I’ve been playing with home automation lately. One big issue is having to have a big noisy PC in place to do anything fun.
So I started researching small embedded PCs, looking for something solid-state, low-power, reliable, and cheap.
I stumbled across ‘Plug Computers’.
“A plug computer is a tiny, low power server, intended to provide network-based services within the home.
It is an always-on system, and can serve data and applications to computing devices within the home. It can also be a bridge between home computing devices and Internet-based services.”
These are cool devices. Imagine a complete Linux server that is the size of a iPhone, uses 3 Watts of power, and has no power cord, as the whole computer is a wall-wart form-factor so the power prongs just stick out of the top.
Oh, and it costs $100
http://www.tonidoplug.com/
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2351505,00.asp
http://www.plugcomputer.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug_computer