First came Chromebooks, then the Chromebox, Chromecast, most recently, the Chromebase.
Today Google announced a new device in the Chrome device family: the Chromebit.
Take the guts of a Chromebox and squeeze it in to a dongle not that much bigger than the Chromecast and you get the Chromebit.
It’s a fully fledged Chrome OS PC packed into a HDMI dongle the size of a Roku streaming stick.
‘Cross a Chromebox with a Chromecast and you get the Chromebit’
The device, which Google say will be available to buy later this year, was unveiled alongside a raft of new low-cost Chromebooks at a press event this week.
The Asus Chromebit has the same hardware specs as the newly unveiled Chromebook Flip and C201: 2GB of RAM, a Rockchip 3288 SoC and 16GB of eMMC flash storage.
Google say the device will retail for under $100 when it goes on sale this summer, and be available in a range of different colors.
The Chromebit comes with a swivelling HDMI port on one end (used to connect to an external display), a Micro USB port on the side (used for power) and a full-sized USB port for attaching keyboard, mice and other extras (though with onboard Bluetooth this won’t be necessary for some).
Google is reported to be aiming the Chromebit for use in digital signage, internet cafes and other instances where a larger Chromebox may be less attractive. But, just like the Chromecast, they are said to be excited by the potential for less conventional use cases too.
