.
i think intel says that the newest bios fixes all issues
whether you beleive them or not is another issue
The problem with all these cheap NUC deals is Windows.
It will cost you $120-$150 for a Windows license. That means once you add it all up you are well north of $500 for a half decent NUC.
For that money you can buy an i3 or better new Dell PC with everything from their discount places like the Outlet.
Smaller size bigger price. That's like saying why laptops more expensive than desktop?
Anyway I have one of these running xbmc. Runs beautifully. Had to get it exchange once though but it's all good now :)
huh, you need windows? there is free options out there both in the Windows or Linux Flavours.
where do i get free windows?
Actually many of us would consider that to be a bonus as we are not forced to pay the Microsoft Windows Tax.
Agree with SamR.
After recently buying a Dell laptop (which comes with i3 2.3GHz CPU, 4Gb RAM, 500Gb HDD, a screen, Windows 7 Home Premium and Office 2010) for only $200 from Big W sale. This NUC just seems overpriced.
desktop or laptop?
How come this was not posted on ozbargain?
this?
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/151975?page=1
bendover on 09/07/2014 - 14:45 new
Just went into Big W in Mandurah, WA.
They have these laptops, i asked them to scan them and they will said they will be $200 each tomorrow
This One
https://www.bigw.com.au/electronics/computers-office/compute… Tag Price $648
And
This One
https://www.bigw.com.au/electronics/computers-office/compute… Tag Price $648
So i asked them to save them for me
But what i want to know which one is better?
Cheers
Overpriced depends on your needs. I have a NUC and prefer to use with a large separate monitor and a full size wireless keyboard. Laptop keyboards are crap for extended periods and having a separate monitor is much better for my posture. Attaching a laptop would take up a silly amount of space on my desk. Due to the size of my NUC it is almost hidden on my desk.
edfoo, Although you are correct, No need to brag. That was a rare clearance deal that only a few people were able to get, and otherwise rarely seen. For what it counts, I also got a Dell Inspiron 3520 with i3 2.4 GHz and Windows 8, but we should both feel lucky, not make others feel bad for missing out. Some people get free i5 or i7 laptops as a gift, that makes every other computer bargain seem overpriced.
I'd use with openelec so I wouldn't care :)
where is the outlet?
From their Live Chat:
Jason:
Paypal 2% surcharge, why?
Welcome Jason! Your request has been directed to the Pre Sales Enquiries department. Please wait for our operator to answer your call.
Call accepted by operator Louise. Currently in room: Louise, Jason.
Louise:
Hi Jason,
This is a charge that's passed onto us from PayPal, and given our margins we cannot absorb this. Larger companies such as say Harvey Norman, JBHifi, etc, can absorb the 2% on CCs/PayPals, as their margins are larger in general
Louise:
However we cannot
Louise:
That is why there is a 2% transaction fee
Jason:
https://www.paypal.com/au/webapps/mpp/ua/useragreement-full
Jason:
User Agreement for PayPal Services
Obligations when receiving funds
11.2 If you receive funds through our Services you must:
c. Not impose a surcharge or any other fee for accepting our Services as a payment method.
Jason:
I would have to disagree
Louise:
You are more than welcome to disagree, however that is our policy, as well as many many other online IT stores. PCCG for example impose the same fee.
Already done.
I do. By the rules surprisingly, which isn't that difficult. You just read them, and then act in line with them.
i think the issue is they are forcing people to pay with paypal.
build it into the price
It depends though, there is 2 ways of looking at it.
They can however earn more money from you if they built in the transaction fees into all their prices. However it will be unfair for the people who want to avoid them.
I rather them charge the transaction fee and let me decide if I want to pay for that extra overhead. Which I often just choose direct deposit, eftpos or cash.
@lplau: But this deal requires paypal checkout. If it wasn't profitable for them, why insist upon it?
Yes this might be true but pccasegear doesnt force you to pay with paypal.
lol its 2% they could have easily built it into the price, which I guess they should do that if they are telling you to pay via Paypal.
Look at it this way, no matter how they do it, you will still be paying that 2% it just depends on if it is part of the costs or called a "fee".
People complain about so small things, either way they will get it, so get over it and buy it if its a bargain, if it isn't a bargain anymore because of that 2% fee then don't buy.
