<p dir="ltr">OK, let me write it down:</p>
<p dir="ltr">What product is the ultimate for the ARM PC market ?</p>
<p dir="ltr">1. Neo-ITX form factor (like VIA APC)<br>
Neo-ITX is great, because it allows to construct mini-PC (like Mac<br>
Mini) as well as full PC tower.<br>
2. ARM SoC with 1080p 2D output and hardware video decoders<br>
3. GNU/Linux and Android drivers for it<br>
(network/audio/2D/3D/hardware video decoder/WiFi/...)<br>
...your company will have to develop & test them. (or ask the SoC vendor...)<br>
3.a. preferably Open-Source drivers, but closed-source binary-only<br>
drivers are better than no driver (for "nice-to-have" features, like the 3D GPU)<br>
4. external Ports:<br>
4.a. Ethernet (like VIA APC)<br>
4.b. 4x USB (like VIA APC)<br>
4.c. DVI or VGA (like VIA APC)<br>
4.d. HDMI (like MK802 and VIA APC)<br>
4.e. power supply (like VIA APC; so it could power all 4 USB devices<br>
connected to it)<br>
4.f. MicroSD or Full SD slot for storage (like VIA APC)<br>
4.g. Audio ports: analog output (head-phones) and analog input<br>
(micro-phone) (like VIA APC; for VoIP)<br>
5. internal ports: (upgrade-ability)<br>
5. SATA 1 or 2 ports (like traditional PC)<br>
6. RAM: 1 GB on-board required for basic Linux desktop. Having more is better. (2 gigs even better) <br>
(RAM slot is a huge bonus; Alternative: is to use upgradeble CPU+RAM<br>
module, like this project does)<br>
7. Flash: at least 16 GB on-board storage (so that dual-boot image can<br>
live on it)<br>
8. WiFi chip + antenna on-board (like MK802) + Bluetooth<br>
9. Slim design (optional; up to 2cm max. height) (unlike VIA APC,<br>
which is too high, so it limits non-PC use-cases, such as mounting on<br>
the back of an LCD monitor. Slim design could result in a mono-block<br>
PC, product like Apple iMac)<br>
10. Dual-boot image: Android 4.x (with Google Play) + GNU/Linux OS (with KDE),<br>
Debian or Kubuntu (so users could choose which one to boot from).<br>
Advanced users could format the extra space (from 2nd OS) to use with<br>
one OS, but new users<br>
should see both operating systems on boot menu. It is a form of<br>
hedging your bets.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Such an ARM PC, if priced under $100, could become a best-seller. <br>
This machine will target 2 communities: Android buyers and GNU/Linux<br>
buyers. Much easier to sell.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Why ?<br>
The VIA-APC as a concept is GREAT. But it falls short in many details.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Let's analyze the VIA APC for a bit:</p>
<p dir="ltr">has ARM11, 800 MHz (VIA wondermedia 8750 SoC)<br>
512 MB of RAM<br>
2 GB of internal flash<br>
ports:<br>
VGA (good) (converters VGA->DVI are much cheaper than HDMI->DVI)<br>
4x USB (very good, no need for USB hub for most people)<br>
neo-ITX form factor (good, as it can be mounted into existing small<br>
mini-ATX & ITX cases with it's holes)<br>
HDMI (for modern TV users)<br>
Power supply (no need for USB powered hub)<br>
Analog audio output + input (great idea for VoIP; no need to buy USB audio card)</p>
<p dir="ltr">Best point:<br>
In short : the PC-like external I/O ports are very strong part in this<br>
design, along with Neo-ITX form factor.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Problems in VIA APC $49 design:<br>
1. Android OS (v2.3, it is touch-oriented, very hard to work with<br>
mouse + keyboard)<br>
Fix: needs Linux: Ubuntu-LTS or Debian-stable.<br>
Video drivers are only for Android, not for Linux.<br>
Without hardware video decoder drivers for Linux, the machine cannot<br>
be used for HD video.<br>
As for Android machine - VIA lacks Google Play Market.<br>
Without Google Play, it is difficult to get Android applications,<br>
which will scare off users.<br>
Recommended fix: ship with dual-boot OS (Android and Linux,<br>
[Debian-or-Ubuntu]), so users can choose at boot-time. Android image<br>
must have Google Play.<br>
2. RAM 512 MB: not enough to power full Linux/KDE desktop.<br>
It will constantly swap. (for instance a fresh install of Debian 6.0<br>
x86 with KDE takes ~700 MB RAM before starting any apps)<br>
Fix: boards needs at least 1 GB RAM<br>
2.a. +RAM slot for DDR3 SDRAM module. (optional, for future upgrades, PC-like)<br>
Fix: RAM slot is a very good idea for neo-ITX sized platform. (in<br>
addition to 1GB on-board RAM)<br>
*if RAM slot is impossible, then put 1 or 2GB RAM on-board.<br>
3. Storage: internal flash 2 GB is enough for Android, but not enough<br>
for Linux/KDE. 8 GB is minimum.<br>
Fix: put 8 GB or 16 GB flash on-board<br>
4. 2D: 720p is full stop. >80% of PC monitors selling today are 1080p.<br>
Running them in 720p (1280x720) degrades text quality, so the machine cannot be<br>
used for text.<br>
Fix: use display controller and SoC capable of 1080p 2D output.<br>
5. no SATA port: cannot use internal SATA HDD for extra storage and<br>
cannot use DVD drive.<br>
Fix: put 1 or 2 SATA ports on board.<br>
6. (optional) no WiFi: about 50% of users do need WiFi. Surely it can<br>
be added on USB, but if it is inexpensive (under $8 for chip+antenna), it<br>
would be nice to integrate on-board.<br>
Using USB WiFi is inelegant and may create problems with drivers not<br>
matching Linux.<br>
7. overall: the VIA 8750 SoC chip is a crap. (ARMv6, soft-float, and<br>
all of above)</p>
<p dir="ltr">I hope my analysis was informative for you !<br>
--<br>
-Alexey Eromenko "Technologov"</p>