I don't know about the NUCs specifically, but I thing there should be a YMMV disclaimer in this recommendation.
From what I've seen, these kinds of small PCs are basically a laptop-in-a-box, but usually pack a desktop-class CPU. Which means that the cooling system can sometimes have a hard time.
I personally have an HP EliteDesk 800 mini, which I initially liked for its compact size while at the same time being able to have 2 NVME drives and one SATA. Boy do I hate it. Even at idle, the fan makes a terrible noise. Throw any kind of work at it for more that 10 seconds, and it starts to ramp up.
My work probook from the same era has a joke for a cooler, yet it's still quieter most of the time. The CPU is noticeably slower (i5-8xxxU), though for running a random home server it's probably good enough.
From what I've seen, these kinds of small PCs are basically a laptop-in-a-box, but usually pack a desktop-class CPU. Which means that the cooling system can sometimes have a hard time.
I personally have an HP EliteDesk 800 mini, which I initially liked for its compact size while at the same time being able to have 2 NVME drives and one SATA. Boy do I hate it. Even at idle, the fan makes a terrible noise. Throw any kind of work at it for more that 10 seconds, and it starts to ramp up.
My work probook from the same era has a joke for a cooler, yet it's still quieter most of the time. The CPU is noticeably slower (i5-8xxxU), though for running a random home server it's probably good enough.