ASUS promised they would release their Chromebox on March, and they seem to be right on schedule with that. The ASUS Chromebox is not available everywhere just yet, but it has shown up at one retailer already!
Online retailer SabrePC now has both versions of the ASUS Chromebox available. At the time of this writing, the Intel Core i3 version is out of stock, but the Celeron version is in stock and ready to ship in 1-2 weeks!
As expected, price does start at $179.99. The i3 version will cost $369.99, but features a much more powerful processor. If you read our announcement post, you know there is also an i7 version. Sadly, this higher-end Chromebox is not available for everyone in the USA. Only businesses can purchase it with the Chromebox for Meetings bundle.
ASUS Chromebox specs
- Intel Celeron, Core i3 or Core i7 (Haswell)
- 2/4 GB of RAM
- 16 GB SSD + 100 GB of Google Drive storage for 2 years
- WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0
- SD card reader, 4 USB 3.0 ports, HDMI, DisplayPort and Audio Jack
- 4.88″ x 4.88″ x 1.65″
I am still not sure the Chromebox form-factor is the best. For $20 more I can buy a Chromebook with a display and almost the same specs as the lower-end ASUS Chroembox. If I want to use it as a desktop computer, I can just use it in dock mode, but I would still have the ability to take it on-the-go.
This doesn’t mean it won’t be a great device for some of you, though! If you like the smaller profile of the ASUS Chromebox and don’t need portability, this may be the perfect Chrome OS computer for you.
