Chrome OS comes on two devices: laptops called Chromebooks, and desktop machines called Chromeboxes. While the best Chromebooks are more widely known and more diverse in their options, Chromeboxes are a relatively small market where you have one option from each major manufacturers that gets updated every few years.
2022 is a good year to be a Chromebox user, as we're getting updates to the two most popular Chromeboxes on the market. While we may see another Chromebox or two come out in the second half of 2022, the ASUS Chromebox 4 is the one you'll want to buy for the extra ports and the extra power.
What are the best Chromeboxes?
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ASUS makes some of the best Chromebooks for work, and it's never afraid to squeeze in every little feature and port it can to try and stand out in an increasingly competitive Chrome Enterprise space. This means that whether you're buying the business version or consumer-grade, we all benefit from ASUS's dedication to being the most powerful and detailed machine for the job, and the ASUS Chromebox 4 is no exception.
In a desktop world where most work-from-homers need to connect a mouse, keyboard, webcam, and USB mic, it's easy for all of your USB-A ports to fill up, so ASUS opted for five USB-A ports rather than the four ports on the HP G3.
You get two HDMI ports for supporting dual 4K monitors and a USB-C port for adding more peripherals or a third monitor via a USB-C hub. Of course, you need the power to support all those displays, so ASUS is packing a 10th Gen Intel Core i3, i5, or i7 inside along with 8-16GB of RAM.
More ports and more power are always welcome.
Storage is another area where ASUS takes a slight edge over HP and Acer. So far, all of the ASUS Chromebox 4 configurations have SSD storage, either 128GB or 256GB. This means that the Chromebox 4 is faster overall because it's not being held back by eMMC storage, and there's even more room for Linux apps or offline files.
Honestly, even if you don't need a full-time desktop, the ASUS Chromebox 4 could make a nice little media PC between support for almost all Android media apps and the full Chrome browser for those niche services that don't support Chromecasting.
ASUS is opting to keep the package and shipping costs small for the Chromebox 4 by skipping the mouse and keyboard in the box. Considering that a great Chromebook mouse can be had for less than a large pizza and more manufacturers are making Chrome OS-specific keyboards, I'm OK with this, especially if it shaves a few dollars off the Chromebox 4's higher price tags.
HP was one of the first to announce its next-gen Chromeboxes, and it was also the first to start selling them. Intel's 10th-generation processor powers HP's Chromebox G3 and Chromebox Enterprise G3, and there is a cheaper Celeron option, making it our budget pick.
To accompany those processors, HP includes up to 16GB of DDR4 RAM and up to 128GB of storage — though, for the 32-64GB models, you get slower eMMC storage as opposed to the 128GB M.2 SSD. Like most Chromebooks, the HP Chromebox G3 has a MicroSD slot for adding some extra storage if that storage isn't enough.
Thanks to how USB-C is becoming more ubiquitous, HP added a single USB-C port on the back with dual USB-A ports, dual HDMI ports, and an Ethernet jack. Those dual HDMI ports will come in handy for those who want to use multiple monitors, as the Chromebox G3 can power two 4K monitors.
The Chromebox G3 can power two 4K monitors.
While the Chromebox G3 sports a total of four USB-A ports — two up front and two in the back — and a USB-C port, I wish there was a second USB-C port. With so many of our devices already featuring the USB-C port, the ability to plug in a USB-C hard drive and USB-C monitor in addition to plugging in a phone or peripheral would've been nice without having to break out the USB-A adapters or USB-C hubs. Having four USB-A ports will make things easier for those with older peripherals, even if it doesn't have as many as the ASUS Chromebox 4.
One other small frustration with the G3 is that it's not widely available. It drifts in and out of stock on HP's website, and B&H often only has the Celeron model in stock, so if you need one right now, you'll either have to grab that cheaper Celeron model or go with ASUS. There are also a few older G2 models drifting around, but please don't overpay for them because the G3 or the ASUS Chromebox 4 have double the support life ahead of it thanks to the June 2028 AUE date.
Chromeboxes are excellent devices for POS and digital sign applications and are equally at home in industrial environments as light workstations. You need to buy a suitable model, and the new Fanless Chromebox from ASUS might be it.
It's designed specifically to be mounted inside a cabinet and forgotten about. You can extend the power switch for maintenance and the fanless cooling design means you don't need to add a lot of airflow. This makes it perfect to drive a cash register or bar code scanner workstation as well as something you can hide away to power a digital sign or menu.
It will also work just fine for home use, though you can buy the Chromebox 4 in a similar configuration of processor and memory for less. If you want a PC you can stuff away inside a hot entertainment center, though, this might be the one you need.
Most Chromeboxes are small PCs designed to be connected to a stand-alone monitor or television, but not the HP Chromebase — it's a true all-in-one PC complete with on-board audio and expandable storage.
It also has a great display that tilts and rotates so you can use it however you like, comes in several different configurations to meet your needs and price range, and has everything you need right in the box.
An all-in-one isn;t for everyone, but if you want a stylish looking device for your living area and would rather use a Chromebox than a "regular" PC you're covered.
Is it a good time to buy a Chromebox?
2022 was a transitional year for Chromeboxes. You can find them most of the time, but often specific models were sold out or just never appeared, as was the case for the Acer CXI4, which hasn't become available. It's still a good time to buy if you see what you like or are willing to wait for it to come into stock.
We'll have wider availability in the next six months, but these Chromeboxes have the same guts under their chassis and have the same Auto Update Expiration date of June 2028. The ASUS Chromebox 4 has one extra USB-A port over the HP Chromebox G3 and more SSD configuration options, so if you need the best Chromebook right now, the ASUS Chromebox 4 is your winner. But really, either of the mainstream Chromeboxes currently available from ASUS and HP are great options.
If you need something you can tuck away and never see again, the ASUS Fanless Chromebox could work for you. It's designed for commercial and industrial applications and would be perfect as the brains for a POS system or a digital menu.
If you want something that looks as good as it works, then HP has you covered with the Chromebase, an all-in-one with a great rotating display.
A transitional time for Chromeboxes
There are few options on the market when finding the best Chromebox as you could find with the best Chromebooks, so the pickings are slim, especially right now as retailers and manufacturers are switching from old models to new ones. However, now that the new generation Chromeboxes will see Chrome OS updates until June 2028, they'll last for a long, long time, and they're user-upgradable if you need to up the memory and storage.
The ASUS Chromebox 4 is what you would expect to see from the best Chromebox. The Intel Core i3 and i5 models available right now are powerful and will easily last you the next eight years. Every configuration has the ports and power you need to have a great experience while staying secure and up to date with Google's Chrome software. We think it's the very best Chromebox for everyone.
