Apparently, we’re very close to having a low-power, affordable Linux media (er, audio) center, driven by a tiny wall-wart. It should only need to support networking, USB, ssh, external storage, and audio output. The candidate is called the Marvell ShivaPlug, and it features some of those, and maybe the rest can be satisfied.
The NIC and USB are obviously present. ssh is highly expected (how else would you get in?), as is the ability to install anything that will fit in the 512 MiB of flash. The audio output is missing, but if it supports any USB hub, you could connect an external USB drive and a USB amp like this one, and feed into your sound system. Wonder what distro it’s using?
I’ve been using an old laptop to drive the audio for my whole house for several years. This is not a great solution since it’s comparatively power hungry, loud, takes up space, and is dying. With the wall-wart, that old system can disappear, and the wart can probably put out a lot better sound (with the USB amp). I’ve considered replacing the laptop with an iTouch or some device, but I really like using the machine as a server for other purposes that a handheld would not support.
So far this system is just theoretical. But I hope to get my hands on one of these and try it out. Hmm, there are even USB monitors now; that could be interesting!
It would also make for a nice little backup server, hosting a drive for automated rsync. There’s also the need for USB-powered eXtreme Feedback Devices (XFDs). The ShivaPlug could handle some of that with a USB light or lava lamp. Any other possibilities? Let me know your experiences if you’re playing with one.
Thanks Jon for the link!
Tags: automation, backup, multi-media
Looks like Marvell has got the goods with their Kirkwood series. We just need you and me and 2998 other people to order from http://avnetexpress.avnet.com/.....oll…
And wait 15 weeks for the factory to make them.
It's disappointing because I want exactly that – plug into wall, wireless, HDMI out. Have a couple of those and you can pull in the data from the main disk(s) attached to your server or router.