Bigger is not always better, and in an ever-evolving world where portability is the current craze, such as the rise of handheld gaming devices, ASUS is joining in on the fun with the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI mini PC.

The ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is a compelling package that offers all the essential features and functions that one might expect from a full-sized PC despite its small form factor. Its unassuming pint-sized footprint is a godsend for minimalist setups and tight spaces, eliminating all the fluff and keeping things simple and clean.

ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI Review

The first thing you notice with the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is its size. Measuring just 130 x 130 x 34 mm and weighing around 500 grams, the NUC 14 Pro AI is exceptionally compact and light. An iPhone 16 Pro Max weighs around 227 grams, so you can imagine how light this mini PC is, just a bit heavier than carrying two phones around.

Its matte black plastic casing keeps things sleek and stylish, which sadly retains oily thumbprints. This is certainly a choice, and probably the only design aspect I would have wanted changed, but otherwise, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI looks fantastic.

The top part features a small logo and a fingerprint sensor, while the side is equipped with vents that help keep things cool. Rubber legs on the bottom keep it firmly in place.

Unless you’re placing the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI on your desk beside your monitor, there’s almost no use case for the copilot button, which makes the decision to put it there quite baffling. Still, if that’s your jam, the button is there for you to use.

Despite its slim form factor, one of the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI greatest strengths is its bevy of connectivity ports, which would put larger laptops to shame.

• Front
  • 1 x Power button
  • 1 x Copilot button
  • 1 x Thunderbolt 4 Type-C w/ DisplayPort 2.1
  • 2 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A
  • 1x 3.5mm Headset Jack
• Back
  • 1 x Thunderbolt 4 Type-C w/ DisplayPort 2.1
  • 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A
  • 1 x HDMI 2.1 (TMDS)
  • 1 x 2.5G RJ45 LAN
  • 1 x DC-in

That’s a lot, and even without going into the specific use cases of each port, you can see that the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is versatile enough to handle most customer needs, even multi-monitor setups.

Topping it off are Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 support, which can easily meet any wireless requirements and are pretty much future-proof. If anything, an SD card reader would have been a great addition, but that’s a minor nitpick.

One cool feature of the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is that it can be easily opened from the bottom with just a flick of a switch and a pull on the tab. While there’s only really one benefit to opening this up, it’s great to see that doing so can be quick and painless.

The ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI unit we received came preinstalled with an SSD, which can be changed via the bottom panel. It supports M.2 2280 NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 SSDs, ranging from 256GB to 4TB, but only one slot is available for an SSD, which is a limitation we wish were addressed with a second slot.

One more downside is that you’ll still need to power this up, and similar to laptops, it comes with a relatively large 120W power brick that’s almost the same size as the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI. It weighs about half as much as the mini PC, so the whole package is still light if you want to be bringing things around.

Moving on, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI comes equipped with the following:

• Intel Core Ultra 9 Processor 288V, cTDP 30W
• 32GB LPDDR5x-8533 (Soldered)

Due to its form factor, it is unreasonable to expect the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI to come equipped with top-of-the-line specifications. While it cannot handle the most demanding tasks or play the heaviest games in the market, it is still rather impressive for its size.

The ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is primarily designed for work and productivity tasks rather than gaming. It handles day-to-day tasks like browsing, image editing, and some light video editing rather well, and for most of the things you would typically do on a PC, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is surprisingly capable. RAM is not upgradeable, though, but with 32GB installed, it’ll be more than enough for most tasks. Still, it’s sad that you can’t upgrade the memory at all, unlike the SSD, and the ability to boost it to 64GB would have been fantastic.

That said, and as the name suggests, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is built with AI capabilities in mind. It is tagged as a Copilot+ PC and is equipped with an NPU (Neural Processing Unit) of up to 48 TOPS, allowing it to run AI processes and tasks without needing an internet connection. Whether its usefulness matters to you will vary, but this is a great addition that would assist with specific functions if used appropriately.

AI is quite the buzzword these days, so you can expect most, if not all, devices to include such capabilities moving forward.

Gaming is not a strength of the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI, but if you were looking for a gaming PC, this would not have been your first choice anyway. That said, you can get away with some form of gaming on this mini PC, mostly limited to titles that do not require top-of-the-line specs.

That’s not to say it cannot run AAA titles, because it can, but you’ll have to live with lower settings (Mid to Low at 720p-1080p), depending on the title of choice. Titles like Valorant, Counter-Strike, Marvel Rivals, and MOBAs like League of Legends are more than playable with steady frames that reach over 90fps for the most part, so if you’re into titles like these with friends, then the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI can handle it.

That said, venturing into Cyberpunk 2077 or Black Myth Wukong territory will require lowering various settings, which may drastically hinder enjoyment due to the sacrifice in visual fidelity. Still, you can use it for some high-end gaming here and there, and while frames tend to fluctuate, playing titles like Space Marine 2 or Baldur’s Gate 3 on this tiny device is undoubtedly impressive, even with toned-down settings. In fact, gaming at 1080p with low to medium settings remains a reasonable request for this machine.

Again, it’s all a matter of perspective. For a device as small as this, expecting it to handle all your AAA titles at max settings is absurd, but within reasonable bounds, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is truly capable.

Overall, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is an excellent option for those looking for a piece of technology with a relatively compact footprint. Not everyone can afford shelf space for full-sized PCs, and if you’re set on specific tasks that do not involve heavy AAA gaming or intense video editing, the ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is worth a look.

The ASUS NUC 14 Pro AI is now available for order.