The game these days seems to be who can make the lightest, smallest, cheapest computer out there.
We like this game.
A group of hardware and software developers based in Oakland, Calif., the Next Thing Co. is building a tiny computer called C.H.I.P. that you can put in your pocket. C.H.I.P. can do almost everything a regular computer can do.
“Work in LibreOffice and save your documents to C.H.I.P.’s onboard storage,” states the Kickstarter. “Surf the web and check your email over Wi-Fi. Play games with a bluetooth controller. With dozens of applications and tools preinstalled, C.H.I.P. is ready to do computer things the moment you power it on.”
With a 1 GHz processor, 512 MB of ram, and 4 GB of storage, C.H.I.P. is Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled, and comes “preinstalled with dozens of useful applications, tools and amazing games. Beyond those, C.H.I.P. can run THOUSANDS of free applications from the open source community,” the developers say.
So far, they team has racked up over a million dollars and nearly 20,000 backers, well over their initial goal of $50,000. And they have 24 days to go.
A pledge of $9 will get you the computer, shipped in January 2016. For $49, you can also get the PocketC.H.I.P., a portable device that you pop your C.H.I.P. into that has a 4.3-inch touchscreen, keyboard and five hours of battery life.
No strangers to Kickstarter, Next Thing Co. launched with Otto, an animated GIF camera in May 2014.
Watch their quite clever video pitching C.H.I.P. below:
