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Low-power computing: a tech guide

Charles Mclellan ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 26 Mar 2008

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Go to section: Introduction What we tested How we tested Power consumption Workload test run time Workload test power consumption Conclusion

Conclusion

The purpose of this exercise was to investigate the power consumption characteristics of a representative collection of nominally 'low-power' computers. These must be suitable for deployment in schools and other organisations operating in rural areas in developing countries. We ended up looking at eight systems: one desktop, two mini-desktops, two thin clients and three notebooks.

Having carried out the workload test described in the preceding pages, and also reviewed each system in the traditional manner, we now need to select the products that will go on for additional field-testing by Computer Aid-affiliated universities in Kenya, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. We have decided, in the interest of further comparative enlightenment, to choose at least one mini-desktop, one thin client and one notebook.

Mini-desktop 

Mini-desktop choice: Inveneo Computing Station.

The easiest choice to make is the mini-desktop, which is the Inveneo Computing Station. This is a genuinely low-power system (~20W average power) that performs reasonably well under both Linux and Windows XP, and is specifically designed for use in developing countries — in particular, it can run off a 12V DC solar power supply if necessary. Inveneo also has a network of partners in various African countries who are certified to provide support.

Thin client 

Thin client choice: NComputing X300. 

Although the NComputing thin clients delivered moderate overall power efficiency in our test, we feel that the PCI-based X300 product would repay further testing in the field. Many organisations in developing countries will already have suitable host PCs and should be able to source monitors, keyboards and mice reasonably cheaply. This means that the X300 will be extremely cost-efficient, given that the product itself costs just £149 for three access terminals and a PCI card. The X300 terminals, which can run from Linux- or Windows-based host PCs, are also durable as they are sealed units with no moving parts, and should be able to cope with testing environmental conditions.

Notebooks

Notebook choices: ASUS Eee, OLPC XO, Intel Classmate.

The ASUS Eee is the only one of the three notebooks we tested that's available on the open market. It also delivered an impressive combination of low power consumption and performance, and has not — to our knowledge — been formally field-tested in rural developing-world conditions. All of this makes the Eee an automatic choice in the notebook category.

The OLPC XO and the Intel Classmate are both high-profile products that are already deployed in various developing countries, and we initally considered leaving it at that. However, since these two notebooks are specifically designed for use in challenging environments, we felt it would be valuable to include them in the African phase of the project as well.

We look forward, then, to bringing you further details on the Inveneo Computing Station, NComputing X300, ASUS Eee, OLPC XO and Intel Classmate in the coming months.

Acknowledgements
Power testing Terry Relph-Knight
Computer Aid liaison Ugo Vallauri

Go to section: Introduction What we tested How we tested Power consumption Workload test run time Workload test power consumption Conclusion

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