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Chromebit: Google’s $100 plug-in dongle that turns virtually any TV into a computer

Resembling a 3G dongle (or a Chromecast), here is a new class of computing device you never knew you needed.

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The Asus Chromebit: a plug-in, pocketable computer that runs Google's Chrome OS
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In the ever-running quest to think up newer computing devices for consumers to hanker after, tech companies today are releasing increasingly intriguing products. We all know smartphones, tablets, notebooks and smartwatches. Then the smarts were added to televisions. Following this were bridge devices like the Chromecast that effectively slung digital content from diverse portable devices toward regular TVs.

Google’s latest offering, via Asus, is a little stick of a device called the Chromebit--reminiscent of the Chromecast itself, which also plugs into an HDMI port of a monitor or TV. But it does more that just play YouTube videos--it’s actually a complete computing unit that runs the Chrome operating system (the same that powers today’s ultra-portable Chromebooks). In fact its hardware consists of a processing, memory and hardware platform that is shared by today’s Chromebooks.  Input is enabled via a USB port that can be used to connect a keyboard and mouse. It also supports Bluetooth input peripherals.

The aim of the Chromebit is to enable users to walk up to a TV, plug in their Chromebit, start it up and work using Internet-based apps, then simply unplug it when they’re through. It’s an interesting use case; one that could immediately appeal to folks in the education and travel space, and even end-users looking to carry (a majority of) their computer in their pocket.

Because it is powered by Chrome OS, the Chromebit is designed to run the gamut of Internet-based Chrome apps including Gmail, the Google docs word processor, spreadsheet, presentation application et al. At release, this device won’t be able to run local apps--the kind that you can download and use in the Android environment for example. But work is apparently underway to facilitate this in due course, which will even enable the critical need of having to work offline and sync data when an Internet connection becomes available.

Apart from the utility of being able to carry a computing device in your pocket, the fact that the hardware itself is on your person makes it that much more secure for your files, other software precautions being in effect.

Interestingly Google isn’t the only player in this hybrid-portable-dongle computing space. Earlier this year, Intel announced their compute stick at CES this year that offers virtually identical functionality. Be prepared for a proliferation in these devices, as they fill our need to have some manner of computing capability for every situation of our existence.

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