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First Thoughts On The Cybiko?
codepawn asks: "I saw an article in the Australian newspaper this morning that was about a handheld originally out of Russia that is apparently becoming BIG with kids in the USA. The article suggests it has potential to become BIG with bigger kids, too. The device, called Cybiko, communicates on its own network using short wave radio. Once enough people in an area have it they can communicate over a larger distance because their signals will make up to 10 hops over other people's cybikos(which in the USA appears to be about 1km radius but in Europe will be up to 10km radius because regulations allow a stronger signal). I've downloaded the free SDK for Linux (there is a Windows SDK also available) which is available from their Web site as an rpm but I haven't looked at it yet. Anyway, it sounds super cool and I was surprised that I hadn't heard about it on here. So what's the story? Does anyone have one? What is it like?" Last I checked, they were selling them for about $199 at the local Wal-Mart and I have seen commercials for these on American TV. I almost broke down and bought one and it looks like I may have to since I never mind playing with new toys (and the Linux SDK may make for some fun hacking...)
Here's a Moscow Times article on it
But you have to consider that they're mostly marketed to teens, especially girls that love to chat and have parents with lots of disposable income and little supervision (the parents, I mean).
So, you do end up wirelessly chatting with lots of teenage girls in your immediate vicinity. Some consider this a detterent, I consider it a feature!
P. Naughton
So now we need someone to code Bipedal Transfer Protocol.
I see even classic Slashdot is now pretty much unusable on dial up anymore.
As everyone else here as said, they're more around the 99 dollar mark (USD of course). I've had a dialogue with of of the VPs of the Company about it and he let slip (?) that they also plan to offer an RF PC Linkage, so it can communicate wirelessly with a PC, 'surf the web', etc. And another guy at the Company hinted at a colour Cybiko using the same screen (or same type) as the GameBoy Colour -- if the units popularity warrants it.
I was also have an interesting discussion with some friends about making a relay protocol for the Cybikos, similar to Gnutella. If the unit you wanted to contact wasn't in you driect range, it would use shared routing tables to ping-pong the message through several Cybikos and relay it until it got to the one it was looking for.
Hilary Rosen's speech was about her love of money and her desire to roll around naked in a pile of money.
I just went to three stores - Best Buy, Office Max, and Office Depot. All three were out - and they were not sold out either.
Apparently Cybiko has recalled all the products. The people in each store confirmed this.
As to what is going on, your guess is as good as mine...
Went to yet another Best Buy and they were in the process of stocking them when I walked in. These were the new version 2 units - the ON/OFF switch is also the ESC key. I asked the guy stocking them if he knew what was up with this store recall thing and he said he had no clue - just that they were told to pack up all the units and send em back.
Oh well.
Anyway, you are right - it is aimed at kids - big time. But it is also just a pretty neat little hacking toy too. I have decided I need to get another one to play with the CyWIG. Not exactly sure how THAT will work, but I figure if I get enough of the things placed around, it will give some folks nearby some sort of email access. Could be a hoot...
Cheap, tiny handheld computers aimed at teens, with wireless capabilities... I think Lain had a pocket Navi like this, but with color :)
My main question is: if this thing can do all that and cost $99.95, why does a Palm (whatever, V? VII?) do the same stuff and cost 3x as much?
Take a look at the specs. Let's compare with the Handspring Visor. ($179.00)
The Visor uses a 16MHz Motorola Dragonball EZ.
The Visor quadruples this, with 2MB.
None built-in on the Visor, but 8MB and 16MB flash modules are available.
Visor's screen is 160x160, 53.34mm square, 16-level grayscale
Visor uses IR to communicate between units. In my experience, this is limited to a 4-foot line-of-sight between the units' IR lenses.
Springboard slot, lots of gizmos available.
Visor's USB cradle is faster.
Visor is 4.8" x 3.0" x 0.7"
Visor is actually heavier, at 5.4 oz.
The storage capacity seems to be the big factor. 512K isn't a whole lot of room to work with.
I still want one. I can see a lot of nifty applications for this, particularly once the Cybiko Wireless Internet Gates are available (see Xunker's post below).
--LordEq
Tho' your promise count for nothing
Perhaps Palm does need to watch out. I'm not sure if the threat is from Cybiko or not, though. Although the Cybiko has the features you mentioned, I don't think it's as quick or easy to use as my palm. In my opinion, it is not appropriate to carry around as a replacement for my Palm Pilot. For about a quarter of the price, though, it may be close.
regarding the expandability, there is a slot in the botton of the cybiko to insert upgrade cards. I think the only one available is a 1MB memory upgrade. (that helps). The slot looks a lot like PCMCIA, so perhaps soon we can start sticking all kinds of stuff in there.
There is a linux C SDK for the Cybiko, so as you mentioned, maybe if these things get into the right hands we'll have lots of cool apps and hacks for it.
I don't mean to talk the Cybiko down, I just don't think that it is an effective organizer, and of course there is not nearly the amount of software for it.
All your dangifiknow are belong to us.
If you want an organizer, get a Palm Pilot. If you want a toy, get a cybiko.
All your dangifiknow are belong to us.
I think it's just pulling from a fortune file. The file is probably too big for him to have screened all the entries, and he shouldn't have to.
You have a problem, write him a polite email and have him knock it out of the file. Don't go bitching like he's suddenly some sort of Final Solution nutcase.
Me, I found it funny, but then again it's probably the fact that when I stopped for gas this morning I was next to a teenage Hispanic driving a bashed-up multicolor Caprice in a three-piece that looked a size too big.
"Fucking rain."
"I know. Now I'm gonna have to have this suit dry-cleaned"
"Yeah, it's hell on wool. Funeral?"
"No, court date."
"Oh. Sorry. Know if the coffee here is any good?"
"I think it's an instant machine."
"Okay, so long as it ain't a pot of tar thats been boiling since the Reagan administration."
"Heh."
.sig: Now legally binding!