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The Chromebook parade continues in the hours leading up to CES 2018.  Acer, a long time manufacture of Chromebooks, has announced an updated version of the popular Acer Chromebook 11.  The 11.6″ display device will be available in April and will sport two models:  A touchscreen version (CB311-8H) and a non-touchscreen version (CB311-8HT).  Starting price will be around $250.

The updated Chromebook 11 will have the latest Intel Celeron processors although which ones exactly was not disclosed.  It will come with 4GB of RAM and either 16GB or 32GB or storage built into it.  It will also have dual stereo speakers and a HDR camera.

HP clearly is continuing to support Chrome OS in a big way.  After announcing two new Chromebooks, the company has announced the 2nd generation of their Chromebox, the HP Chromebox G2.  With the option to power this new Chromebox with up to the latest 8th generation Intel i7 processor, this will be a powerful option for those looking for a workstation or at home Chrome device.  It will be available this Spring.

Keeping with the small form factor, the new HP Chromebox G2 will measure 5.87 x 5.87 x 1.57 inches and weigh 1.48 lbs.  That is pretty consistent with the first generation HP Chromebox.  What changes though are the internals.  The base model will be powered by the Intel Celeron 3865U processor but there is an i5-7300U and i7-8650U option available.  The Celeron option will have the Intel HD Graphics 610 integration graphics option while the Core i models will have the UHD Graphics 620.  Also, you will be able to have up to 16GB of DDR4 RAM and either 32GB or 64GB of storage built into the device.

The Android Oreo based OxygenOS build for the OnePlus 5 is starting to roll out again.  The original update was released to a small group last week but was halted after a bug was found in the initial release.  OnePlus reworked the build, incremented it up to OxygenOS 5.0.1, and has re-released it.  So far, no issues have been reported.

The 5.x train for OnePlus’ Android builds, brings it up to Oreo as the base platform and the company has now released it for the OnePlus 3, 3T and 5.  Only the 5T remains in beta but that shouldn’t be for much longer.

As for changes, there are a lot in this update for the OnePlus 5.  The launcher has been updated, the camera now has portrait mode and there are a lot of overall system optimizations that are happening that should improve the stability and performance of the phone.

Today’s Deal is for those of you who have been looking for a Chrome OS dedicated keyboard to setup in your office or work space.  The Dell Wired Keyboard KB69211 is specifically laid out with Chrome OS users in mind.  It is also at a great price.  Right now it is $12.99 on Amazon and includes free shipping.

The Dell Wired Keyboard is a traditional QWERTY keyboard with a built-in number pad to the right.  But where you would normally find the function keys on other keyboards, on this one you will find Chrome OS specific functions suck as the refresh key, the multi-window key, volume and brightness controls.  There is even a lock key that allows you to lock your Chromebook with one long press of the key.