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The $25 PC

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Z

Zombie James

Banned
http://www.geek.com/articles/games/...braben-creates-a-usb-stick-pc-for-25-2011055/

Braben has developed a tiny USB stick PC that has a HDMI port in one end and a USB port on the other. You plug it into a HDMI socket and then connect a keyboard via the USB port giving you a fully functioning machine running a version of Linux. The cost? $25.

The hardware being offered is no slouch either. It uses a 700MHz ARM11 processor coupled with 128MB of RAM and runs OpenGL ES 2.0 allowing for decent graphics performance with 1080p output confirmed. Storage is catered for by an SD card slot. It also looks as though modules can be attached such as the 12MP camera seen in the image above.

We can expect it to run a range of Linux distributions, but it looks like Ubuntu may be the distro it ships with. That means it will handle web browsing, run office applications, and give the user a fully functional computer to play with as soon as it’s plugged in. All that and it can be carried in your pocket or on a key chain.
Click to expand...

u7Lv6.jpg


Do want.
 
R

RevDM

Banned
I'm not familiar with that processor/specs (actually I don't know much about Linux at all). Could this thing stream Netflix?
 
Z

Zebra

Member
I absolutely love this!

If this becomes commercially available, I would buy one for each of my friends and family members.

25$ just blows my mind. Kids in the coming generation won't know how great they've got it when computers become so cheap they can get one with a week's allowance.
 
B

BrassMonkey1010

Member
Zebra said:
I absolutely love this!

If this becomes commercially available, I would buy one for each of my friends and family members.

25$ just blows my mind. Kids in the coming generation won't know how great they've got it when computers become so cheap they can get one with a week's allowance.
Click to expand...

Damn, I only got $5 a week for allowance!
 
L

lightless_shado

Banned
So basically this thing is more advanced than a PC from the 90s. Amazing how far we've come.

My first computer had a 3GB HDD and struggled to run 3D games.
 
Z

Zebra

Member
BrassMonkey1010 said:
Damn, I only got $5 a week for allowance!
Click to expand...

Ahah, well so did I, but the notion is that if this thing is 25$ now, something similar to this will be even cheaper for the coming generation. 5$ would be amazing.
 
2

2th

Banned
make it have two micro usb ports and then find me a keyboard and mouse that use micro usb and this would be a freaking winner.
 
B

buy teh haloz

Banned
Zebra said:
Ahah, well so did I, but the notion is that if this thing is 25$ now, something similar to this will be even cheaper for the coming generation. 5$ would be amazing.
Click to expand...
Eventually they'll just start giving out computers as prizes in cereal boxes.
 
W

Why would you do that?

Member
I'm curious about its graphics specs. If it could do hardware accelerated stuff at a decent resolution at 60 fps, I'd be very happy.

I'd probably buy a cheap USB hub and put it inside of it.


Edit: Provisional specification:

700MHz ARM11
128MB of SDRAM
OpenGL ES 2.0
1080p30 H.264 high-profile decode
Composite and HDMI video output
USB 2.0
SD/MMC/SDIO memory card slot
General-purpose I/O
Open software (Ubuntu, Iceweasel, KOffice, Python)
 
N

NH Apache

Banned
lightless_shado said:
So basically this thing is more advanced than a PC from the 90s. Amazing how far we've come.

My first computer had a 3GB HDD and struggled to run 3D games.
Click to expand...

You must be young.

My first laptop:

http://koti.mbnet.fi/~oju/retro/Kaypro_eng.html

Amazing how miniaturization works.



Trent Strong said:
Can you do anything with 128MB of ram? Wouldn't this thing be so weak as to be almost worthless?
Click to expand...

Word processing and basic internet usage would be fine. I don't believe flash would run well.
 
I_D

I_D

Member
They should make it a bit bigger to accommodate the luxuries we're used to.

Double the size to allow for a mouse and speakers (which would still easily fit into your pocket), and they'd probably have a hit on their hands.
 
L

loosus

Banned
Make it $100 with considerably better specs (and maybe a half-inch larger, if need be), and I'm in.

I would honestly prefer an Intel architecture, though.
 
G

giga

Member
I know it's only $25, but the ARM11 is definitely a slouch. Slower than an iPhone 3GS. Would be cool for experimenting though.

Wonder what GPU it's using though. 1080p high profile decode means it's already better than the Tegra 2's.

loosus said:
Make it $100 with considerably better specs (and maybe a half-inch larger, if need be), and I'm in.

I would honestly prefer an Intel architecture, though.
Click to expand...
Would be so great if we could use the Apple TV as a computer with a desktop OS. Apple A4, 256MB RAM, 8GB storage, 802.11n for $100.

http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Apple-TV-2nd-Generation-Teardown/3625/2
 
W

wwm0nkey

Member
giga said:
I know it's only $25, but the ARM11 is definitely a slouch. Slower than an iPhone 3GS. Would be cool for experimenting though.

Wonder what GPU it's using though. 1080p high profile decode means it's already better than the Tegra 2's.


Would be so great if we could use the Apple TV as a computer with a desktop OS. Apple A4, 256MB RAM, 8GB storage.
Click to expand...
.
 
E

ElectricThunder

Member
Damn this is nice and I wonder if it will get some sort of tangential cascade going in terms of this and the likes of Beagle/Pandaboard,, SuperJumbo/Always Innovating, and the Arduino/Gameduino line of things? Hell, the XGameStation guy was I think last working on a new revision in the mobile space where I think the aim was something wristwatch sized.

I'm nowhere near an expert, but something along these lines some years out with the forthcoming A15 should be incredibly capable in an absolute sense...

Hell, with Braben on this thing maybe it can get us another proper Elite in an incredibly roundabout and unpredictable way?
 
C

clav

Member
Seems like a better initiative than the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) program. That was such a failure. My relative got one, and I have it in my hands as it's so useless to the commoner. Man, web browsing is a chore on this thing. Inputting letters literally takes a second in between.

I don't know if I'll get one of these for $25. It needs to be a bit more beefier at least enough for web browsing. Javascript and/or Flash would kill this. It'll have to run a modified version of Android or Damn Small Linux (DSL) for this to work.
 
Z

Zebra

Member
speculawyer said:
Cool but I wouldn't call it a 'PC'. Although that is vague term, I'd say that it implies something that can run Windows.
Click to expand...

I would say that calling it a PC implies that it is a personal computer.
 
D

DurielBlack

Member
This is cool tech, and at that price I could see splurging on it a bit to find some sort of use for it.

I assume it uses flash memory for storage, but the article doesn't say how much it contains, I'd assume at least 1-2gb.

I'd pay 50$ to include a second USB connection for a mouse.
 
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