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The Chumby: Am I being stodgy, or is this goofy?

A year plus in the making, and the Chumby - a pc-free, WiFi connected widget platform - is still in the making. Cool to be sure, but something tells me these folks are going to miss the mainstream.

Strange UI conventions (squeezing?), a silly name, and a geek-focused feature set (hackability? linux?) are all going to consign the Chumby (IMHO) to niche success among the Maker-faire uber-geek techno elite. Which would be fine - if Chumby were a garage product; but its got investors, offices, and staff - all of who are hoping I’m sure that the Chumby spawns an ecosystem around its open functionality and ends up in millions of people’s homes.

To illustrate my point, compare the Chumby to the iPod. High design, vs. something that looks “cute,” a brand name that captures both the digital experience and portability vs. something that is typically 2.0 in its weird inexplicable-ness.

Finally, I’d like to point out that the Chumby is an Internet appliance. Just like the Audrey, only you need another computer to update it, and it has limited input options.

I don’t know. Maybe I’m being negative out of spite (b/c its monday, and I’m spiteful about everything). Anyway, I’m honestly looking forward to seeing the Chumby in the wild, and wish the Chumby folks all the success in the world.

[Image Credit: TechCrunch]

audrey chumby

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