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ASUS Chromebook CX9 US$529 (A$801.15, RRP US$1029) + A$159.40 Re-Shipping + A$9.02 USA Phone Number @ ASUS USA

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More of an 'almost' reasonable price, rather than bargain, for a premium Chromebook released two years ago. Generally, 16GB premium Chromebooks are not even available in Australia, or cost more than $1500AUD.

ASUS US store does not ship directly to Australia, so I used shipping via Planet Express. The order process requires a US telephone number, which I paid for with Skype.

The price-at-release, and still advertised, regular price was $1029USD.

Feature list from manufacturer web-site:

  • Powered by the Intel Core i5-1135G7 Processor 2.4 GHz (8M Cache, up to 4.2 GHz, 4 cores)
  • 512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD and 16GB RAM, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) + Bluetooth 5.2
  • 14-inch Touchscreen Full HD 1920x1080 NanoEdge Display with USI Stylus support
  • Extreme military-grade durability: Panel pressure, shock, and drop tested to ensure resilience, with a 180-degree hinge
  • I/O ports (2x USB Type-C (Gen 2) Thunderbolt™ 4, compliant with USB4, supports display / power delivery, 1x USB 3.2 Type-A (Gen 2)
  • Micro SD Card reader)
  • 1x HDMI 2.0b
  • 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack
  • Illuminated keyboard, Illuminated number pad in touchpad
  • Fingerprint sensor
  • 720p HD camera with privacy shutter
  • Built-in array-speakers powered by Harman Kardon
  • 2.54 lb (1.15 kg)
  • Chromebook runs on Chrome OS and has the Google apps.
  • Product Name: CX9400CEA-DS562T

The SSD is easily accessible after removing the back-cover (which has very small fiddly screws). The ASUS website includes the maintenance manual.

Before you ask, no, I don't know any way to replace the ChromeOS with Windows.

However, I have installed plenty of Linux apps, and Steam (however, I'm not a gamer, and only did a quick test of 'Warthunder'). And also installed Windows running inside the Linux environment using Qemu/KVM, and then installed Microsoft Office. There is an 'official' way to install a Windows emulator using Parallels, but that requires setting up the Chromebook as an enterprise Chromebook and spending money on annual subscriptions.

Related Stores

ASUS
ASUS
Planet Express
Planet Express
Skype
Skype

closed Comments

  • +1

    Ozbargain bro

  • -2

    Where's the deal?

    • What do you need to see to say “yes, now that’s the deal”?
      Current price is USD 529, while the 'normal' price is almost double ( USD 1029).

      • It's a two year old machine, nearly three years old.

        I hope it's discounted.

        • +1

          Hmm, what do you mean? It’s on sale now, 529 < 1029.

  • +1

    wow a 1k chromebook

  • +1

    Refurbished CX9 is available from NewEgg for $898.70 including gst and free shipping.
    https://www.newegg.com/global/au-en/hp-cx9400cea-ds762t/p/2S…
    Seems to have all the same specs except for CPU, Intel Core i7 1165G7, which should be better than the i5 above. Interestingly, newegg says, “First Available April 23, 2024”

    • Good find. Annoyingly, the Asus Store listing for the CX9 specified the Intel Core i7 (at the same price) a few weeks ago, but when I actually ordered, the i7 was not available :(

  • +1

    what I am missing here. I thought Chromebook is all about cheap low powered machines. Install steam and windows in shell? Shouldn't be better to buy windows machine at this price?

    I play lot of games on Chromebook. However, I just buy a cheap laptop, shrink the hard drive and install Fyde OS, with full google play access? So , one machine with dual boot Windows and Fyde OS with full google play store access.

    • https://www.aboutchromebooks.com/news/fydeos-vs-chromeos-fle…

      "What’s the downside of FydeOS vs ChromeOS Flex?

      Aside from not working on existing Chromebooks, FydeOS has one two potential issues.

      First, if you’re a heavy Google user and want to sync data between FydeOS and ChromeOS, you can’t. That’s because Google pulled Google Sync support from Chromium last year. This means items such as your search history and bookmarks, for example, won’t sync from your Google account to FydeOS.

      Second, Fyde is based in China, which may be a huge red flag for many people around the world. I’ve searched around the web with regards to the data privacy and security aspects of FydeOS but haven’t found anything definitive to make my own determination….However, use of FydeOS and its cloud services does send data back to the company’s servers in China, as well as other parts of the world. Not everyone is going to be comfortable with that."

    • +1

      My case is rather niche, but I only use Windows under duress, when other people/companies insist on using Microsoft Office.

      As luck will have it, many Microsoft Office/Teams/Sharepoint functions as used in the company environment will work in the browser.

      In Linux, I do all my 'real' work. Gnumeric, Gnucash, LibreOffice, LyX/LaTeX, Visual Studio Code and RStudio/R.

      At home, I use more Android apps than I do Window apps. (I guess that's true of most people who have and use Android phones)

      Even when I see patients on home visits, I use more Android apps than I want to use Windows apps. And I access the clinical record system with Citrix, which is available on Chromebook for both of Android and Linux.

      So my main OS at home is Linux. ChromeOS combines (most) of Linux with the ability to use (most) Android applications and some ability to use Windows apps under a virtual machine when needed. For that reason, I've been waiting for an approximately 1 kg Chromebook with 16GB of memory, minimum 11th gen I5 and less than $1000 for a while.

      • In Linux, I do all my 'real' work. Gnumeric, Gnucash, LibreOffice, LyX/LaTeX, Visual Studio Code and RStudio/R.
        Even when I see patients on home visits

        What are you, sir?

        • +3

          As in occupation? Family medicine doctor, at a community health service.

          With interests in quality improvement in clinical practice, data analysis and child development.

          https://www.davidfong.org

  • Before you ask, no, I don't know any way to replace the Chromebook with Windows.

    I do :)
    https://docs.chrultrabook.com/

  • You really have to hate windows and money to buy expensive Chromebook

    • Expensive for a Chromebook, yes, but not particularly expensive for laptops overall.

      In my case, I use the applications available for this kind of Chromebook - Linux and Android - much more than I use applications available for Windows at home. Including applications which are not available or primarily available on a Windows operating system.

      Even at work, most of the apps I use are not exclusively available for Windows and can be used from a Chromebook (however, the office does provide a Windows machine sitting on the desk. For home visit work, though, I use the Chromebook).

      So, spending money on what I use the most makes sense. This Chromebook is 70% of the cost of the last Windows laptop I purchased, which I use far less.

  • I'd buy this for what the original poster paid, but not with all the effort and risk involved with re-shipping. Why does ASUS always drop the ball with Australia?

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