Over on Kickstarter, there's a project called Tango that seeks to cram a gaming PC into a smartphone form factor. The project has already blown past its original goal of $100,000, earning just over $101,000 thanks to 243 backers at the time of this writing.
The group behind the Kickstarter project claims that Tango will replace multiple desktops used in homes and offices, replace home theater PCs, gaming consoles, and set-top-boxes like Apple TV and Roku. By having only one device, the team believes that it will save customers money in the long run, both hardware-wise and with software.
Ok, so what's in this thing? Glad you asked. The processor is an AMD A6-5200 quad-core APU with Radeon HD 8400 graphics. This chip is backed by 2 GB to 8 GB of DDR3-1600 laptop memory, and an mSATA interface for an SSD (32 GB and higher). The device is compatible with any operating system used by laptops including Windows 8/7, Chrome OS, and Linux. Windows 7 and Windows 8 Pro will be the certified platforms.
The specs show that Tango measures 125 x 80 x 13.5 millimeters, and weighs around 200 grams with the memory and SSD already installed. The device ships with a docking port that includes one DisplayPort connection, three USB 2.0 ports, one USB 3.0 port, an Ethernet port, internal Wi-Fi and a headphone/microphone combo jack.
"We moved the bulky connectors, the bulky fan and the bulky heat sink into the docking port," reads the Kickstarter page. "Then we took the motherboard, miniaturized it, and packed it in this small PC. We ensured Tango to be user-upgradable. Open two screws, and plug in the 8 gig RAM and up to 1 terabyte SSD – the standard off-the-shelf components. It's that simple."
The docking station includes a heatsync, a fan that pulls the heat off the main Tango PC, and a means to recharge the device. The PC portion includes the CPU, the memory, storage and battery.
"We have worked for over 2 years to make this technology work," the Kickstarter page reports. "We do not foresee scalability issues because we have worked actively to ensure that it is solved first hand before we even had a working prototype. We have a relationship with the world's top 10 ODM to deliver a reliable product with manufacturing volumes that can scale. The electronics for Tango is built by them. The mechanical components manufacturing and assembly will be done [by] reputed manufacturers in Asia."
To see what the Tango Super PC is all about, head here.
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