Overview:
- 1.4 GHz Intel Celeron 2955U Processor
- 2GB DDR3 RAM, 16 GB SSD HDD
- Intel HD graphics
- Google Chrome OS
The Asus Chromebox is the ChromeOS version of the Mac Mini – compact and portable minus…but it doens’t have the full featured operating system of OS X. It’s as small as the typical router and comes with PC hardware – meaning its quicker than the ARM processors found in many Chromebooks.
You will find many versions of the Asus Chromebox: a Celeron processor w/2 GBs of RAM, a Core i3 processor w/4 GBs of RAM and one w/a Core i7 – 4 GB of RAM. Some come with a wireless keyboard and mouse.
The ASUS has an internal fan – but it is very quiet. This makes it ideal for living room set-ups. It’s equipped with a 16 GB SSD, WiFi and Bluetooth. Be careful when looking at different options – some packages come with a keyboard and mouse, which is nice if you don’t already have a spare. Don’t forget – you will also need a monitor.
The Asus Chromebox is consistently fast, even when running at 1920 X 1080 resolution. While it handles 1080p videos without much trouble (albeit slight artefacting), it cannot stream 4K videos without suffering major stutter. One major advantage of the box is that it can handle two displays at once. In other words, it’s quite good at what it does for less than $150.
Not sure – check out our Best Chromebooks post.