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Another $99 Web Terminal
An Anonymous Coward writes: "If anyone is looking for a fun $99 hacking project, Tiger direct has Compaq Ipaq's for $99, great little web browsing terminals, they support Flash, jJava, ActiveX. The parts (LCD screen etc) are probably worth more than this. You'll need to get a USB Ethernet adapter so you can use broadband." Tiger Direct seems to have a mixed reputation for service, but at under a hundred dollars, this looks pretty tempting even if only used as a digital photo frame, or an adjunct mail terminal.
When you go to the page at TigerDirect.com, notice the heading of the product: Compaq iPaq IA-1 Home Internet Appliance (Recertified). What exactly does "recertified" refer to? Was this product possibly defective and returned for service? I have never had any luck with recertified or that other "R" word: refurbished. Just a warning!
While it's fun to think about modifying these appliances to run Linux in your kitchen (or whatever), it's important to remember that if you're really looking to put together something useful -- as opposed to re-engineering an iPaq or iOpener for the hack value -- you're probably better off getting a bargain-basement used laptop. Most of us here already have a home LAN, a Linux server, and a broadband connection, right? You don't really need a very beefy laptop to accomplish the "appliance" task. Enough memory to run X and perhaps a local browser, a color display, something to boot from, and an Ethernet adapter. I've got an old AST Ascentia J over here, complete with its wonderous 16 MB RAM and 500 MB disk. But it's got a usable color display and a built-in pointer. The battery was shot so I just threw it away. A call to /sbin/hdparm keeps the hard disk from spinning except when it's being used, so it's easy on power too.
Think twice and you can save some money. No special tinkering required.
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