ASUS NUC 16 Pro

Updated on June 24, 2026

The ASUS NUC 16 Pro represents the next generation of Intel’s iconic NUC mini PC line, now powered by the Panther Lake architecture. Available in configurations ranging from the Core Ultra 5 335 up to the flagship Core Ultra X9 388H with integrated Intel Arc B390 graphics, it delivers serious computing power in a compact 0.7-liter chassis. The system supports WiFi 7, dual 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet, Thunderbolt 4, and PCIe Gen 5 storage, making it one of the most connectivity-rich mini PCs on the market. ASUS has also packed in AI acceleration with up to 180 platform TOPS across the CPU, GPU, and NPU, positioning the NUC 16 Pro as a Copilot+ PC ready for emerging AI workloads. Whether you need a compact workstation for professional tasks, an AI development platform, or a powerful home office machine, the NUC 16 Pro targets users who refuse to compromise on performance despite limited desk space.

Pros and Cons of the ASUS NUC 16 Pro

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ASUS NUC 16 Pro Comparison Chart

	ASUS NUC 16 Pro	ASUS NUC 16 Pro	ASUS NUC 16 Pro	ASUS NUC 16 Pro	ASUS NUC 16 Pro
Price	List Price: $999.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $1,559.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $1,659.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $1,879.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...	List Price: $1,999.00 Amazon Prices: Loading prices...
Version	Barebone/Core Ultra 7 356H	16GB/512GB/Core Ultra 7 356H	16GB/1TB/Core Ultra 7 356H	32GB/1TB/Core Ultra 7 356H	32GB/2TB/Core Ultra 7 356H
Performance Rating	9.1	9.1	9.1	9.7	9.7
Operating System	No OS	No OS	No OS	No OS	No OS
Processor	Sixteen-core 1.90 Ghz (max 4.70 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 7 356H	Sixteen-core 1.90 Ghz (max 4.70 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 7 356H	Sixteen-core 1.90 Ghz (max 4.70 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 7 356H	Sixteen-core 1.90 Ghz (max 4.70 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 7 356H	Sixteen-core 1.90 Ghz (max 4.70 Ghz) Intel Core Ultra 7 356H
GPU	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics	Integrated Intel Arc graphics
RAM	0 GB DDR5, 2-channel (Up to 128GB DDR5-7200)	16 GB DDR5, 2-channel	16 GB DDR5, 2-channel	32 GB DDR5, 2-channel	32 GB DDR5, 2-channel
Internal Storage	0 GB None (Barebone)	512 GB NVMe SSD	1 TB NVMe SSD	1 TB NVMe SSD	2 TB NVMe SSD
Dimensions width x length x thickness	5.67 x 4.61 x 1.65 inches (144.02 x 117.09 x 41.91 mm)	5.67 x 4.61 x 1.65 inches (144.02 x 117.09 x 41.91 mm)	5.67 x 4.61 x 1.65 inches (144.02 x 117.09 x 41.91 mm)	5.67 x 4.61 x 1.65 inches (144.02 x 117.09 x 41.91 mm)	5.67 x 4.61 x 1.65 inches (144.02 x 117.09 x 41.91 mm)
Weight	2 lbs (0.91 kg)	2 lbs (0.91 kg)	2 lbs (0.91 kg)	2 lbs (0.91 kg)	2 lbs (0.91 kg)
WiFi	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)
Bluetooth	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0
Ethernet	2 Ethernet ports at 2.5 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 2.5 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 2.5 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 2.5 Gbps	2 Ethernet ports at 2.5 Gbps
HDMI	2 Full-Size HDMI Ports	2 Full-Size HDMI Ports	2 Full-Size HDMI Ports	2 Full-Size HDMI Ports	2 Full-Size HDMI Ports
DisplayPort	DP 2.1 via Thunderbolt 4	DP 2.1 via Thunderbolt 4	DP 2.1 via Thunderbolt 4	DP 2.1 via Thunderbolt 4	DP 2.1 via Thunderbolt 4
VGA	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports	No VGA Ports
USB Ports	1 USB 2.0, 3 USB 3, 1 USB-C 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x2, 3x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB-A 2.0, 2x Thunderbolt 4	1 USB 2.0, 3 USB 3, 1 USB-C 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x2, 3x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB-A 2.0, 2x Thunderbolt 4	1 USB 2.0, 3 USB 3, 1 USB-C 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x2, 3x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB-A 2.0, 2x Thunderbolt 4	1 USB 2.0, 3 USB 3, 1 USB-C 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x2, 3x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB-A 2.0, 2x Thunderbolt 4	1 USB 2.0, 3 USB 3, 1 USB-C 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x2, 3x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB-A 2.0, 2x Thunderbolt 4
Thunderbolt Ports	2	2	2	2	2
OCuLink	No	No	No	No	No
Internal SATA Ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports	No SATA ports
Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader	No Card Reader
Headphone Jack	none	none	none	none	none
Fanless	No	No	No	No	No
VESA Mount	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
In the Box	AC adapter with power cord, VESA bracket and screws, cable clip, warranty card	AC adapter with power cord, VESA bracket and screws, cable clip, warranty card	AC adapter with power cord, VESA bracket and screws, cable clip, warranty card	AC adapter with power cord, VESA bracket and screws, cable clip, warranty card	AC adapter with power cord, VESA bracket and screws, cable clip, warranty card
Expandability	Up to 128GB DDR5-7200 (2x CSO-DIMM). 2x M.2: PCIe 5.0 x4 + PCIe 4.0 x4. Tool-less chassis.	Up to 128GB DDR5-7200 (2x CSO-DIMM). 2x M.2: PCIe 5.0 x4 + PCIe 4.0 x4. Tool-less chassis.	Up to 128GB DDR5-7200 (2x CSO-DIMM). 2x M.2: PCIe 5.0 x4 + PCIe 4.0 x4. Tool-less chassis.	Up to 128GB DDR5-7200 (2x CSO-DIMM). 2x M.2: PCIe 5.0 x4 + PCIe 4.0 x4. Tool-less chassis.	Up to 128GB DDR5-7200 (2x CSO-DIMM). 2x M.2: PCIe 5.0 x4 + PCIe 4.0 x4. Tool-less chassis.

