

Dell’s bold plan to reinvent itself: A USB-sized PC - rbanffy
http://news.yahoo.com/dell-bold-plan-reinvent-itself-usb-sized-pc-204655460.html

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randallu
One can buy Android devices (like the MK802) which cost $50 and are similarly
sized with similar functionality. Doesn't seem like a big stretch to build an
image for one which just connects to a remote desktop.

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maratd
Dell wants to become a "cloud" company. Get a free computer, pay for the
virtual instance.

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sturadnidge
Pano Logic [1] tried something like this for the Enterprise virtual desktop
market and failed [2]. Maybe some of them ended up at Dell and want to take a
shot at the consumer market.

1 - <http://www.panologic.com>

2 - [http://www.infoworld.com/d/virtualization/vdi-startup-
pano-l...](http://www.infoworld.com/d/virtualization/vdi-startup-pano-logic-
closes-shop-keeps-it-secret-customers-206275)

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jiggy2011
So, what does the world start to look like when fully functional PCs are so
cheap that instead of buying a PC and getting free software it becomes the
other way around?

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ramayac
I tough about your statement for a minute, and I didn't like what I imagined
for a single second.

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gfodor
I'm not so sure. The Apple induced resurgence of paying for software due to
lower pricing has resulted in what I feel is a phenomenal leap forward in
emphasis on usability and design. Some might argue this is the most important
thing we should be optimizing around: how do we get the most usable software
for the least money?

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whichdan
Would this work like Remote Desktop or VNC or something? If the USB stick has
built-in wireless and bluetooth, it would be a really neat toy to play with.
That said, I doubt many people have a solid enough home network for something
like this to feel as responsive as a Chromebook. Not only would the USB stick
need to function as a very solid Wireless N adapter, but you'd need a DOCSIS3
modem, a high end N router, and most likely a 50Mbps connection or faster.
That's $200+ of hardware and a $70-120/mo connection.

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fghh45sdfhr3
This is what I have wanted.

I really, really want cheap disposable computers which I can plug into a
keyboard and large screen, and save files on something like tarsnap.

Give me that and I'll be buying them by the handful.

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qwerki
why buy more than one? can you please elaborate on the use case a bit more?

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ramayac
I can give you a simple example: I live in the capital of my country during
the week, and on weekends I always go to my grandparents house. Mobility is a
big issue for me, and since I don't have a car, I can't go moving around my
laptop on a public bus. That's it. Instead of having to buy another PC for "my
other home", I could simply plug one of these and BAM, problem solved.

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andrewflnr
I guess, but "one of these" will fit in your pocket.

Why exactly can't you take your laptop on a public bus?

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Zircom
Not to be rude, but he may be living in a country where it isn't exactly safe
to be carrying around something like that without having it stolen.

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ramayac
Exactly.

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wasd
Interesting but sounds like vaporware considering there is almost no technical
specs given and a "too good to be true" price point. None the less, I hope
Dell builds some cool products in the near future.

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dangerlibrary
Pricing it at $50 makes perfect sense if they intend to charge a monthly fee
for access to the "Dell Cloud OS" service. It's a worthless little stick
without a subscription.

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notahacker
$50 loss leader pricing plus a ~$19 per month (first ~3 months free!) OS
service could be a very good way of monetising cheap hardware.

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tytso
I very much doubt this is Dell's primary hope for righting the ship. It might
be an skunkworks / "interpreneurship" effort inside of Dell --- but I'm sure
it's not the only thing behind Dell's thinking about why it might be better to
take the company private.

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brudgers
A company with $4.5 billion of operating income isn't exactly capsized.

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jsz0
The bold plan here is probably way more about the service of doing hosted PCs
than this particular piece of hardware which is IMO a niche product at best.
It's probably a safe bet people will continue to do more of their computing on
SmartPhones, tablets, and other non-PC devices but many will still need access
to a PC for different things. They may not really want to buy a PC they only
use 10-20% of the time. Paying for access to one available in the cloud on any
of your devices is a great solution. Not a new idea of course but if they make
it a mainstream service it's something that could be successful in the post-PC
world.

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fastball
“[gives users access to] Windows, Mac OS, Google’s Chrome OS, Dell’s custom
cloud solutions, Citrix cloud software, and even Google’s Chrome OS.”

They seem really excited about Google's Chrome OS.

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joejohnson
I wonder if it supports Google's Chrome OS?!

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antoncohen
I like this idea, if it's done right. The device could run Android or Chrome
OS, and use something like XenApp to provide virtual applications. Most
consumers need only a web browser 95% of the time, so Chrome OS is perfect,
for the other 5% they can use virtual applications. Citrix already has a
client called "Citrix Receiver" for Android and Chrome OS that allows Windows
apps to "run" on the platforms: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=So4UPP3K93g>

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gpcz
How would peripherals work? You plug it into a TV and it boots, but how do you
interact with it? How can Dell guarantee a good user experience with all those
different operating systems they have to support? Aside from a thumbdrive form
factor, what would this thing offer that a netbook or a tablet PC could not?

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mieubrisse
The impression I got was that the machine has USB ports.

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Shorel
So, a competition to the Raspberry pi?

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testing12341234
I'd love something with the following specs:

* sub-$50

* USB powered

* USB stick sized

* Plugs in to a monitor via USB

* Auto-suspends when removed.

* Auto-wake upon insertion

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rbanffy
If you are able to live with less than 50 mA, you can power the thing off an
HDMI connector.

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jakozaur
I don't see myself using it. Anyone willing to buy these? Any particular user
group which might be interested.

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richforrester
A 50 dollar computer that you can take anywhere you want? Are you kidding? How
about every big company's customer service center? $50 stations for every
employee? They'd be silly not to use it.

Just a random idea there. I'm sure there's hundreds.

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pinaceae
huh?

still need a monitor and peripherals, this is just a USB stick.

what makes people's brains shut off whenever such PR is posted?

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richforrester
While my brain has most certainly been switched off for quite a while
(prepping for a 3 week holiday!) I can assure you that $50 is cheaper than
what they currently have, computer-wise. It's also less maintenance heavy.

You forgot to mention that you also need to pay the people sitting at said
computer, buy their desks, hire their office space, pay their managers, their
manager's managers and your own brand new sports-car.

Those are also things that are totally unrelated to the cut in costs you
gained by swapping the computer for a fifty dollar stick.

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gpurkins
Thin clients ride again. How much will Dell charge to run your instances?

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amalag
Yes this is what I don't understand, are they expecting to charge a
subscription fee or how will they maintain revenue from a one time $50
computer.

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macspoofing
Why build a "USB"-based device. Just make an Android/iOS app.

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duaneb
Because Dell is not a software company? They might as well get into designing
clothes.

EDIT: Obviously a hyperbole. But that seems pretty damn arbitrary.

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macspoofing
It looks like they want to be one regardless. Their USB computer with hosted
VMs will need tons of custom software support.

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bitsoda
An interconnect protocol-sized PC?

