Submitted by After initially thinking this would be great for people who want to do some of the stuff usually done on PC without the expense, now I’m not so sure who it suits. It fits only very simple work, ideally just in the browser or in Google apps; it’s not enjoyable or smooth enough for leisure time use; for viewing content you’d be better off with a set-top box; and you can just plain forget playing games on it.
The Remix Mini has its appeals and uses only for pretty basic work. But as it is, here and now, it’s not the post-Windows solution that some of us are looking for.
I applaud what Jide is trying to do, but at this point, with Google having openly stated they are working on bringing Android to the desktop, and giving it proper multi-window and all other features that come with it, I see little to no reason to invest too much into these products.
Which really says more about the industry than anything else.
I agree, it is sad, and yet I can’t really deny what Thom’s saying. This might be said of any attempts by small players to break into these markets: don’t even bother. Better get used to living with monopoly/oligopoly tech because that’s the way of the future absent some form of economic renaissance to undo the concentrations of wealth, power, and control that have made alternatives non-viable.
Of course it is hard to deny this logic for normal people…but this is OSnews.
This was posted immediately after the ReactOS post which is a project trying to reach parity with an older Windows version (simplifying here) and that gets praise.
But this project that tries to do something that Android doesn’t do yet gets a shrug?
Of course this project will never go big, but projects like this and Samsungs multiwindowing, and others will help make Googles eventual implementation better. In the mean time nerds and geeks like us can already enjoy it.
Speaking for myself, I certainly admire the effort, and feel the need for more OS alternatives. But I am shrugging because Android is not ready/appropriate for the desktop (at least, not yet).
Android itself has become ubiquitous enough to be a threat to innovation, and shoehorning it into a “space” it doesn’t belong doesn’t excite me.
I also admire the ideal and respect the efforts which will go into this project. The idea of eventually having an open-source alternative to the future Google`s Android desktop has merit.
From a high level perspective, since Android is a touch based user interface with communication services grafted onto a Linux kernel, would it make more sense to attack this from the other direction?
Perhaps these boxes will find their niche in replacing dumb terminals at corporations. For instance, an android box on intranet would do just fine for many bank tellers (assuming they get required security certifications for the arrangement).
For what I see people do with computers in the bank, a Chromebook would be plenty.
Not without a secure application suite independent of Google, and drivers for machines such as card readers and PIN pads. They could be perfect, but aren’t at present.
Edited 2016-02-17 13:20 UTC