Just a few hours ago, news broke that an LTE-enabled version of the Samsung Chromebook Plus v2 had passed through FCC certification and in that article I mentioned that I had uncovered some other unannounced devices that were coming down the pike. Turns out, there are actually FIVE new Samsung Chromebooks headed our way and that’s not including the LTE model discovered by Kevin Tofel of AboutChromebooks.
The listings mentioned in the title were discovered by one of our readers on the retail website BH Photo and include three new Plus models. None of which have the same model number as the device mentioned about that should be sporting LTE capabilities. What’s most interesting about the listings is that one of the iterations is powered by a Core m3-7Y30 Intel process. That happens to be the predecessor of the chipset found in the flagship Samsung Chromebook Pro.
These details line up with something we discovered when Robby was publishing an article yesterday referencing benchmark scores for Google’s upcoming Nocture tablet, a.k.a. the Pixel Slate. I got to poking around the Geekbench website and found a recent submission for a Samsung Chromebook Plus (V2) that listed the Core m3 processer as the chipset tested.
I was hesitant to put a lot of stock in the test results as they can sometimes be unreliable but the listing on BH Photo is solid confirmation that said device exists and will soon be available. The other two listings are powered by the same Celeron processor found in the current Plus V2 and it’s not apparent, at this point, what the differences are other than the fact that one is equipped with 64GB of storage.
It is possible that all, a portion or none of these new Chromebooks are LTE-enabled but it wouldn’t make a lot of sense for Samsung to launch another version of the V2 with the exact same internals as the original so I am guessing that at least the 32GB model may have mobile data features.
The other models I mentioned showed up when I was searching for more details on the LTE version of the Chromebook Plus. I stumbled upon a site that does third-party eco-verification labels for electronics. EPEAT rates devices based on factors such as reduction of toxic materials, recyclability, use of recycled plastic, etc. and ensures that manufacturers claims in these areas are legitimate.
When search for the Chromebook Plus, I found 6 new Chromebooks submitted to EPEAT all on the 20th of September.
On the list, you will see the XE525QBB-K01US which is the Chromebook discovered by Kevin Tofel that has LTE. You also see XE520QAB-K01US, XE520QAB-K03US and XE520QAB-K03US which are the devices listed on BH Photo. All Chromebook Plus models. The fifth Chromebook, XE520QAB-K04US, is very likely another Chromebook Plus V2 variant due to the near-identical model number.
The only Chromebook left is the Samsung XE521QAB-K02US. I’m really not sure how many variations of this device Samsung really need to produce but the overwhelming number that popped up all at once is a good sign for the consumer Chromebook market. My only question is “what about the Chromebook Pro?”
With the newest version of the Plus rocking a Kaby Lake Core m3, is Samsung abandoning the “Pro” nomenclature altogether or will they step up and give us Pixelbook competitor with more RAM and a Core i5/i7 device for the power users? Only time will tell but one thing is for sure, it’s going to be a crazy shopping season for Chrome devices. Choices aplenty.
The three new models of the Chromebook Plus V2 are already available for pre-order from BH Photo. You can check the listings at the link below.
New Samsung Chromebook Plus V2 from BH
Special thanks to BigC for the tip.
