Updated: New, more affordable NUC systems arrive on Amazon for pre-order

By Chris Stobing Published June 29, 2015

Update 6/29/2015 7:20AM: The Braswell NUCs have appeared on Amazon for pre-order. The NUC5CPYH with Celeron processor is $130, while the NUC5PPYH with Pentium processor is $180. However, availability for the less expensive model quickly changed to unavailable, and the more expensive NUC will allegedly take up to two months to ship.

According to a spec sheet that’s live on Intel’s website, a new line of NUC (Next Unit of Computing) PCs releasing this June will feature the company’s refresh of the Bay Trail CPU architecture, known as Braswell.

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Braswell (not to be confused with Intel’s 5th-generation Core architecture, Broadwell), is the next evolution in the company’s line of Bay Trail CPUs designed for ultra-mobile applications.

The chips are low-power, low-heat processors made with the express purpose of fitting as much capability as possible in tight spaces that don’t have much extra room to spare.

The NUC5CPYH will feature a 1.6GHz Celeron N3050 dual-core processor, while the slightly beefier NUC5PPYH will stock itself with a 1.6 GHz Pentium N3700 quad-core chip.

Both 64-bit processors are built on the new 14nm fabrication process, and each model will be able to support upwards of 8GB of available RAM. Display capabilities will be handled by Intel HD graphics, clocked to 320MHz for the Celeron variant, while the Pentium will pump things up to 400MHz with possible burst speeds of 700MHz for any graphically intensive applications you might want to run on the mini-PC. However, these systems won’t support 4K like the current Core-powered NUCs.

Like their more powerful cousins, these entry-level NUCs will have 802.11ac/Bluetooth 4.0 combo, four USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI out, audio out, an RJ45 Ethernet port, and an SD card reader. Storage will be provided by a solid state drive that users must buy and install separately.

Both Intel’s i5 and i7 NUC variants scored highly with our r eviewers. We hope these new models will be just as impressive, but given their hardware we expect them to fall far behind in performance benchmarks.

Intel says the base Celeron model will retail starting at just $140, while the Pentium flavor will run around $180 when they go on sale next month.

Self-proclaimed geek and nerd extraordinaire, Chris Stobing is a writer and blogger from the heart of Silicon Valley. Raised…

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