In my last post I identified a number of reasons why the Intel Compute Stick could be one of the best computers to buy in 2016. My main thoughts centered on the fact that it enables one to work (school work included), play, deliver a message, and run programs almost anywhere there is a TV or computer monitor that has an HDMI port. It is an all in one computer that is inexpensive, you don’t even need a “smart” TV, and it has a small profile, smaller than a Snickers bar. I also mentioned every new and even time proven device has limitations and shortcomings which I will address in this post. The Intel Compute Stick has one, but before I jump in here, I’d like to give one more plug to the reader that is less tech savvy than he or she would like to be.
The market for and popularity of tablets, Notebook computers, laptops, and desktop business computers is not going to evaporate over night or anytime soon. TV and streaming can already come into them. Nor will the need for managed IT services decrease. But, if you are old enough to remember how we used to watch a movie at home, there were two delivery methods, a VHS tape or Betamax. At some point during those years, VHS stole the show until DVD’s entered our vocabulary. Intel’s Compute Stick is a leap forward much like DVD’s have been because of the universality of its delivery method, an HDMI port.
Intel notes on their website, www.intel.com, that its Compute Stick will “Transform any HDMI monitor or TV into a computer”…….it has “a quad-core Intel Atom Processor, Intel HD Graphics, Integrated WI-FI Bluetooth technologies, 23 GB storage, 2 GB memory, a USB 2.0 port, and a Micro SD Card Reader.” Did anything jump out at you here? If you dialed into storage and memory capacity, we are on the same page. If you are processing large amounts of data, Intel Compute Stick may not be an ideal solution. What “large” means is unique to each small business or household. It is almost impossible to provide some guidelines in this blog without learning a little more about your needs, which I am happy to discuss offline or via email. But, for the vast majority of small business owners, homeowners, and I’ll venture to say large businesses too, the Intel Compute Stick should not be an objection to substituting, integrating, or trying in your operations or household. I feel I’m on pretty thick ice here because of 2 other words t
hat have entered our lexicon in the last few years with popularity; “the Cloud,” and Cloud storage.
Even large companies with enormous amounts of data in their CRM systems don’t use it all at once. Most of the time an employee will access it for a single record (often via “the Cloud”), versus a million. Further, we don’t stream 5 Netflix movies at once, but one at time, equally so for our music stored in the Cloud. I concede there are “different strokes for different folks.” Running a macro or algorithm through a million records for example is a completely different discussion. My point is, the vast majority should be able to use this seamlessly.
Feel free to contact me with any questions via email at randy@rbsmn.com. RB’s Computers sells the Intel Compute Stick as well as the best laptop computers, best desktop computers, business computers, computer parts and computer monitors. We also provide managed IT services, computer repair, iPhone and smartphone repair to customers and clients throughout central Minnesota and St. Cloud.