If a hard drive created from the excrement of bacteria isn’t your thing, perhaps the new Chromebox Series 3 is.
Along with the Chromebook, Google and Samsung have released a nifty gadget that is a portable desktop.
The Chromebox is, as its name implies, a desktop based around the Chrome OS.
Its specs are reasonable for such a little device; an Intel® Core™ processor (which Google promises, in its online statement, to make processes 3x faster than the first-gen Chromebooks), 4GB RAM, built-in dual-band WiFi, 6 (read me: SIX) USB 2.0 ports, Bluetooth 3.0™ compatible, and Kensington™ key lock compatible. And it boots in 7 seconds, flat.
The Chromebox also allows you to connect to your PC or Mac using Chrome Remote Desktop Beta. As Google states on its website, “carry your other computers…inside your computer”. Who hasn’t wished for this at some point or another?
So how do you use something that doesn’t have a keyboard or monitor?
The Chromebox isn’t a computer in itself. It’s just a portable desktop (although Google offers peripherals like a mouse and keyboard for a bit extra). So you can connect the Chromebox up to any existing computer, and access your desktop in all its glory. Your emails, programs, files, data: it’s all there. And because Chromebox uses WiFi, you won’t need to lug around cables to connect it.
At US$329, the Chromebox is a bit pricey, especially as the new Chromebook is only US$449. But you pay for what you get: a top-of-the-range portable desktop with ports and more, that has yet to be rivalled.