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Curious Blend of VPN, PDA and USB Drive

An anonymous reader writes "Realm Systems has developed a cellphone-sized mobile device that takes advantage of the hardware of a another PC by attaching via USB. It requires an Internet connection to connect to a backend system, but acts as a fully functional PC with dual PowerPC processors, a 20 GB drive and all your applications - if you can find someone who lets you connect to their PC. An interesting option especially for a price of $195 for the mobile device." So, for a $10,000 central server, a $1000 PC, and a $195 device, you can have the computing power of: a $1000 PC. It seems like there might be cheaper ways.

2 of 84 comments (clear)

  1. This is the first by ZSpade · · Score: 5, Interesting

    and last time we'll ever see this piece of technology. Guy 1: Yeah, let me give you my business address. Guy 2: Hold on I'll put it on my MPS... Guy 2: Uhh, You wouldn't happen to have a computer on you, would you?

    --
    Go ahead and call me unreliable; reliable is just a synonym for predictable.
  2. gah! by torpor · · Score: 5, Insightful

    its awful, really .. to think that this whole thing is rendered useless by a USB-fob and a freebie operating system 'from those commies' ..

    but, what bothers me most about this is that we are *forever and perpetually* trying to build better client/server computing systems. we want power, but we don't want to be near the computer ..

    over and over, the same ol' problem. why don't we just make better, smaller, nicer, more comfy computers, and give up this whole 'beigebox' mentality?

    --
    ; -- the corruption of government starts with its secrets. a truly free people keep no secrets. --