Show proof of another place which is cheaper then neg this deal for not being a bargain because their 2% fee makes it more expensive than their competitors.
You've hit the issue on the head. Why not advertise it as $142.79? No dodginess then, and it's all done.
If a retailer is willing to act dodgy on something as little as $2.80, I'd hate to think how you'd go when you have a more serious issue.
Doing dodgy's to make your price appear lower than it is is bad business practice, notice no-one has had a crack at bcdad for posting it. And even at $142.79 it would still be a good price, so why try and hide it?
My understand was you could not apply a fee for using PayPal - that you would not apply to other fee options. So if they apply the same 2% to other payment methods then PayPal is not at a disadvantage as a payment option then they are fine with it.
Yeah, it's just doing this pseudo 2% markup to look more attractive on the price front. Shifty.
For people who want to know why these are probably so cheap right now - http://intelnuc.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/intel-updates-baytra…
I have one running OpenElec serving video files from a NAS. I have an SSD in it with marginal performance increase from a standard 2.5 HD. If you want to run this as a player like I do go for it, it's been great.
I have the same setup, running clean and clear here, too. OpenElec, Harmony remote, N54L server on the backend hosting the files. The chipset issues are blown out of proportion.
Do you know if you can run OpenElec XBMC on this from a USB key and not have a SSD/HDD?
I am pretty sure I have read that you can, but haven't tried it myself.
This processor has significant architectural issues. More than simple BIOS updates can fix. It was discontinued soon after it was released and to my knowledge the replacement still not been released for production and may be leapfrogged.
Its cheap sure, but it's a lemon. It will cost you time and frustration.
I bought one which I plan to use as a FTP Server, it haven't had any issues with it yet after the new bios upgrade and driver updates.
Yes works OK in some applications but has flaws and inconsistent behaviour in others. Intel just go silent when questioned about certain specific issues with this unit. If you search the Intel blog/ community group whatever it is called you can see more on this. Can't link right now am mobile.
Maybe if you run a full blown OS… Maybe. But I've had zero issues with it running Openelec.
After BIOS updates, the one I have at home is running OpenElec perfectly (aside from bluetooth, which I don't really use), and the one I set up for my mother with windows 8.1 is also working perfectly, and was painless to install on. Admittedly, she doesn't exactly drive it hard (email, web browsing….umm….she has LibreOffice installed but I don't think she's used it yet).
Do they use normal desktop or laptop RAM?
they use the new DDR3 SODIMM standard, called DDR3L. It is laptop ram but a newer standard. You cannot use the standard DDR3 SODIMM.
Must be latest 1.35v laptop DDR3 type. Note: single slot on this unit.
Is this worth it? How much does it cost to build something like this yourself?
the selling point is size.
if you dont care about size, then you can get a lot more flexiblity for a little bit more $.
if you do care about size, you can't build something like yourself.
Yeah, I saw a similar build on whirlpool just a few minutes ago.
http://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/rmp_sg_whirlpoolpcs_sff_configs
Base Unit: Intel DN2820FYKH NUC Barebone Kit $199 <—— N2820.
;-(
Oh wait, that is the same product. lol. Silly me.
Note to self, don't score own-goal.
All i need is some ram and SSD/HDD to get this thing running?
plus an operating system.
RAM definitely. For some linux build you can even run it on USB key.
And an OS.
AFAIK, the bugs in the processor emerge with USB and Linux. It's still a pretty neat solution and I think it's FANLESS! Built-in IR receiver too! I'd say it was perfect as an XMBC or similar box. But the tighta$$ in me says wait a little longer for the price to drop sub $100. :-)
Plus a monitor or TV.
you need wall power as well
Not sure if joking. Some older NUC models did not include a power supply. This one does.
if it was intel they all came with a brick, but not that power cord to go from power shocket to the brick, what is dumb was there is some battery powered intel tune thingy when one open the box for the first time… they would better spent the money to do that box design on the cord!!!!
@jackau: oh, my bad. I thought when people were complaining about the cord missing it was the entire power supply. But yeah, complete face palm effort from Intel.
I reckon it's still good value for this price. It's bloody amazing how cheap technology is getting.
why would any one with no spare parts laying around want one of these?
