VIA Technologies is preparing to ship a small neo-ITX bare-bones Android PC priced at an impressively cheap $49.
Now when VIA says bare-bones, the company actually means a mainboard with the processor attached. So, yes, you’ll have to add your own power supply, case and other accessories to the mix.
The little board, dubbed “the APC,” was designed to run a custom version of Android 2.3 optimized for input via a mouse and keyboard.
The uber-mini machine is equipped with a (VIA) 800 MHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, 2 GB of flash storage, a microSD card slot and is capable of handling up to 720p graphics.
Connectivity includes VGA output, HDMI output, four USB ports, and an Ethernet port. There are also inputs for speakers and a microphone.
The APC is going up for pre-order today for $49. If you haven’t already purchased, don’t get too excited because the official APC website for the bare-bones machine says the device is already sold out. However, those who did pre-order will be able to get their machines in July when it ships.
Personally, I think the board might make a decent set top box – bringing the ability to turn your existing dumb TV into a smart TV. The bare-bones machine could also make for nice streaming media machine. If you find a suitably small enclosure for the tiny mainboard, you could have yourself a nice little media center PC on the cheap.
