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Around Chrome Unboxed, we don’t do a whole lot of content around Chromeboxes. It’s understandable, right? Chromeboxes are the simplest manifestation of ChromeOS hardware, putting the necessary bits to run the OS in a box and letting the user ultimately choose what peripherals go with it. With no screen, no keyboard, no trackpad, no hinges and no real speakers to deal with, Chromeboxes keep things as simple as possible and – because of this – aren’t that interesting to put on camera right out of the box.
However, with this latest Chromebox from ASUS, there’s a special trick that makes it worth taking a quick look at that we’ve not seen up to this point in the Chromebox world. The trick? Wireless charging built right into the top portion. That’s right, this ASUS Chromebox has a 15W wireless charging pad included right out of the box and of all the things you could add to a Chromebox, this is absolutely my favorite.
I suppose we should talk about the specs, too. It shipped to us with a 12th-gen Core i5 1240P, 8GB of RAM, 512GB of NVMe storage, and support for four 4K displays (via 2 HDMI ports, a DisplayPort, and a USB Type C port). But those are bound to change depending on where you purchase it from and what your budget is. There will be tons of options and price points, ranging from right under $300 to nearly $1000 when it does arrive. Regardless of those internals, however, you’ll get that sweet wireless charger on top in every configuration.
With a 15W output, it’ll charge any of your Qi-equipped accessories (including your phone) while it sits there and runs your desktop setup. I honestly can’t think of a better place to put one of these charging pads, and I love that ASUS included it here. In most scenarios, a Chromebox is simply sitting on the desk and taking up space, but with this little addition, there is great functionality to this minimal computer box and I’d hope this is an inclusion that every Chromebox maker considers moving forward.
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