The price for this small device matches its size

Jan 8, 2015 15:21 GMT  ·  By

The Intel Compute Stick, a small full-fledged PC running Ubuntu and Windows 8.1, has been announced at CES 2015. You've seen small PCs before, but this one is the size of a Chromecast and it's much more powerful.

When you see something that could easily be just a large USB stick, you don't think that it could possibly be a complete PC perfectly able to run either Ubuntu or Windows 8.1, but that's completely true. This is possible because it's using a couple of rather new technologies, which is an Intel Atom Z3735F processor at 1.3 GHz and a special kind of storage memory called eMMC.

For now, this is still in the announcement stage, but it looks like it's going to hit stores pretty soon, and it will do that by carrying a ridiculous price. From the looks of it, the Linux version will be available for $89 (€75) and the Windows variant will run for $149 (€126). It's a pretty big difference, but that was to be expected. It's also unclear whether it will be possible to upgrade to Windows 10.

Intel Compute Stick is a small powerhouse

The Windows and Ubuntu version of the Intel Compute Stick have different hardware specifications and that doesn't sound fair. Ubuntu does have lower hardware requirements, but that should not be a reason.

From what information has been provided until now, both versions will have the Intel Atom Z3735F Quad Core processor, 1 GB of RAM for Ubuntu and 2 GB of RAM for Windows, a 32GB eMMC storage solution (embedded Multi-Media Controller similar to SSD, but smaller) for Windows and just 8 GB for Ubuntu, and all the slots that you would need, including HDMI, USB, micro USB, and space for a MicroSD card. Wi-fi and Bluetooth is also provided.

"The Intel Compute Stick is a new generation compute-on-a-stick device that’s ready-to-go out-of–the-box and offers the performance, quality, and value you expect from Intel. It’s everything you love about your desktop computer in a device that fits in the palm of your hand," the Intel people are saying on their website.

It remains to be seen if this really catches on, but it will need some serious advertising and in a couple of years everyone will have these kinds of devices in their pockets.