Detailed Insights into the ASUS NUC 16 Pro

The ASUS NUC 16 Pro measures 5.67 x 4.61 x 1.65 inches and weighs approximately 2.0 pounds, adopting a slightly larger footprint than the traditional 4x4 NUC form factor to accommodate the Panther Lake platform’s thermal requirements. The chassis retains the tool-less design that ASUS introduced with the NUC 14 Pro, allowing users to access internals without a screwdriver. The front panel houses a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x2 port running at 20Gbps alongside two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, while the rear panel provides two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two full-size HDMI outputs, dual 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports, and additional USB-A ports. ASUS pairs the platform with active cooling to sustain performance under prolonged workloads, a necessary design choice given how much sustained power a Panther Lake H-class chip can draw. Notably, the NUC 16 Pro lacks an analog headphone jack entirely, relying on digital audio output through HDMI or Thunderbolt.

The base configuration ships with the Intel Core Ultra 7 356H, a 16-core Panther Lake processor featuring four high-performance Cougar Cove P-cores boosting up to 4.7 GHz, eight efficient Darkmont E-cores, and four low-power E-cores. This processor scores approximately 32,113 on PassMark’s CPU Mark benchmark, placing it competitively among high-end mobile processors and representing a significant generational leap over the Core Ultra 7 155H found in the ASUS NUC 14 Pro. The flagship Core Ultra X9 388H variant pushes performance further with a 5.1 GHz boost clock and the integrated Intel Arc B390 GPU with 12 Xe cores. TechRadar reports that the Arc B390 gives the NUC 16 Pro enough headroom for modern 1080p gaming without a discrete GPU, though it falls short of AMD’s Radeon 8060S found in competing Ryzen AI Max+ 395 platforms.

Connectivity is a standout feature of the NUC 16 Pro, offering WiFi 7 (802.11be) with Bluetooth 6.0, dual Intel I226-V/LM 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet controllers, and two Thunderbolt 4 ports supporting DisplayPort 2.1 alt mode. The system can drive up to four 4K displays or two 8K displays simultaneously through its combined HDMI and Thunderbolt outputs. Storage expansion is handled by two M.2 2280 slots, with the primary slot supporting PCIe Gen 5 x4 for the fastest NVMe SSDs available and the secondary slot running at PCIe Gen 4 x4. Digital Trends notes that the listed configurations support up to 128GB of DDR5 memory across two slots, which is unusually high for a system this small.

