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Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux)
DesktopLinux looks
at some small yet full-featured Linux-powered PCs. "When I say
full-featured, don't mean Internet tablets, like the Nokia N800, or PDAs
(personal digital assistants), such as Palm's Foleo mobile companion. No,
what I wanted to see were real desktops or laptops that I could fit into a
coat pocket. Here's what I found."
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Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 1:46 UTC (Wed) by dhess (guest, #7827) [Link] Not mentioned in the article is the Linutop: http://www.linutop.com/product/ According to the Linutop development wiki and the LinuxBIOS home page, the Linutop ships with LinuxBIOS. That, combined with its out-of-the-box support for booting off a USB flash drive (the Linutop has no internal storage), it should boot really quickly. I'm considering getting one of these for an embedded project; anyone have experience with them?
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 11:01 UTC (Wed) by endecotp (guest, #36428) [Link] The VIA Pico-ITX board (1GHz VIA C7M, 10x7.2cm) is also not mentioned, perhaps because there are very few enclosures for it yet. There is one here though: http://mini-itx.com/store/?c=41
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 13:39 UTC (Wed) by vondo (guest, #256) [Link] The base configuration of that device with no hard drive is about $600. That's pretty pricey. I'd love to have an linux-based instant on net appliance with a 12" or so touch screen in my kitchen, but I haven't seen anything like that out there yet. So far the Nokia N series look the closest.
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 15:28 UTC (Wed) by endecotp (guest, #36428) [Link] Yes, it's not cheap; you're paying extra for it being small and low-power. But it's not $600, it's £300; that's probably about US$450 at typical exchange rates for computer bits :-( Regarding your 12" kitchen appliance, I've made myself a digital picture frame with a 1440x900 LCD and the previous generation of VIA board (C3, 800MHz). At the time it was a better bet than the AMD geode devices, but they seem to have caught up a bit. There are various boxes from e.g. Wyse that are typically geode based and fit on the back of a standard LCD (and ship with Linux). That may be a bit cheaper than something like a Sahara slate PC. There certainly seems to be a gap in the market there.
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Nov 1, 2007 22:42 UTC (Thu) by undefined (guest, #40876) [Link] google disagrees with you (at the time of this posting): UK£ 300 = 621.75 US$. see for yourself: http://www.google.com/search?q=%C2%A3300+in+%24. the exchange rate has been roughly 2:1 for a year now (http://finance.yahoo.com/currency/convert?amt=300&fro...). i buy a few cds a year from small uk labels and i wish you were right because the conversion rate hurts.
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Nov 1, 2007 23:04 UTC (Thu) by nix (subscriber, #2304) [Link] The GBP:USD exchange rate is higher than it has been for a quarter-century, in fact...
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Nov 1, 2007 23:45 UTC (Thu) by endecotp (guest, #36428) [Link] I said, "exchange rate for computer bits". I actually took a few examples that are available both sides of the Atlantic and it seems to be about 1.5:1. This is better than the 1:1 that it was for many years. Yes, the real rate is significantly different. But companies that sell computer components don't use the real rate.
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 18:04 UTC (Wed) by leoc (subscriber, #39773) [Link] It's only got a 7" screen, but the Asus Eee might be a good fit.
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 14:12 UTC (Wed) by jpmcc (guest, #2452) [Link] There's a lot more information available now about the Asus Eee PC, e.g. this review, with retail shipping imminent. Looks a very desirable piece of kit.John
Where's the Zonbu?? Posted Oct 31, 2007 14:25 UTC (Wed) by moxfyre (subscriber, #13847) [Link] How did they leave out the Zonbu?? http://www.zonbu.com It's got 512mb RAM, SIX usb ports, 1.2 ghz VIA processor, internal IDE and minipci headers for hard drive and wifi, TV-out, 10/100 ethernet, etc. I've compared several of these mini-systems and the Zonbu, for $250, definitely comes out on top in terms of looks and features. Also uses about 10 W.
Where's the Zonbu?? Posted Nov 1, 2007 11:41 UTC (Thu) by Wummel (subscriber, #7591) [Link] I like the Koolu better. It openly states that it uses Linux, has a harddisk included and John "maddog" Hall is openly supporting it.On Zonbus Homepage I never found anything stating that the device uses Linux. They seem to be ashamed of that.
Where's the Zonbu?? Posted Nov 5, 2007 20:55 UTC (Mon) by DRBaldock (subscriber, #30881) [Link] From Koolu's "Who We Are" page: "Jon "maddog" Hall - CTO and Ambassador Jon "maddog" Hall is CTO and ambassador to the world for Koolu." It makes sense that he would openly support it, if he's the CTO of the company! From reading the Zonbu "Learn > OS" page, there's no mention of Linux. If you look at the "Learn > Applications" page and you know that Evolution is an Outlook replacement, you can infer that the OS is Linux. It appears that the Zonbu has higher-spec graphic hardware than the Koolu - 2048 x 1536 @ 75Hz (Zonbu) vs 1920 x 1440 (Koolu). The Koolu has a 500MHz AMD Geode LX 800, and the Zonbu has an "Intel-compatible ultra-low power CPU" (no specs other than that). Take Care, David Baldock
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Oct 31, 2007 19:28 UTC (Wed) by jimmybgood (guest, #26142) [Link] So has anyone from LWN contacted any of these manufacturers to see if they would like to place an ad? I'd certainly click on them.
Itty-bitty, teeny-weeny Linux PCs (DesktopLinux) Posted Nov 1, 2007 23:02 UTC (Thu) by cantsin (guest, #4420) [Link] The VIA Nanobook might be added to the list, a 7" mini notebook reference design based on a Via C7-M CPU and inexpensively sold under different brands/customizations such as the Packard Bell Easynote XS. It's a full-featured device with keyboard, 30 GB harddisk and 1 GB RAM. Linux can be made to run on it, but still with some quirks because of poor driver support for the VIA chips, see my installation report and HOWTO.
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