Sometimes it is just that you need something that works fast out of the box without spending too much time downloading Linux derivative like ubuntu or pay for Windows 7. Well, you can always choose to try out the unofficial port of the Android 1.6 OS to x86.
The Android 1.6 is downloaded from the android x86 project and burned into a CDR. Boot up the system using the CD-R and you get to install it or run it off from the CD-R.
We tried it, booting the CDR and it took less than 30 secs and we are in the OS. Imagine if you use SSD, it will be way faster.
The interface looks like that plain vanilla Android 1.6 without customisation on handphones. You get 3 pages, left, right and centre pages. You can change the background wallpaper, add widgets using the mouse pointer.Surfing the net isn’t a problem with the LAN cable plugged into the ASRock NETTOP ION 330. The Apps marketplace can be accessed and you can install the latest updates and read RSS feeds just like what one normally do on an android phone.
Although most of the things work, youtube video doesn’t play. There is also some lag in the video display, that is probably because the video used is the Intel integrated chipset instead of the ION.
So far, it is said that Intel is porting the Android to Intel platform. If that is true, it would mean that light users who just need a surfing terminal can just set up a small box to access everything from the cloud. This would definitely be another good use of such NetTops serving as a thin client.
You can read the original review of the ASRock ION 330 here.