The Ram is the low voltage type, not that you can pull one off your old laptop. 4GB cost 60
then you need one of the mini wifi cards if you want wifi 20
then there is the SSD whether it was Msata or SATA3 which cost another 80 for 128
Finally Win 8 licence… that is 70 to 80 depends on where u grab them!!!
Together you get
140+ 20+ 60 + 80 + 80 = 380!!!
Then trow in 2 hour of installation and driver fun, it ain't for every body!
8 inch windows tablets are under 300 comes with full win 8 licence with office, similar capability CPU only less ram!
This model comes with the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth card. You can also put a standard 2.5" HDD in it if you want lots of storage. This model is not mSATA.
But I agree, it is certainly not for everyone.
it comes with wifi
you only need a single sodimm, a 7mm hdd or ssd and an o/s which ubuntu or mint could suffice
of course you also need kbd mouse lcd and the eyes in your head as the ability to read a manifest helps
I spent 210 for an older gen i3, cause I got lots of parts from old laptops lying around, including 64GB M-Sata cards, basically that was a huge bargain. The CPU on this can only do office work, it would struggle to handle some big PC software.
Again, I stress that the CPU inside this model isn't any power horse at all, hence I completely avoid it.
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Celeron+N2820+…
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Atom+Z3740+%40…
I would save on Windows 8 and Office licence if I get a 8 inch tablet and use external monitor on it for office work.
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=Intel+Celeron…
performance is like a e2180 which IMO doesnt work that well in windows 7
it actually fits up to 9.5mm HD's - with no mount screws, so if you use a 7mm drive, you may want to put something above to keep the drive fully secure. With that said I've been noticing at lot of 7mm ssd's coming with extra 2.5mm plastic things with adhesive on them to change the size back up to 9.5mm.
And yes, can confirm wifi is included, but only N - not ac.
size does not matter to me, so a cheap laptop seems better option.
NUC case may be small by itself, but when you add in a monitor, a keyboard and a mouse, then a laptop is smaller and more portable.
the nuc only works in certain situations… you want to use it with a large lcd tv or you already have a lcd and mouse kbd and want a space tight little pc
in many cases you're better off with an itx or even uatx box
I have one of these and it's pretty awesome. You just need RAM and a HDD to get up and running.
Haven't encountered any of these issues that people are basing their 'lemon' claims on.
Linux/openelec is incredibly easy to get up and running as well, so Windows is not a necessity.
if you are an expert, these kits are pretty good, clearly designed by engineers for engineer minded, not by the marketing department :p
We have about 50 of these units being used primary for film and video playback and from personal experience of spending a long time on them, I can confirm the following:
This model includes a mini-PCI wifi/bluetooth card.
Unlike some other NUC models it does not have a mSATA slot, but does have a SATA port and a micro SATA power port - which are both hooked up to a bracket for a 9.5mm HDD (or SSD). There no mounting screws for the HD (it slides in), so if you're using 7mm drives and want it extra secure, then you'll ned to put something 2.5mm in with the drive (a lot of the 7mm drives ship with this).
You need specific 3.5v DIMMs which is a little annoying, but as long as you know it up front and buy the correct ones then it is OK.
Hardware and UEFI/bios issues: These were a bit of a nightmare and I've spent countless hours messing around truing to get them to work - the good news is that the latest firmware version seems to fix everything up (I feel like billing intel for all the wasted time though….).
The annoying this is the the bios version that is most likely factory installed on these boxes looks to be the same version as what you would download, - except it isn't so download it anyway, it will be newer - and will fix things.
I've also found that secure boot gets in the way if you plan on cloning or imaging drives, but you can switch back to legacy mode and then it works.
We have not experienced any of the hardware issues reported (since latest firmware) - and we're running a lot of machines. This may be down to our specific use of them (eg. we don't ever need to use USB3 - which was one of the earlier issues).
We primarily use Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Desktop on these and it works incredibly well. No additional drivers were required - which is nice.
We run most our our apps in Chrome, and this works very well (firefox feels a bit slow on these).
It plays back 1080p video incredibly well considering. However this only works if you're using the GPU to do the decoding/processing.
Chrome by default doesn't but you can set a flag which enables it and then it all works well.
Other video apps will need to be able to use the Intel HD GPU - which most should.
We have a bunch of these running as video servers too (Ubuntu 14.04 LTS server), with 2TB drives - and they work well and enough to saturate their gigabit LAN connections serving HD video to lots of clients.
