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We’ve been talking a lot lately about Chromeboxes. The tiny Chrome OS mini-PC is a very cost-effective way to have an all-in-one desktop device in your home. The small form-factor gives you everything Chrome OS has to offer while allowing you the ability to upgrade some of the internals should you decide a little boost in RAM or storage is needed. As a matter of fact, we just recently did a walkthrough on upgrading the RAM in CTL’s Comet Lake-powered Chromebox CBx2.
While the Celeron Chromeboxed available from various manufacturers are powerful enough for most households, enterprise clients and developers may find themselves in need of something with a bit more horsepower. For those of you wanting a more powerful Chromebox, most OEMs offer variations that come equipped with anything from a Core i3 to a Core i7. These Chromeboxes can take advantage of a terabyte or more of NVMe storage and you can equip them with up to 32GB or more of RAM if you so choose. (Plausibly, a Comet Lake Chromebox could support more RAM but I doubt you would get much more mileage out of anything over 32GB.)
If you’re in the market for a Core i7, Comet Lake Chromebox, you will likely run into two issues while shopping. First, the availability of the super-powered Chromebox models is a bit scant at the moment. If you’re lucky, you can find one from a third-party electronics retailer of perhaps Amazon but then, you hit the second obstacle. Price. The average price of a Core i7 model with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage is roughly $900. Granted, it’s already upgraded and you won’t have to make any modifications. If you need more power than this offers, you probably shouldn’t be shopping for a Chrome OS device. If you can sacrifice a little memory or perhaps you’re keen on doing some upgrades yourself, CTL now has its Core i7 Chromebox CBx2 in stock and ready to ship.
This particular model comes equipped with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. That is more than enough horsepower to handle heavier Linux applications, multiple monitor setups, and even Parallels if you are an enterprise customer needing a Windows solution. CTL’s Chromeboxes are historically a bit less expensive than the competition and right now, you can grab the Core i7 model at a discount. Normally $799, the Chromebox CBx2 is on sale for $729. If you think you still need a little more RAM, you can pick up a 16GB bundle from Crucial for around $88 and you’ve got yourself a powerful little Chromebox for just over $800. CTL also offers Chrome management licenses and currently, the company is offering free standard Zero-Touch Enrollment for eligible customers. Check out the CTL Chromebox CBx2 below.
P.S. Even if you aren’t in the market for a new device, CTL is giving away some sweet hoodies. You can find the giveaway here.
