MSI is no stranger when it comes to NUC PCs. The MSI Cubi NUC 1M is the company's latest generation of compact systems for home and office use. Rocking recent Intel mobile processors, plenty of RAM, and impressive storage options, the Cubi NUC 1M should have ample performance for work. What makes such a device worth considering for the office is the ability to mount it to the rear of a display, reducing desk space and the I/O is ample for connecting not only office equipment but also multiple networks with dual 2.5GbE ports.

As well as creating a decent mini PC, MSI is pushing the Cubi NUC 1M as an environmentally friendly 0.8L PC with a reported 42.9% post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic for the materials used and renewable energy source for the factory it was manufactured in. The green approach doesn't stop there as MSI also makes it possible to manage and view power draw within its Windows software. The power plan can be quickly changed, as well as fine-tuning how much power the laptop CPU should pull through its socket. In our testing, I found the MSI Cubi NUC 1M with an Intel Core 7 processor to be a good fit for work and even homelab use.

About this review: MSI supplied XDA with a Cubi NUC 1M for review but had no input ahead of publishing.

Price, specs, and availability

The MSI Cubi NUC 1M starts from $380 for an Intel Core 3 without RAM or storage. It's a barebones unit for aftermarket components. The Core 5 and Core 7 barebone systems cost $500 and $650, respectively. It's not a terrible price to pay but you will need to prepare yourself to spend more when factoring in DDR5 RAM and SSDs, especially from MSI. Inside our review sample is a 10-core chip with a maximum boost speed of 5.4 GHz, 16GB of DDR5-5600 RAM, and a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD. Wi-Fi 6E is present alongside Bluetooth 5.3 with plenty of USB ports to hook everything up to the system.

What I like

I appreciate the MSI Cubi NUC 1M design. It's a sleek cube with a small footprint, perfect for desk placement or installation on the rear of a VESA-compatible monitor. Regardless of where you place this PC, it will perform well with office applications and even some video editing if you don't mind slower rendering times compared to more power-hungry desktop CPUs. There are three storage slots inside the Cubi NUC 1M and replaceable RAM and Wi-Fi card. Gaining access to the internals is as simple as removing four screws, though this will void the impressive three-year warranty.

One of my favorite features of this PC is the optional power button, which can be connected to the device and the cable has considerable length to make it easier to turn on and off the system when it's installed out of reach.

For connectivity, you could attach up to four monitors to the Cubi NUC 1M. It has two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, four USB-A 3.2 Gen2 ports (two of them front-facing with an audio combo jack), two HDMI ports, and two 2.5GbE ports. The dual 2.5Gb LAN is interesting as it opens up more user cases for the NUC. Remove Windows in favor of TrueNAS SCALE, Ubuntu Server, or even Pfsense and you can create a powerful platform for running homelab instances. With the included VESA bracket, the Cubi NUC 1M can be installed to the rear of a monitor and an optional power button can be used. MSI just about thought of everything.

The processor performed respectively throughout our suite of benchmark tests. A CPU-Z score of 795 and 4,224 for single and multi-core performance is pretty good considering the size of this device. Compared to some of the competition, namely some mini PCs from Minisforum, the Intel Core 7 150U isn't able to keep up with the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and AMD Ryzen 7 8700G, but it's not designed to. The MSI Cubi NUC 1M is a low-power PC designed for business and productivity. If you have a home office setup and need a compact PC that lets you perform all manner of tasks, the Cubi NUC 1M is the system for you.

MSI uses the Western Digital SN250 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD and is rated for around 5,000 MB/s. Our testing showed the SSD comfortably hitting just shy of the maximum speed for reading data and the write scores weren't too far off what WD states in marketing and spec sheets. The integrated heatsink for the SSD is a nice touch as PCIe 4.0 drives can produce considerable heat and the active cooling inside the NUC is limited due to space and PCB layout. Throw a 2.5-inch SSD inside the system (as I did for this review) and more heat is added to the mix with fewer vents to access cool air.

To help with the environmental impact of building and running the Cubi NUC, MSI provides some controls within its MSI Center software for managing CPU power draw and seeing how much the system has pulled from the power outlet with a history graph. It's a good addition to the office, especially if you have a bunch of these running for eight or more hours each working day. One of my favorite features of this PC is the optional power button, which can be connected to the device and the cable has considerable length to make it easier to turn on and off the system when it's installed out of reach.

What I don't like

Starting from $380, the MSI Cubi NUC 1M can be an expensive PC. Those of you who will be searching for a relatively inexpensive compact system will be put off by the MSRP, especially when configured with more RAM and storage. The model I received for testing costs $879. This does provide the range-topping Intel Core 7 CPU, 16GB of DDR5 RAM, and 1TB of PCIe 4.0 storage, but you can easily cross $1,200 with more storage and system memory. The graphics processing on the Intel Core 7 is weak and is the standard integrated GPU on Intel chips. You won't be playing many games on this PC.

An external GPU could help with gaming performance if you're serious about enjoying your Steam library on the Cubi NUC 1M. Though the system runs relatively cool and the single fan isn't noticeable unless pushing the system hard with a few apps open or some benchmark testing, the CPU gets hot under load. General computing, however, which is what this NUC will primarily be used for is almost silent. Should your workday involve resource-intensive applications, you may need to consider another system or think twice about stuffing the MSI Cubi NUC 1M with additional storage and faster CPUs.

Should you buy the MSI Cubi NUC 1M?

You should buy the MSI Cubi NUC if:

• You care for the environment.
• You need a fairly powerful compact PC for work.
• You need to kit out an entire office with new PCs.

You shouldn't buy the MSI Cubi NUC if:

• You require better graphics processing.
• You want the best value for money.
• You don't need to save desk space.

The MSI Cubi NUC 1M isn't the most powerful mini PC around, but it's not far off. So long as you can overlook its relatively high asking price compared to competitor systems, this is a capable PC for work and homelab use. After testing Windows extensively, I decided to throw pfSense to take advantage of the dual 2.5Gb links and it runs the router software well. The Intel Core 7 chip is barely tasked with jobs handling a busy network of clients. Whatever you plan on using the Cubi NUC 1M for, it'll handle almost anything you can throw at it, though it will get hot in the process with the single fan and all storage slots populated.

You can't go wrong with this PC for home, office, and homelab use.

If you want to save some desk space and have a decent budget to accommodate RAM and storage, you'll have a blast with the MSI Cubi NUC 1M. It's the little things such as energy efficiency throughout production or operation and even the optional power button to make it easier to cycle the system if it's tucked away. You can't go wrong with this PC for home, office, and homelab use.