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Thin Client PC Fits in Wall Socket
ukhackster writes "Last year, there was a lot of excitement about a cut-down PC that fitted into a wall socket. Next month, the Jack PC will go on sale in the UK for just £209 ($390)." From the article: "At a low price and using low power, MacLellan believes the device is 'one of the biggest developments in PCs that we have seen' and is one of the 'ever-growing range of thin clients, which are rapidly replacing PCs as a more effective desktop computing solution for modern businesses'. The Jack PC runs Windows CE, is designed to connect to 'any terminal server-based environment' and has Citrix ICA and Microsoft RDP clients built in. It runs Internet Explorer 6.0 to connect to Web-driven applications, and runs an 'up to 500MHz' AMD RISC processor, which the company says is equivalent to a 1.2GHz x86. It can come with up to 64MB of flash memory and 128MB RAM."
I'd love to move our office to thin clients however I really can't justify the cost. For £200 I can get a 2.4Ghz Celeron with 512MB of RAM, XP Pro, a keyboard, mouse and 17" flat panel monitor.
So for a little more, I can get a tiny little box instead... wohoo!
But hold on, that box doesn't include monitor, keyboard, mouse, or operating system. Add those on and for a typical organisation running windows, these devices work out around £200 more than a regular PC. And that's before you even look at the costs of the server you need to run all the software.
Hmm... so right now I can replace a £200 PC if I spend about £600 per user on a thin client solution... and that will save me money how exactly?
Until somebody takes a brave leap of coming up with a simple design and mass producing these the prices simply aren't even nearly competative.
So, thanks, but no thanks.
Here is what it says in their installation brochure:
"DC Power Jack for wall-mounted power supply, when no PoE is available and the device is to be powered externally"
They probably added this because the brochure shows how the Jack can be installed into furniture(desks), floors, or walls. It does seem funny at first glance though. Especially if you imagine patching together an outlet and a Jack that are next to eachother.
No, it fits into a standard electrical wallbox - it doesn't plug into a power socket.
It can run on PoE (Power over Ethernet) or on a 5V DC adaptor.
Though it would be nice if you could have a unit in a double-wallbox form that had a PSU you could directly wire to the mains.
BTW, IMO the TC mentioned is a bit pricey (but could be a great solution for the right need, is very cool and the wireless support is a serious bonus) since a standard (and still quite small) TC can be had on ebay for less then $50USD. As for CPU speed, rdp requires very, very little. Think Puppy Linux and rdesktop on a PI works fine. Thin clients are a blast to play with.
If they could just get the price below $200USD it would be great but for what it offers their price is somewhat reasonable.
"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity but they've always worked for me" - HST
http://www.chippc.com/resources/JackPC_Booklet.pdf
probably a version for handheld devices (without some bells, wistles, activeX, bugs from the PC-version).
but yes: Windows CE runs on MIPS (probably also ARM), as handhelds often don't use x86-chips.
1) Call centers
2) Telemarketing centers
3) Automotive shops (mecanics, etc) for parts lookup/ordering/word processessing/billing (terminal services)
4) Offices where workers are doing Word/Excell/etc (again, terminal services)
5) My situation where my laptop/docking station is used 90% (or more) for Word/Excel/Outlook and a commercial ticket tracking system, plus Web surfing/etc (terminal services for most of the work)
6) Every bank in my area (Bank of Kirksville, US Bank, Bank Midwest, NEMO Bank, etc) uses a full PC that, you guessed it, loads up (in most cases) Terminal Services to connect to the bank software for all customer banking needs
7) Several doctors offices in my area (including my eye doctor) have installed full PC's into the rooms for records lookup/input/etc.
I could go on and on. These are far from "useless" as you'd imply. A bit more spent on the server and much less (in some cases) spent on the machines. Plus, in the cases of the doctors offices, the PC's would be totally silent, which would be nice.
All one has to do is use their imagination and you'll see these could very well be quite handy in MANY situations.
bork bork bork!
From what I am reading most of us dont know what a thin client is. There is no reason a thin client actually needs an OS, and that is even contrary to what a thin client is designed to do.
Some of the later posts mention that Windows CE is a great viable option and one even went to say PXE was jsut a boot method, nothing more (what is that suposed to mean?) PXE is a great idea for thin clients, not only does it lower the required number of periphials, but it also allows for easy administration, because the thin clients would not store any settings etc, they would jsut conect to one central server.
I fear the Y2038 bug