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Intel 'Compute Stick' PC-Over-HDMI Dongle Launched, Tested

Posted by Soulskill on from the minimally-elegant-product-names dept.

MojoKid writes: Intel has officially announced the availability of their Compute Stick HDMI dongle, and has lifted the embargo on early tests with the device. The Compute Stick is essentially a fully-functional, low-power, Atom-based system with memory, storage, and an OS, crammed into a dongle about 10cm long. There will initially be two compute sticks made available: one running Windows (model STCK1A32WFC) and another running Ubuntu (model STCK1A8LFC). The Windows 8.1 version of the Compute Stick is packing an Intel Atom Z3735F processor, with a single-channel of 2GB of DDR3L-1333 RAM and 32GB of internal storage, though out of the box only 19.2GB is usable. The Ubuntu version of the Compute Stick has as a similar CPU, but is packing only 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. All sticks have USB and MicroSD expansion capability. It doesn't burn through any benchmarks, but for multi-media playback, basic computing tasks, web browsing, HD video, or remote access, the Compute Stick has enough muscle to get the job done, and it's cheap, too: $99 — $149.

5 of 174 comments (clear)

  1. Cripple Linux? by realilskater · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why in FSM's name are the Ubuntu version hardware specs lower?

    1. Re:Cripple Linux? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Probably true, and a commentary on the overhead required to run Windows. Even so, it would be nice to run Ubuntu on the other version without having to pay the "Microsoft tax" to get the upgraded hardware. A higher price is fair, but paying for a license you don't use is silly.

    2. Re:Cripple Linux? by serviscope_minor · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why in FSM's name are the Ubuntu version hardware specs lower?

      I think because they want to sell a cheap, low spec one and MS doesn't like people shipping Windows on underspeced hardware.

      Anyway, my old eee has 1G RAM and to be honest it's beginning to get rather spartan even for web browsing.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    3. Re:Cripple Linux? by Dracos · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Makes me wonder about the economics of producing these things. Apparently something related to the OS choices makes it worth Intel's while to develop separate models and the infrastructure to build each one, rather than just building the higher spec model and slapping either OS onto it.

      It's things like this that hearken back to the glory days of the Evil Empire, and why people find it difficult to trust MS now.

    4. Re:Cripple Linux? by hawguy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      For the last 24 years: LINUX ISN'T STUPID BLOATWARE! IT RUNS GREAT ON ANY HARDWARE!!!

      Hardware maker in 2015: OK, you're right. Here ya go.

      Fanboys: OMG!! CRIPPLED HARDWARE!!

      It's still a valid complaint -- why give the Ubuntu device half the ram and 1/4 the storage? Even if Ubuntu *requires* less resources than Windows, the applications that people want to run may not. Chrome, in particular, seems to grow to consume all of my RAM whether I run it on my old 2GB laptop or my 16GB desktop. And the Windows device has 19GB of usable storage -- more than 3 times the total amount of storage on the Ubuntu stick, Ubuntu users store data too, especially on a device well suited to be a media player.