Reviewer Insights on the ASUS NUC 16 Pro

The NUC 16 Pro launched at CES 2026, and most of the written coverage is still launch reporting rather than testing. Level1Techs is the exception: it put a retail unit through benchmarks, a BIOS tour, and Linux testing. Three pieces are worth reading before you buy.

Level1Techs

Level1Techs tested a different chip from the Core Ultra 7 356H in every configuration listed on this page: a 358H part with Intel’s Arc B390 graphics, 64GB of soldered LPDDR5-8533, and a 1TB Samsung NVMe drive. The verdict on the silicon is emphatic. “Panther Lake is probably one of the best CPUs that Intel has done in like three or four or five generations,” the review says, calling it very power efficient and very fast for what it is. The framing throughout is business hardware rather than a desktop replacement, because the line can be ordered with Intel vPro; “this is an actual business class machine.” That shapes how the review reads the graphics: “the B390 is easily the most impressive part of the platform because it is nice having GPU acceleration in a lot of business apps,” which matters more for how quickly everyday applications draw than for games. Gaming still gets tested, with Shadow of the Tomb Raider at “1080p high 70fps with 36 for our 1% lows” and a summary that you could play “some games on this, MOBAs, that sort of thing.”

Linux is where the review spends its enthusiasm. It tested Arch and Ubuntu 24.04 LTS and recommends a kernel 7 install (or the newer OEM kernel on the LTS release), noting that on kernel 6.19 sleep and resume did not seem to work quite right, while on kernel 7.0 sleep and wake were consistent on both distros. With that caveat, “it really is a first class Linux experience,” including working Wi-Fi 7 and an external RTX 6000 in a Thunderbolt enclosure that came up plug-and-play at the expected 40Gbit. Serviceability comes off well too: the bottom opens tool-less on a hinge, and the M.2 heat sink releases itself as you open it. Two cautions are worth carrying over. The review found one PCIe Gen 5 M.2 slot and one Gen 4, contradicting “some of the listings online, it says it’s dual Gen 5 M.2,” which matches the slot layout listed on this page. On memory, with RAM prices where they are, it calls 32GB “the sweet spot” and says it is “tough to recommend the 64 gig configuration” of the sort it was sent.

TechRadar

In its launch report, TechRadar’s Wayne Williams frames the NUC 16 Pro as a run at the fastest-mini-PC category on Intel’s new Panther Lake platform, focusing on the flagship X9 388H and its 180 TOPS of total AI compute (CPU plus GPU plus the NPU 5). On graphics, the writeup is measured: “The Arc B390 is impressive for an integrated solution, although it isn’t expected to outperform AMD’s Radeon 8060S iGPU found in the Ryzen AI Max+ 395.” The takeaway is that the B390 raises the bar for integrated graphics in a mini PC without matching AMD’s best, which keeps the NUC firmly in the light-gaming-and-creative-work tier rather than the discrete-GPU one.

Digital Trends

Digital Trends covered the US listing of the Core Ultra 7 356H barebone variant under the heading “serious hardware inside a tiny box.” It calls out the up-to-128GB DDR5 ceiling across two slots as unusually high for a system this small, and notes the two M.2 slots take up to 16TB of total storage (one PCIe Gen 5 x4, one PCIe Gen 4 x4). The piece is candid that this is a barebone unit listed at $999, so memory and storage are not included and the buyer supplies both.

Conclusion

The ASUS NUC 16 Pro delivers a compelling upgrade for users invested in the NUC ecosystem, bringing Panther Lake’s AI acceleration, WiFi 7, and PCIe Gen 5 storage to a compact form factor. The Core Ultra 7 356H barebone variant offers an excellent foundation for builders who want to customize their own memory and storage configuration, while the upcoming X9 388H model with Arc B390 graphics targets users who need both AI compute and reasonable gaming capabilities without a discrete GPU. Our overview of the Panther Lake NUCs and how the Arc B390 finally rivals discrete graphics puts this launch in context alongside the competing boxes.

That said, buyers who need a ready-to-use system may want to wait for pre-configured models to become available in the US market. Users primarily interested in raw GPU performance should also consider AMD-based alternatives like mini PCs with the Ryzen AI Max+ 395 and its Radeon 8060S integrated graphics. The lack of a headphone jack is also worth noting for users who rely on analog audio output.

For those comparing options, see our Mini PC Comparison Chart to find the best match for your needs.

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