The Linutop is a small, light, environment friendly

Green computing

Green computing or green IT, refers to environmentally sustainable computing or IT. In the article Harnessing Green IT: Principles and Practices, San Murugesan defines the field of green computing as "the study and practice of designing, manufacturing, using, and disposing of computers, servers,...

 nettop

Nettop

Nettop may refer to:*Nettop, a type of computer*NetTop, a NSA project...

 computer with a metal case, no moving parts

Moving parts

The moving parts of a machine are those parts of it that move. Machines comprise both moving and fixed parts. The moving parts have controlled and constrained motions....

, and running the Linutop OS , a customized version of Linux based on the Xubuntu

Xubuntu

Xubuntu is a Canonical Ltd. recognized, community maintained derivative of the Ubuntu operating system, using the Xfce desktop environment.The name Xubuntu is a portmanteau of Xfce and Ubuntu...

 then Ubuntu

Ubuntu (operating system)

Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...

/GNOME

GNOME

GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...

 distribution.

A variety of GTK applications that are oriented towards web browsing and internet communication are available. Linutop is also multimedia-capable and offers line-out/mic-in for sound. The device

Linux devices

Linux-based devices or Linux devices are computer appliances that are powered by the Linux kernel and possibly other parts of the Linux operating system. They are often minimalistic and purpose-built, thus may be environmentally friendly and create less electronic waste per unit.Linux devices are...

 can be configured easily into a LTSP

Linux Terminal Server Project

Linux Terminal Server Project is a free and open source terminal server for Linux that allows many people to simultaneously use the same computer. Applications run on the server with a terminal known as a thin client handling input and output...

 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...

. Linutop is suited for use in internet cafés, public libraries, or schools.

Units sell for around €

Euro

The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...

 280 (approximately USD $366).

Linutop 1

The first device row was based on ThinCan

ThinCan

ThinCan is the name for a thin client manufactured by Estonian electronic design start-up Artec Group. The ThinCan remained relatively unknown outside Estonia until 2006, when a recent ThinCan iteration was selected as the hardware base for the Linutop, a network appliance that greatly stimulated...

 reference design

Reference design

Reference design refers to a technical blueprint of a system that is intended for others to copy. It contains the essential elements of the system; however, third parties may enhance or modify the design as required....

 from Estonia

Estonia

Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...

n company Artec Group.

Linutop 2

On February 20, 2008, the company unveiled the Linutop 2 based on the FIC

First International Computer

First International Computer, Inc. is a Taiwanese computer and components manufacturer, that designs and manufactures computer products and electronic components for other electronics equipment manufacturers worldwide. The company's products include motherboards, embedded computing systems,...

 ION A603 mini PC (like Works Everywhere Appliance). In comparison to Linutop 1 the new device has a stronger Geode processor. It also possesses more memory and is therefore claimed to run OpenOffice.org

OpenOffice.org

OpenOffice.org, commonly known as OOo or OpenOffice, is an open-source application suite whose main components are for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. OpenOffice is available for a number of different computer operating systems, is distributed as free software...

 while Linutop 1 was only able to run lighter office applications like AbiWord

AbiWord

AbiWord is a free and open source software word processor. It was originally started by SourceGear Corporation as the first part of a proposed AbiSuite. Development stopped when SourceGear changed their focus to Internet appliances. AbiWord was adopted by some open source developers and AbiWord...

 and Gnumeric

Gnumeric

Gnumeric is a spreadsheet program that is part of the GNOME Free Software Desktop Project. Gnumeric version 1.0 was released December 31, 2001. Gnumeric is distributed as free software under the GNU GPL license; it is intended to replace proprietary and other spreadsheet programs such as Microsoft...

.
It has 512 MB RAM and 1 GB flash memory

Flash memory

Flash memory is a non-volatile computer storage chip that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It was developed from EEPROM and must be erased in fairly large blocks before these can be rewritten with new data...

 storage.

Hardware

Model	Linutop 1	Linutop 2	Linutop 3	Linutop 4
Launch year	2006	2008	2009	2011
CPU	AMD Geode LX 700	AMD Geode LX800	Atom N270 previously VIA C7 (x86)	Atom N270
ROM	External Memory (USB Key)	1 GB internal Flash	2 GB internal Flash	2 GB internal Flash
RAM	256MB	512MB	1Go ext to 2GB	1Go ext to 2GB
USB Ports	4	4	6	5
Ethernet	100BASE-T	100BASE-T	1000BASE-T	1000BASE-T
Video output	VGA, resolution max 1920x1440	VGA, resolution max 1920x1440	VGA + DVI, res. max 1920x1440	VGA + DVI, res. max 1920x1440
Dimensions	15 x 9,3 x 2,7 cm	14 x 14 x 3,5 cmT	23,5 x 23,6 x 5,5 cm	18,2x20,1x3,6 cm
Power	DC in 9V-1,5A	DC in n 12V-3,3A	DC in 19V	DC in 12V, 3,3A
Consumption	5W	8W	<16W	<14W
Weight	280g	580g	1,9kg	936g
Retail price	discontinued	280€ HT	340€ HT	400€ HT

Linutop OS

Linutop OS 4.0 is based on Ubuntu/ Gnome has been designed to boot on any x86 hardware.
It contains specific features design for business usecases:

• Internet kiosk : Full screen, toolbar management, white/blacklist management.
• Display kiosk : user can define a playlist loop of URLs, photos, video via a "drag'n'drop interface
• Linutop Setup : quick setup in one menu, allows the user to "lock" the configuration, to backup or restore on bootable USB Key.

Price : 79€ HT (via download or USB key to be shipped)

A demo version of Linutop OS 4 is available for free.

External links

• Linutop Website
• Linutop Wiki
• Linutop Video
• FIC ION A603 mini PC