Marvell's Plug Computer

From TG Daily -

Marvell has announced a new type of computer. It's about the size of a power brick but is a full System-on-a-Chip (SoC) with a 1200 MHz CPU, built-in 512 MB Flash, 512 MB DRAM, Gigabit Ethernet and USB 2.0 support. It runs small versions of Linux and consumes about 5 watts max. The $99 device opens up a wide array of extremely low-power, low-volume, always on applications.

Called the SheevaPlug, and it is powered by the Kirkwood SoC platform which comes with open-source Linux 2.6-based kernel applications. The entire computer exists inside the chip, with only power supply and interface hardware surrounding it inside the plug form factor. It plugs directly into a wall outlet. From there, a Gigabit Ethernet cable is run from the Plug to a router, allowing data reaching its IP address to be responded to.

It has no built-in video capability but access can be had through remote desktop, which leverages the capabilities of another machine on the network to update and configure the Plug Computer server.

While the concept is absolutely brilliant, it gets a very low score for its lack of user-friendliness. It is being built on a Linux framework with no built-in video support would not be easy to use at all. Still, the eventual $49 price tag might offset any product resistance but its initial price tag of $79 to $99 should keep most buyers away.