MSI Cubi NUC 1UMG-012US Black 2025

With an 86th percentile port selection, this mini PC is a connectivity beast that can drive multiple displays with ease. But the performance story is strictly average, with CPU and RAM at the 51st percentile, and the integrated graphics are a complete disaster for gaming, scoring just 12.5 out of 100. Buy it for a clean desk setup and basic office work, and only if you find it priced around $980.

At the heart of the Cubi NUC is an Intel Core Ultra 5 125H, a 14-core chip that delivers exactly what you'd expect from a 51st percentile CPU: competent, but not thrilling. Paired with 16GB of DDR5 RAM, also a median performer, it chews through browser tabs, Office apps, and 4K video streaming without breaking a sweat. For its intended audience of office workers and digital signage operators, the performance is more than adequate. Just don't expect to render complex 3D models or compile massive codebases in record time.

The integrated Intel Graphics share system memory and land in the 47th percentile, which is a polite way of saying gaming is a complete non-starter. Our gaming score for this unit is a brutal 12.5 out of 100. You can play solitaire and maybe some older 2D indie titles, but anything remotely modern will be a slideshow. The 120W power supply tells you everything you need to know about the thermal and power headroom here: it's designed for efficiency, not frame rates.

Stacked against traditional desktops like the HP Omen 45L or the ASUS Republic of Gamers GM700TZ, the Cubi NUC isn't even playing the same sport. Those towers will obliterate it in any CPU or GPU-intensive task, but they also take up the space of a small suitcase. The more relevant fight is against other mini PCs. Here, the Cubi's 86th percentile port selection is a standout, trouncing most competitors in connectivity. The trade-off is raw power. A Dell Tower Plus will run circles around it for compute, but can't be VESA-mounted behind a monitor. You're choosing between a connectivity king that's just okay at computing, or a computing beast that's just okay at connecting.

Pricing on this unit is a complete mess, with a spread of $218,487 across different vendors. At the low end around $980, you're getting a fair deal for a Windows 11 Pro mini PC with a 1TB SSD and class-leading connectivity. At the high end, someone is clearly trying to sell you a bridge in Brooklyn along with it. Memory Express Inc. appears to have the most grounded listing, so that's where we'd point you. For a thousand bucks, the port selection and compact form factor offer decent value for a specific business niche, but a single cent more and you're in 'just buy a laptop' territory.

The MSI Cubi NUC 1UMG-012US is a pint-sized PC that punches above its weight class for connectivity, landing in the 86th percentile for port selection. You get a frankly ridiculous array of I/O including dual HDMI, Thunderbolt, and multiple USB-C and USB-A ports, all in a 0.54kg box you can hide behind a monitor. But don't let the 'Core Ultra' branding fool you into thinking this is a powerhouse. The CPU and RAM sit right at the 50th percentile mark, making this a solidly average performer for everyday tasks, not a workstation replacement.

Where this little machine really carves out a niche is as a space-saving office or digital signage driver. The 1TB NVMe SSD is snappy and capacious for a mini PC, and Windows 11 Pro is a welcome inclusion for business users. Just keep your expectations in check. The integrated Intel Graphics are firmly middle-of-the-pack, and our data shows reliability is a concern, sitting in the bottom third of all products. This is a purpose-built tool, not a do-it-all dynamo.

Gamers and content creators should run, not walk, away from this machine. The integrated graphics score of 12.5/100 is one of the worst we've seen for any modern task beyond displaying a desktop. If you need to render video, play games, or run any GPU-accelerated applications, this is the wrong tool. Even budget laptops with entry-level dedicated graphics will vastly outperform it. This is strictly a business and basic productivity machine, and anyone needing more compute should look at a compact desktop with a discrete GPU.

The MSI Cubi NUC 1UMG-012US is a hyper-specific tool that excels at one thing: being a tiny, well-connected hub for basic computing. If your workflow revolves around spreadsheets, video calls, and driving a couple of 4K displays in a clean, minimalist setup, this is a strong contender, provided you buy it at the sane end of its price spectrum. For anyone with even a hint of creative or gaming ambition, the abysmal graphics performance and middling CPU power make this a hard pass. It's a connectivity champion in search of a very specific, undemanding user.