How about a computer as small as a USB stick? Yes that’s exactly what UK-based game developer David Braben has built. Braben’s Raspberry Pi is a computer that’s the size of a USB stick and costs just $25.
And if you thought the small size also means that the PC pales on specs front, you got it wrong. The computer has a 700MHz processor and 128 Mb RAM. It comprises a tiny circuit board with an ARM processor, a USB port and an HDMI connection. Says the company on its site, “Our first product is about the size of a USB key, and is designed to plug into a TV or be combined with a touch screen for a low-cost tablet.”
The project is still in its early stages, and more prototypes need to be built before it’s finally launched. However, going by the looks of it, here’s surely a promising gadget in making.
Raspberry Pi’s full specsheet:
- 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)