Tranquil PC Abel H2 review

If you want to connect external storage you can use the two USB3 ports at the front or the two at the back. Also at the front is an IR receiver that picks up commands from the supplied media centre remote control and, next to that, a 3.5mm headset port. The back of the Abel H2-5 is home to a glowing blue power button along with mini HDMI and mini DisplayPort graphics outputs. A mini HDMI to HDMI converter is supplied with the PC. Helpfully, the PC supports both wired and wireless network connection with a Gigabit Ethernet port and an integrated 802.11n Wi-Fi adaptor.

The version we were sent for review comes with a chunky metal bracket that can be used as a VESA mount to put the Abel on the back of a monitor, or as a wall mount. The PC is remarkably attractive, so there’s no particular incentive to hide it away.

This configuration of the Abel H2-5 is a little pricy for a NUC, though, and its 3D gaming performance is a little weaker than we’d like. However, its dual SSDs mean that you get a fair bit of storage that works at a blistering speed. It’s also hands-down the best looking NUC we’ve seen and, although it runs warm, it’s silent and powerful enough to handle demanding tasks. It’s an ideal media centre PC for those who value style as well as substance.

If you’d like a more rounded PC with greater storage capacity and faster gaming performance, however, we recommend the Best Buy winning Scan 3XS NUC N16.