Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer • Hacker News Board

Re: Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer

#11

Post by inportb » Sun, May 13, 2012, 2:55 PM UTC

robert00700 wrote: post #5

At first I was wondering about the benefits of using such a system vs. something like deploying the raspberry pi en masse (which is a full system for under $50), but after some thought it comes down to the fact that the average utilization of any computer most of the time is very low, but we really notice the CPU power when we do something intensive (although not very often). Each user on this system could potentiall…

I'm still wondering why we couldn't just make thin clients using raspberry pi.

Re: Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer

#12

Post by nupark2 » Sun, May 13, 2012, 2:55 PM UTC

maxharris wrote: post #6

I think was a great idea, ten or fifteen years ago. But not today because the era of growth for desktop computers is essentially over. I have no idea what I would do with this today. I have a MacBook Pro, and my wife does, too. Nearly everyone I know has an iPhone, and an iPad. Why would any of us use this? Each of us already has two or three computers of some kind that we carry everywhere, nearly all the time. I'm n…

On top of that, the Rasperry Pi costs $25 and is full computer in of itself (which, in of itself, is a testament to the growth of the mobile system hardware market)

Slap a case on it and a copy of Ubuntu, double (or triple) that price, and you still have a cheaper option than this USB solution.

Re: Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer

#13

Post by maxharris » Sun, May 13, 2012, 2:58 PM UTC

robert00700 wrote: post #7

maxharris wrote: post #6

I think was a great idea, ten or fifteen years ago. But not today because the era of growth for desktop computers is essentially over. I have no idea what I would do with this today. I have a MacBook Pro, and my wife does, too. Nearly everyone I know has an iPhone, and an iPad. Why would any of us use this? Each of us already has two or three computers of some kind that we carry everywhere, nearly all the time. I'm n…

I would think the average person isn't lucky enough have an inventory of multiple thousand dollars of high-end computing equipment. This kind of system would be perfect in developing countries, or as the project suggests, for education.

Many people in developing countries have mobile phones, and smartphones are rapidly becoming the computer of choice for them.

Also, remember that today's high-end is tomorrow's low-end. Why develop stuff for the past? Don't think of the developing world as a dumping ground for our worn-out ideas and wares, because that's not what it is.

Re: Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer

#14

Post by nupark2 » Sun, May 13, 2012, 2:59 PM UTC

robert00700 wrote: post #5

At first I was wondering about the benefits of using such a system vs. something like deploying the raspberry pi en masse (which is a full system for under $50), but after some thought it comes down to the fact that the average utilization of any computer most of the time is very low, but we really notice the CPU power when we do something intensive (although not very often). Each user on this system could potentiall…

The hardware in question very likely has computing power (and associated cost) not that far off from that of the Raspberry Pi.

You also have to factor in the cost of the machine used to drive these USB display drivers -- with 4 users on a $500 machine, you're still talking about $125/user.

Re: Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer

#15

Post by ExpiredLink » Sun, May 13, 2012, 3:00 PM UTC

hahla wrote: post #9

Whats the point of this kickstarter? Theres nothing new here. Citrix, Vmware etc have been doing this for years now and thin clients already exist by the hundreds. The $50 price point is towards the lower end but the client featured also cuts back on a bunch of features that competitors at $75-100 range have.

> Whats the point of this kickstarter?

Pluggability (to a single computer).

Re: Plugable Thin Client: The $50 Computer

#16

Post by s_henry_paulson » Mon, May 14, 2012, 8:18 AM UTC

mseebach wrote: post #4

s_henry_paulson wrote: post #2

Ok, so they're making something that already exists. I know the HP version costs about $80. What I want to know is how are they planning on bringing their costs down to be able to provide something cheaper than a larger company that already has the ability to produce whatever they want.

It seems it's not in fact a thin client - as far as I can tell, it's a USB hub and USB graphics card which then gets hooked up to its own X session on the host. It's much more limited than the HP devise you're referring to, so I would think it needs to be a lot cheaper to make sense.

I didn't call it a thin client client for a reason (because it's not a thin client).

These things are often referred to as zero clients, although even the details of that name are a little muddy.

The devices I'm referring to are the exact same thing, and these devices are the entire idea of Windows Multipoint Server, and can also be used with linux, although un-supported.