On the heels of its decision to withdraw from the desktop and laptop PC business announced on July 11, Intel issued five product discontinuance notices regarding about a dozen NUC systems in just one month. While tens of Intel’s own NUCs will be available for a while, several NUC models have now gone to end-of-life (EOL) status.
Most recently, Intel discontinued its NUC 12 Enthusiast kits and barebones systems with its Core i7-12700H processor and Arc A770M graphics. Intel also EOLed its NUC P14E Laptop Element notebook chassis meant to be integrated with NUC 11 Compute Element, and select NUC X15 Laptop Kits. The last product discontinuance shipment date for these items is September 8, 2023, so expect them to go extinct from retail by the end of the year or by early 2024.
In addition, Intel also issued product discontinuance notices for its NUC 11 v5 Compute Element and NUC 11 v7 Compute Element boards. The company will ship the final units of these SKUs on September 29, 2023.
Intel currently offers three categories of client NUC systems: consumer-focused compact PCs, business and enterprise-oriented machines with remote management capabilities, and high-end systems for gamers and professionals. While Intel’s NUCs have been competitive against other PC brands, supporting a wide variety of desktops and laptops is challenging for Intel, whose main focus is lucrative chip manufacturing. As a result, the company decided to discontinue its PC business and pass the baton to its partners, such as Asus.
While Intel EOLed dozens of NUC offerings in just a few weeks, many NUC SKUs will remain available for quite a while. Furthermore, due to agreements with customers, the company will likely keep supplying its specialized versions of NUCs for some time.