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BUG - "The LEGO of Gadgets"

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the well-it-looks-neat-at-least dept.

TheBrutalTruth writes "Bug Labs will soon be launching what Webware calls 'the LEGO of gadgets.' From their site: 'BUG is a collection of easy-to-use electronic modules that snap together to build any gadget you can imagine. Each BUGmodule represents a specific gadget function (ex: a camera, a keyboard, a video output, etc). You decide which functions to include and BUG takes care of the rest, letting you try out different combinations quickly and easily. With BUG and the integrated programming environment/web community (BUGnet), anyone can build, program, and share innovative devices and applications. We don't define the final products — you do.'" Looks a bit vaporous, but conceptually interesting.

3 of 131 comments (clear)

  1. Overhyped? by AKAImBatman · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I dunno. Looking at the device on the website, I can't help but wonder if this isn't overhyped. It appears to only have 2 generic snap-in ports on top with the rest of the ports defining a more specific interface. What that means is not so much, "You define the final product", but more along the lines of, "You can use these attachements... or not."

    It really doesn't seem all that different than your average embedded dev-kit + a USB hub. Certainly the comparison to LEGO does not hold. LEGOs are based on a key component of classical construction: The brick. Toys of its nature existed long before the LEGO was invented. The key innovation to the LEGO was the "snap-together" interface which gave the bricks a structural stability that their real-world counterpart lacked.

    What you have here is not so much a key innovation on top of existing, generic components, but rather a repackaging of components that can be found in a variety of products. Of course, there's always the possibility that I'm underestimating this design. In which case I look forward to BUG proving me wrong. :-)

    --
    Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
  2. Didn't we already do this... by INeededALogin · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Its called "Whitebox PC". Seriously... peripherals: camera, keyboard, mouse, trackball, gps, harddrives, infared, etc...

    Seems like nothing more than the recreation of a PC with non-standard interconnects.

  3. Re:Not to be captain buzzkill, but... by Lijemo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    why is this better than a gadget that has all that stuff already in it?

    If you have to ask, then you're not the target audience =^)