Internet appliance
Encyclopedia
An Internet appliance is a consumer device whose main function is easy access to Internet
services such as WWW
or e-mail
. The term was popularized in the 1990s, when it somewhat overlapped in meaning with an information appliance
, Internet computer, network computer
, or even thin client
, but now it has fallen out of general use.
Internet appliance was contrasted with any general purpose computer
. The basic design idea behind Internet appliance is that it can be made cheaper and much more usable by narrowing its functionality and limiting available configuration options. Modern smart phones and tablet computer
s do approximately the same things, but are more powerful, more successful in the market, and generally not classified as Internet appliances.
would later describe the concept as one of the "eight biggest tech flops ever".
An Internet tablet
is a type of a mobile Internet appliance. Examples include the Sony Airboard and the Nokia Internet Tablet series (including the Nokia N900
).
Early in the 21st century a new breed of household devices, such as Vonage Internet Phones, PenguinRadio's Internet radio
, and IPTV
boxes, began to use the broadband connections in PC-independent ways.
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
services such as WWW
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
or e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
. The term was popularized in the 1990s, when it somewhat overlapped in meaning with an information appliance
Information appliance
In general terms, an information appliance or information device is any machine or device that is usable for the purposes of computing, telecommunicating, reproducing, and presenting encoded information in myriad forms and applications....
, Internet computer, network computer
Network computer
Network Computer is a trademark of Oracle Corporation that was used, from approximately 1996 to 2000, to market a range of diskless desktop computer devices. The devices were designed and manufactured by an alliance, which included Sun Microsystems, IBM, and others...
, or even thin client
Thin client
A thin client is a computer or a computer program which depends heavily on some other computer to fulfill its traditional computational roles. This stands in contrast to the traditional fat client, a computer designed to take on these roles by itself...
, but now it has fallen out of general use.
Internet appliance was contrasted with any general purpose computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
. The basic design idea behind Internet appliance is that it can be made cheaper and much more usable by narrowing its functionality and limiting available configuration options. Modern smart phones and tablet computer
Tablet computer
A tablet computer, or simply tablet, is a complete mobile computer, larger than a mobile phone or personal digital assistant, integrated into a flat touch screen and primarily operated by touching the screen...
s do approximately the same things, but are more powerful, more successful in the market, and generally not classified as Internet appliances.
History
The first appliances to be marketed successfully gave constant information on the weather or on the state of the stock market, by means of changes in colors or by using analog gauges. Internet appliances were promoted by a variety of technology companies during the 1990s but, as the price of full-featured computers dropped, never met the market expectations. Jim LouderbackJim Louderback
James 'Jim' Louderback is the CEO of Revision3. He has had numerous jobs in media companies involved in technology, most notably with TechTV and editor-in-chief of PC Magazine...
would later describe the concept as one of the "eight biggest tech flops ever".
An Internet tablet
Internet Tablet
Nokia Internet Tablets is the name given to a range of Nokia mobile Internet appliances products. These tablets fall in the range between a personal digital assistant and an Ultra-Mobile PC , and slightly below Intel's Mobile Internet device .- Maemo :Nokia Internet Tablets run the Debian...
is a type of a mobile Internet appliance. Examples include the Sony Airboard and the Nokia Internet Tablet series (including the Nokia N900
Nokia N900
The Nokia N900 is a smartphone made by Nokia. It supersedes the Nokia N810. Its default operating system, Maemo 5, is a Linux-based OS originally developed for the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. It is the first Nokia device based upon the Texas Instruments OMAP3 microprocessor with the ARM Cortex-A8...
).
Early in the 21st century a new breed of household devices, such as Vonage Internet Phones, PenguinRadio's Internet radio
Internet radio
Internet radio is an audio service transmitted via the Internet...
, and IPTV
IPTV
Internet Protocol television is a system through which television services are delivered using the Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats.IPTV services...
boxes, began to use the broadband connections in PC-independent ways.
Current
- aigo MID
- MSN TVMSN TVMSN TV is the name of both a thin client which uses a television for display , and the online service that supports it....
- Sony MyloMylo (Sony)My Life Online is a device created and marketed by Sony for portable instant messaging and other Internet-based communications, browsing Internet web sites and playback and sharing of media files. The pocket-sized, tablet-shaped handheld device has a screen which slides up to reveal a QWERTY...
- Personal Internet CommunicatorPersonal Internet CommunicatorThe Personal Internet Communicator is a consumer device released by AMD in 2004 to allow people in emerging countries like India, Uruguay and the Caribbean access to the internet. The PIC has been deployed by Internet service providers in several developing countries...
