Acer’s first desktop computer powered by Google’s Chrome Operating System is now available for purchase in the United States.

The Acer Chromebox CXI is a tiny desktop PC with an Intel Celeron 2957U Haswell processor and a starting price of $180.

I got a chance to see one in person recently, and while I didn’t have to the opportunity to actually turn it on and use the Chromebox, this is what it looks like.

acer chromebox_02

The Acer Chromebox CXI is small enough to hold in one hand and it basically has the guts of a Chromebook in a tiny desktop package. It’s powered by Intel’s 15 watt, 1.4 GHz dual-core processor and features 2GB to 4GB of RAM and 16GB of solid state storage.

The Chromebox has 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, Gigabit Ethernet, 4 USB 3.0 ports, an SD card reader, HDMI and DisplayPort, and an audio jack.

Acer has a suggested retail price of $180 for a model with 2GB of storage and $220 for a 4GB model. The only store I can find offering the Chromebox at those prices is PC Connection, which stocks both the $220 and $180 models.

TigerDirect, PC Mall, Newegg, and Rakuten also sell the Acer Chromebox CXI, but as of October 4th, 2014 all of those stores are charging higher prices for the little desktop.

You can also pick up an Asus or HP Chromebox for less money — Amazon sells them for around $160 or less. But those models have Celeron 2955U chips. That means they don’t support Intel WiDi (Wireless Display) or QuickSync.

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8 replies on “Acer Chromebox is now available for $180 and up”

  2. Really whenever these 2955u based asus chromeboxes hit the 99usd level I think they will sell like hot cakes. I’m waiting for the refurb asus models to start going on sale. Slap it on the back of a spare monitor and then decide whether to keep it chromeos or switch it over to a linux distro.

    1. I hope Google stays with the Intel “core” celerons. I would not buy a baytrail or cherrytrail Chromebox. If they did hit $100, I would love to see MS’s reaction.

  3. “I didn’t have the opportunity to actually to turn tit on..” Typo, they usually come in pairs, so you forgot the s. ;-P

  4. Funny how Chromeboxes are big and costly and nobody makes cheap ARM based sticks.I get it why the PC guys do it and how Intel might “help” them not go astray but it’s always disappointing to see Google bend.

    1. Keep in mind that most of those ARM “sticks” are designed coming from the mindset of “a really cheap but useful media viewing TV box for the domestic market here in China, along with anyone else I can get to buy one.”

      1. I wonder why there isn’t a mindset of making a stick targeting a mid to high end desktop tasks. A Tegra K1 or any recent Snapdragon or Exynos SoC with 2 – 3 GB of RAM in a stick (maybe largish stick) would be nice. Would a Chomestick running on ARM be as expensive as these Chromeboxes?

    2. same, i wouldnt mind a Tegra K1/Snapdragon 805 Chromebox, max it out with RAM, give it an M.SATA or M.2 PCIe SSD so upgraded if necessary (though ive never hit the 16gb limit on my Chromebook)

      and because its pluged it at the wall you could have a small fan on it or have it fanless, and its not battery constrained so it can be clocked higher for longer.

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