We know the arrival of the hotly-anticipated ASUS C434 is just around the corner. What, with the FCC filing already out of the way and the listings already on education/enterprise resellsers like Promevo, the clock is ticking against the full-tilt release of the successor to the very popular ASUS C302.
Just today, About Chromebooks noticed a listing on Staples website that shows the entry-level model on sale for $580 with availability shown as 1-6 business days. The fun ends there, however, as moving forward to the checkout phase prompts you with an “Out of Stock” warning.
While this is clearly just a temporary hiccup, it does go a long way to show that we should expect stock and availability to start showing up at retailers very soon. It also gives us a taste at what this flagship Chromebook will sell for when it does officially launch. The model on offer from Staples is the Core m3 8100Y with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. We’ll include a link below to snag it in the event the are actually in stock as you read this article.
The great part with this device is the awesome build, tiny bezels, beautiful 14-inch screen, aluminum build and backlit keyboard are all available despite the model you end up buying. There will be Core i5 and i7 variants available with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage as well, but we don’t have a firm price on those units just yet. Do note, however, that Promevo has the Core i5 variant listed at $749, so we’d expect to see that price hold as the launch date arrives.
Also of note is a model that Promevo has listed at $599 which I think will be the sweet spot for configuring this particular Chromebook: Core m3 with 8GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. If an extra $20 gets you up to 8GB of RAM, that becomes a no-brainer.
Either way, we’ll keep an eye out for more retailers and more listings as the next week or two go by and I’d assume you’ll be able to snag the ASUS C434 before the end of the month. Stay tuned.