- Nokia N810Nokia N810The Nokia N810 Internet tablet is an Internet appliance from Nokia, announced on 17 October, 2007 at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco. Despite Nokia's strong association with cellular products, the N810 is not a phone, but instead allows the user to browse the Internet and communicate using...
- Nokia N900Nokia N900The Nokia N900 is a smartphone made by Nokia. It supersedes the Nokia N810. Its default operating system, Maemo 5, is a Linux-based OS originally developed for the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. It is the first Nokia device based upon the Texas Instruments OMAP3 microprocessor with the ARM Cortex-A8...
- Apple iPad
- Litl Webbook
Discontinued
- 3Com Audrey3Com AudreyThe 3Com Ergo Audrey is a discontinued internet appliance from 3Com. It was released to the public on October 17, 2000 for USD499 as the first device in the company's "Ergo" initiative to hit the market...
- MSN CompanionMSN CompanionThe MSN Companion was a small-scale personal computer terminal that was designed for easy access to MSN services on the Internet, such as Hotmail, while still being cheap and easy to use. They were intended for use by people with little knowledge of computers or technology, and many included...
- Compaq iPAQIPAQ (desktop computer)The iPAQ Desktop Personal Computer in its various incarnations was a Legacy-free PC produced by the Compaq Computer Corporation around the year 2000....
- ePodEPodThe ePodsOne was an internet appliance from ePods.com from the dot.com bubble era that lives on as a hacked platform. ePods.com was founded in 1999; the company and the EP1 was discontinued in 2000...
- i-OpenerI-OpenerThe i-Opener was a low-cost internet appliance produced by Netpliance between the years 1999 and 2002. The hardware, cheaply available, became popular among collectors who modified the appliance to run as a normal PC. This made the device capable of running PC operating systems, such as Linux and...
- New Internet ComputerNew Internet ComputerThe New Internet Computer was a Linux-based internet appliance released July 6, 2000 by Larry Ellison's New Internet Computer Company. The system sold for US$199....
- Nokia N800Nokia N800The Nokia N800 Internet tablet is a wireless Internet appliance from Nokia, originally announced at the Las Vegas CES 2007 Summit in January 2007. N800 allows the user to browse the Internet and communicate using Wi-Fi networks or with mobile phone via Bluetooth. The N800 was developed as the...
- Nokia 770 Internet TabletNokia 770 Internet TabletThe Nokia 770 Internet tablet is a wireless Internet appliance from Nokia, originally announced at the LinuxWorld Summit in New York City on May 25, 2005...
- Pepper PadPepper PadThe Pepper Pad is a Linux-based mobile computer with Internet capability and doubles as a handheld game console. It also serves as a portable multimedia device...
- Sony Airboard
- Sony eVillaSony eVillaThe Sony eVilla is a discontinued Internet appliance from Sony. After 18 months of development, it was released to the public on June 14, 2001 for $499 USD...
- Virgin WebplayerVirgin WebplayerThe Virgin Webplayer is a discontinued Internet appliance from Virgin Group. The device was intended as a standalone Internet access device, running a specialized operating system which limited it to the Virgin Connect ISP. It was discontinued on November 15, 2000. The remaining Webplayer...
See also
- Computer applianceComputer applianceA computer appliance is generally a separate and discrete hardware device with integrated software , specifically designed to provide a specific computing resource. These devices became known as "appliances" because of their similarity to home appliances, which are generally "closed and sealed" –...
- Google TVGoogle TVGoogle TV is a Smart TV platform from Google. It was announced on May 20, 2010, at Google’s Google I/O event and was co-developed by Google, Intel, Sony and Logitech...
- Ubiquitous computingUbiquitous computingUbiquitous computing is a post-desktop model of human-computer interaction in which information processing has been thoroughly integrated into everyday objects and activities. In the course of ordinary activities, someone "using" ubiquitous computing engages many computational devices and systems...
- Mobile Internet Device (MID)
- Server applianceServer applianceA server appliance is a computer appliance that works as a server. It is designed so that the end-user does not need to understand the details of the operating system or the commands associated with it. Server appliances have their hardware and software preconfigured by the manufacturer. The...
- NetbookNetbookNetbooks are a category of small, lightweight, legacy-free, and inexpensive laptop computers.At their inception in late 2007 as smaller notebooks optimized for low weight and low cost — netbooks omitted certain features , featured smaller screens and keyboards, and offered reduced computing...
External links
- Linux-Hacker.net Community Page pertaining to getting Linux to run on older Internet Appliances