The mini PC market just keeps evolving. Not long ago, we mentioned how excited we were about the emerging low-cost minicomputer market – devices capable of condensing the power of a basic desktop computer into a motherboard the size of your palm – such as the recent Raspberri Pi or the ODROID. But that is already long in the past. If we take into account the capabilities of today’s smartphones, it was just a matter of time that integration technology allowed for the commercialization of hardware of this kind at competitive prices. This is exactly why the S21H, a high-end mini PC the size of a USB flash drive, has been developed – it can turn your television set into the ultimate smart TV running Android.
These devices, which are manufactured in China, can be found for even more economical prices just by browsing the Internet, such as in the case of the Rikomagic MK802 or the UG007, which cost less than $60. The major difference regarding all these other machines is that the S21H is equipped with, among other superior features, 2GB of RAM. Here are the rest of the tech specs:
- RK 3066, Cortex-A9 dual-core 1.6 GHz processor.
- 2GB DDR3
- 8GB Nand Flash Internal memory
- WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
- Bluetooth connectivity
In regards to connectivity, it has an HDMI port so you can connect it directly to your monitor/TV without using any external hardware, as well as a USB and Micro USB slot. You don’t need any external device to make it work, and you can connect any Bluetooth device, or even use your smartphone or tablet to control it from a distance. All this comes packed gloriously in a 4 x 10 cm shell.
It comes with Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean preinstalled in seven languages, and is capable of playing FullHD video at 1080p in practically any current video format. Thus, your TV turns into a multimedia player with everything you need, in addition to being able to use it as a gaming device backed by the enormous GooglePlay catalog.
While Android is more than enough for doing all your basic tasks that you would need to do, it’s only a matter of time before Linux versions of these types of gadgets begin to appear on the market. Without diving too deep into the details, it is being rumored that soon there will be an Ubuntu version of the device capable of running on the RK3066 processor, the standard for these mini PCs and tablets that come from China. In fact, you can already find an Alpha version of Ubuntu 12.10 ready to install, although the process for doing so is still very complicated.
S21H can be found in a countless number of online stores for around $70. For example, on the AliExpress website the device currently costs $73.79, but if you enter the promo code “mainagame5,” you’ll receive a $5 discount. If take into account that Hong Kong Post Air Mail ships to the U.S. for free, then you can get the device for easily under $70, which is a very good price for a device with such capabilities.
Source | Liliputing
