Asusas Chromebox M031U

A Chrome OS mini PC for your desktop

It’s not quite as tiny as the MSI Cubi (see page 19), but the Asus Chromebox is one of the smallest PCS you’ll come across. A combination of textures gives its plain black case an intriguing look, and like the MSI it’s almost silent; you’ll only notice the fans when they first spin into action.

Unlike Chromebooks, the Chromebox M031U has a Gigabit Ethernet port that lets you cable straight to your broadband router. There’s also 802.11n Wi-fi (not quite as fast as the 802.11ac supported by some machines), two USB 3.0 ports, an SD card reader, and a choice of HDMI and Displayport sockets to connect a monitor. Remember to budget for that too, plus a keyboard and mouse or trackpad.

The Celeron processorsor in this model offers similarlar performance to the Dellell Chromebook 11 (see above),bove), and we had no trouble editing spreadsheets,eadsheets, streaming HD video andnd tweaking photos. Using Chrome OS on a PC is actually something of a revelation, because you never have to go offline, and with a full-size screen and keyboard it feels just like using a Windows desktop computer.

You could also use the M031U as a media centre: there are apps for Google Play Movies and Netflix, for example, and whatever you can find on the web is here. As a truly low-cost desktop PC, the Chromebox makes a lot of sense, as long as you can live without the more advanced features of full Windows programs. VERDICT: Compared with Chromebooks that include a screen and keyboard, it seems pricey, but the M031U is a surprisingly useful little PC

★★★★☆

ALTERNATIVE: HP Chromeboxhromebox CB1-030NA £179 Withith the same basic specs as the Asussus (except it has slower Ethernet), this bargainn PC looks cool in whitete