Asus ASUS NUC 15 Pro Slim Barebone Kit Review

The ASUS NUC 15 Pro Slim is a sleek, ultra-compact barebones PC. It's fantastic for basic work and has future-proof Wi-Fi 7 and Thunderbolt 4 ports. But you must add your own RAM and storage, and it's not for gaming. Worth it only if you really need that tiny form factor.

The ASUS NUC 15 Pro Slim is a barebones kit, which means you're buying the shell, the motherboard, and the processor. You'll need to add your own RAM and storage before it'll even boot. That's the whole point: you get a tiny, modern PC chassis and can pick your own memory and SSD. It's powered by Intel's Core Ultra 5 225H, a 14-core chip with integrated Arc graphics, and it's absolutely loaded with modern ports like Thunderbolt 4 and Wi-Fi 7. This isn't a plug-and-play desktop; it's a project for someone who wants a specific, compact form factor.

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225H lands in the 57th percentile for CPU performance in our database, which is solid for general productivity. It'll handle office work, web browsing, and light creative tasks without breaking a sweat. The integrated Intel Arc graphics are a step up from older Intel graphics, but they're still integrated graphics. Our score puts it in the 43rd percentile for GPU power, which means it's fine for a second monitor and maybe some very old games, but that's it. Don't expect to game on this thing.

At around $517 for the barebones kit, the value proposition is a bit tricky. You're paying a premium for the ultra-compact form factor and the latest connectivity. Once you add 16GB of DDR5 RAM and a 1TB NVMe SSD, you're looking at a total system cost of roughly $700-$750. For that price, you could buy a pre-built mini PC with similar specs. So the value is only there if you specifically want this exact chassis or need to reuse components you already own.

This sits in a weird spot. It's not a gaming PC like the HP Omen or Corsair Vengeance towers, which have dedicated GPUs. Compared to other mini PCs, it's more modern than most with its Wi-Fi 7 and PCIe 5.0 slot, but you have to build it yourself. A pre-built mini PC from Beelink or Minisforum at a similar total price might give you a more powerful AMD Ryzen APU with better integrated graphics for light gaming. The NUC 15 Pro Slim's main advantage is its ASUS build quality and that killer port selection.

Skip this if you want a PC that works right out of the box. Also, hard pass if you need any kind of gaming or GPU-accelerated performance. If your budget is tight, you can likely find a pre-built mini PC with similar specs for less total money than this kit plus components.

Buy this if you're a tech-savvy user who needs an ultra-compact, clean-looking desktop for basic tasks and values having the latest ports like Thunderbolt 4. It's perfect for a home office setup, a digital signage box, or a living room media PC where you want zero cable clutter. Just be ready to install your own RAM and storage.