14 DAY TRIAL // Personal computers came in many shapes and sizes along their "life". One such shape was the subscription-based personal computer that failed to attract many customers. Now it is back with a twist and a Zonbu. This summer, Gr?goire Gentil and Alain Rossmann will begin selling a mini Linux based PC for $99 and monthly $12.95 subscription fee.
Their company, Zonbu, sells these mini computers through its website. The founders of Zonbbu say their creation received the highest certification possible from the "Green Electronics Council", a nonprofit organization that promotes energy efficient computing. Their certifications should help customers buy the most efficient computers and encourage producers to invest more in the research and development of green technologies. According to its makers, Zonbu would be the first ever desktop computer to receive the gold rating.
Zonbu's technical specifications are not top of the line in today's power computing; but it is not aimed at gamers and hardware addicts. It uses a small form factor and comes with an Intel compatible, very low power processor from VIA. Instead of a hard drive (those mechanical moving parts require a lot of energy), Zonbu is using a flash memory with a capacity of four gigabytes. Because of the low power components, it doesn't need a cooling fan either. This computer uses a Gentoo version of the Linux operating system and comes with a full range of software like the Firefox browser, Skype VoIP service, OpenOffice and many games. As internal storage space is low, an additional 25GB of on-line storage space is provided. The system will lack a keyboard, mouse and monitor, which the company will sell as options. Customers can use their own input devices as Zonbu adheres to the same general PC standards. The company plans to sell a version without a service fee to Linux software developers for $250, so that they will create more applications for the Zonbu PC.
Mr. Gentil, the chief executive and a Stanford-educated computer engineer, said that the idea for Zonbu came to him in his frustration over providing extensive computer support to his family in Paris and their various PCs (cited by the NYTimes). "My father was crashing his Windows machine all the time," Mr. Gentil said. That led him and Mr. Rossmann, a former Apple executive who has started many Silicon Valley companies, to pursue the possibility of creating an appliance-like computer, tailored to consumers who have no computer expertise.