Intel CEO Brian Krzanich wants to introduce you to Edison, a miniature computer based on the same technology condensed into the form factor of an SD card. The tiny computer is built on the company’s 22nm transistor technology, runs Linux and has built-in WiFi and Bluetooth modules.
Edison is based on Quark technology, the tiny, low-power system-on-a-chip that was designed for wearable computers, such as smart watches, and the Internet of Things.
“It’s a full Pentium-class PC in the form factor of an SD card,” Krzanich said.
To demonstrate the potential for Edison, Intel showed a concept for a “Nursery 2.0.” In the concept, a baby was wearing a Mimo onesie outfitted with sensors tracking things like temperature, and Edison was used display that information on, of all things, a coffee mug. When the baby was comfortable, blinking lights on the mug show a happy green smiling face, but when something is wrong that face turns red.
Edison is Intel’s attempt to not repeat the mistake it made in the smartphone market. With smartphones and tablets, Intel failed to see the trend and did not address the market properly until 2012. Now when the companies are expected to push smart glasses and smart watches, Intel intends to not repeat the mistake it made earlier.
It not only supports multiple OSes and has built-in support for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, but it also has its own app store – and has Wolfram Alpha’s Mathematica baked in by default.
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