We've run windows 8.1 on it as well for a few machines (mainly to test out of interest) and for business level use (web apps and a bit of office) it works well, but anything beyond that and you realise that you're on a celeron. This would be great for a lot of business environments where there are quite low CPU specify tasks (eg. POS).
For windows you need to download a ~100mb driver pack from intel and install them one by one - but only takes around 20 mins).
- And a lot of them aren't required.
I'd recommend Windows 8.1, they are lots of reported issues with windows 7 and some with windows 8.
They are physically very durable as well. We've pulled them apart and put them back together heaps of times and are yet to kill one. We've had these travelling all around the world in hand luggage (at one point I got 24 of them in a single carry on to the UK…!).
The last point is they use next to no power. Using our power meter, running a SSD based system using Ubuntu, they typically idle at 4-5watts, use 7 watts with normal usage and then this maxes up to 11 watts when we do 1080p video or something similar.
If you're looking to get a cheap computer to do everyday web, work, youtube, gaming, then I'd say this probably won't be fast enough, however, for a lot of specific applications (both work and personal), they work really well - especially for $139.
Both of mine came with hard drive mounting screws in the bag with the vesa mount screws…
I'm probably wrong on that then and it would make sense for them to have mount screws. - thanks for clarifying that salem.
yeah, you surely had a lot of 'fun' with them, I spent hours playing with the 3217 model, (twice the cpu power of this one) I got for 210, excellent system with that price in expert hands :)
if the thicker 4010U model is under 300 it is a bargain which allow more USB 3 ports Dual hard drive, 16GB ram, can basically run a server for web!
Great review. Thanks.
You said that it plays back 1080p video quite well when using the GPU for decoding. Based on what you've experienced, do you think this thing would be suitable or capable of performing game streaming for something like Valve Steam In-Home Streaming?
Link to Valve Steam In-Home Streaming: http://store.steampowered.com/streaming/
Thanks for your review. Do you know if this will do 1080p 3D including ISO files?
How much RAM are you using for your film and video playback needs? Can you get away with 4GB?
Cheers
It will do 1080p half SBS (which it just sees as a standard 1080p file - and its up to the TV or projector to work with it - which most will), but it won't do proper full SBS or frame packed 3D like you'd get get from blu-ray players and ISOs.
4GB is more than enough for video. We've had them running fine with 2GB (but that was with Ubuntu)
And any chance you tried to playback 4K video, assume that's a no go? I realise that this unit only has HDMI 1.4 and thus does 1080p but curious if the cpu can decode
No-go unfortunately. The CPU can't event decode 1080p nicely (it has to use the GPU).
My quad core i7 MacBook Pro retina sometimes struggles with 4k CPU decoding (in HVEC at least) - a celeron is not even going to get close.
We are looking for a solution to this though, as we want to start getting 4k on small boxes without dedicated GPU's.
It's going to require wider acceptance of (HVEC - h.265) decoding and the larger 4k resolutions with 60hz.
Intel will probably take a while with this, but it may be in within 1-2 generations…? I need to do some more research on that.
Arm on the other hand has a very strong roadmap for bringing in 4k with HVEC into their lowed integrated GPUs fairly quickly, so I'd expect to see a bit of a proliferation of arm devices starting to be capable of this over the next year or so.
Anyway, out of all that, no not suitable for 4k.
Thanks for your detailed responses, most helpful.
I was thinking about getting a different brand of RAM other than Kingston.
Apparently you need to look for PC3L RAM which is 1.35v, but this isn't enough as some sticks are not recognised. (See Below)
I noticed that Peter Haas on Amazon has mentioned:
Units are shipped with BIOS 0013 (older stock) or BIOS 0015 (newer stock).
At 0013 and possibly 0015, MOST PC3L RAM sticks are recognized as having zero GB (0 GB) capacity. You MAY have the best luck with a small stick which is marked PC3L-12800S or PC3L-10660S or PC3L-6400S.
….
Once you have the machine recognizing the RAM, the next challenge is to update to BIOS 0034.
(So apparently not every type of RAM is able to be recognised. Some will come up as zero memory. Does anyone know if any other brands of RAM are known to work with the NUC?)
http://www.mwave.com.au/help/faq/view/24
https://www.paypal.com/au/webapps/mpp/ua/useragreement-full