Intel's Skull Canyon NUC is Official: $650, Shipping In May
by Ganesh T S on March 16, 2016 10:00 PM EST
Back in January, Intel had provided us with information about the Skull Canyon NUC based on a Skylake H-Series CPU(with Iris Pro Graphics). Today, at GDC 2016, Intel made the specifications official. Pricing and availability information was also provided.
The key aspect that was not revealed before was the dimensions. The Skull Canyon NUC (NUC6i7KYK) will come in at 216mm x 116mm x 23mm, with the volume coming in at just 0.69L. For comparison, the Skylake NUC6i5SYK (non-2.5" drive version) comes in at 115mm x 111mm x 32mm (0.41L), while NUC6i5SYH (2.5" drive bay-enabled) one is 115mm x 111mm x 48mm (0.61L). The rest of the specifications are outlined in the table below:
| Intel NUC6i7KYK (Skull Canyon) Specifications | |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-6770HQ Skylake, 4C/8T, 2.6 GHz (Turbo to 3.5 GHz), 14nm, 6MB L2, 45W TDP |
| Memory | 2x DDR4 SO-DIMM (2133+ MHz) |
| Graphics | Intel Iris Pro Graphics 580 (Skylake-H GT4+4e with 128MB eDRAM) |
| Disk Drive(s) | Dual M.2 (SATA3 / PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe / AHCI SSDs) |
| Networking | Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260 (2x2 802.11ac - 867 Mbps + Bluetooth 4.2) Intel I-219V Gigabit Ethernet |
| Audio | 3.5mm Audio Jack (Headphone / Microphone) Capable of 5.1/7.1 digital output with HD audio bitstreaming (HDMI) |
| Miscellaneous I/O Ports | 1x Thunderbolt 3 / USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C 4x USB 3.0 (incl. one charging port) 1x SDXC (UHS-I) 1x HDMI 2.0, 1x mini-DP 1.2 Consumer Infrared Sensor |
| Operating System | Barebones |
| Pricing | $650 (Barebones) $999 (Typical build with 16GB DDR4, 256GB SSD and Windows 10) |
| Fact Sheet | Intel NUC6i7KYK GDC Fact Sheet (PDF) |
Note that the HDMI 2.0 output is enabled by an external LSPcon (not Alpine Ridge). So, we will definitely have 4Kp60 output with HDCP 2.2 support over the HDMI port, making it suitable as a future-proof HTPC platform. From a gaming perspective, the availability of Thunderbolt 3 enables users to add an external graphics dock like the recently announced Razer Core eGFX module. Note that any external GPU will be able to talk to the CPU only over a PCIe 3.0 x4 link (which should be plenty in almost all cases).
The Skull Canyon NUC will be available to pre-order on Newegg next month, with shipping in May 2016.
Source: Intel
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bobajot - Thursday, March 17, 2016 - link
I've an i7 NUC which doesn't even handle full hd without a very noisy fan. That's on web pages. Will this be any better? I like the small desktops but will I be able to use this with4K?jwcalla - Thursday, March 17, 2016 - link
Intel seems to think that we all swim in gold coins like Scrooge McDuck.gigahertz20 - Thursday, March 17, 2016 - link
This looks interesting, but it's going to be expensive.-$650 for the Intel Skull Canyon Nuc
-$180 for a Samsung 950 pro m2 ssd
-$100 for 16GB memory
-$100 for Windows 10 x64
-$500 for the Razer Core eGFX module
-$250 for a video card to throw into the Razer Core
You're talking about around $1,800 for everything....ouch! If you're going to be doing any serious gaming may as well just buy a full on desktop. The price of the Razer Core eGFX module needs to come down, $500 is way too much just for a module.
cm2187 - Friday, March 18, 2016 - link
I don't understand the point of buying a mini pc if you need to stack it on a gigantic external graphic card container. Why not buy a full tower then?Murloc - Sunday, March 20, 2016 - link
so now you're giong to add the Core and video card to every SFF or laptop computer out there and then claim the price is outrageous?If you want hardcore gaming, you buy a desktop.
Also the core is a new thing prices will come down if this stuff is finally mature.
The point of these things are situations where you do NOT want a desktop. Get it?
Vlad_Da_Great - Tuesday, May 10, 2016 - link
Or $0 Windows, you get Windows 7 thru a torrent and after that you do Win 10 free upgrade. (after July MSFT will be asking for $129, i cant stand them.)Graphics are monsters, so no Razor, 16GB memory is $50(2x8 DDR4). Why SAMS, you get Intel for $90 240GB, plenty of room and you can buy $50 1TB extra, or if you are slick rick, you can get unlimited SSD disk space online thru hosting for $24/per year.Valantar - Friday, March 18, 2016 - link
This could be the basis for a fun modular/DIY laptop - and if Intel sticks with the same form factor for a few generations, it would be upgradeable too. All you'd need to add is a chassis with a display, keyboard, touchpad, and battery, and pass-through connectors for either front or rear connectivity. Heck, it could even connect a dGPU through TB3 :POn a more serious note, I'd love to see someone design an external GPU case tailored to stack with this (VESA mount should allow for some kind of interlocking, and a short TB3 cable can provide both power and data for the GPU. Should be able to fit most mobile GPUs too, right? After all, MXM modules would fit in both directions inside a 216x116mm chassis, and the chassis designer would be free to set thickness to match cooling needs.
jhoff80 - Friday, March 18, 2016 - link
Damn, I didn't think of that before now, but a GTX980 desktop MXM card in a Thunderbolt 3 case would be really exciting.intrasight - Tuesday, March 22, 2016 - link
NUC lids, including this one, can be replaced. I assume that someone will make a lid for this one that contains a GPU. Perhaps with a GeForce 940MX.pseudoid - Saturday, March 19, 2016 - link
Let's review: AirPlay and ChromeCast seem to work flawless in 2016, yet the great minds at Intel are still in denial about MiriCast/WiDi quagmire! They could have provided the perfect HTPC solution with the SkullCanyonNUC but noooooooooooooooooooooo!