CHIP (computer)

History

Next Thing Co. was founded in Oakland, California, in 2013 by Dave Rauchwek, Gustavo Huber, and Thomas Deckert. In May 2015, the company launched a Kickstarter campaign for the CHIP, marketing it as "the world's first $9 computer." The campaign surpassed its $50,000 goal, raising $2,071,972 from 39,560 backers. Alpha boards shipped to "Kernel Hacker" tier backers on September 25, 2015, and general pre-orders opened in December 2015. The first wave of consumer shipping began on May 31, 2016.

NTC halted pre-orders for the original CHIP on April 4, 2017, effectively discontinuing the line. By March 2018, the company entered insolvency, its assets and intellectual properties were sold off, and operations ceased. Many post-Kickstarter pre-order customers never received devices or refunds.

Models

The original CHIP board targeted hobbyists and used the Allwinner R8 SoC, which integrates an ARM Cortex-A8 CPU (ARMv7-A) with a NEON SIMD coprocessor, RCT JAVA-Accelerations, an ARM Mali-400 GPU, and hardware video decoders for H263, H264, and VP8. Features included built-in Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, one USB host (type-A), one USB On-The-Go port, composite video and stereo audio via mini TRRS, optional VGA and HDMI adapters, up to 45 GPIO ports, support for 1-Wire, I2C, and PWM, and power options via 5V USB OTG, 5V CHN pin, or a 3.7V battery.

Onboard NAND storage of 4-8 GB came pre-installed with a Debian-based Linux OS. In April 2017, the CHIP was upgraded to share components with the CHIP Pro. It featured castellated edges for embedding onto other boards. Few details were available about successor products, though the company indicated more than one line was in development, aiming to leverage the CHIP Pro's supply chain.

Hardware extensions

Next Thing Co. published an HPI and API for users to develop add-on boards called DIPs. The company produced several DIPs, including the Pocket CHIP, which contained a CHIP board, a case with a 4.3-inch 480×272 pixel resistive touchscreen, a clicky keyboard, GPIO headers, GPIO soldering pads, and a 5-hour battery. The CHIP snapped into the case without screws or glue, forming a portable computer. A hexagonal hole on the lower right accepted a standard #2 HB pencil to create a stand; a circular hole on the lower left accommodated a pen.

Pocket CHIP ran a special edition of CHIP OS with drivers and applications including PICO-8, a Linux terminal, a file browser, the surf web browser, and SunVox. The Pockulus was a virtual reality setup requiring 3D printing. Next Thing also sold a VGA DIP and an HDMI DIP, whose physical dimensions were similar to the CHIP, making the assembly appear as a thicker CHIP.

Media coverage and user community

CHIP received favorable reviews and was frequently compared to the Raspberry Pi. Laura Sydell of NPR asked if it could "spark a new wave of tinkering and innovation," noting its open-source hardware. Marco della Cava of USA Today said the device represented opportunities to close the technology gap and encourage children to learn coding. Reviewers highlighted its low price: Bo Moore of PC Gamer said it "[puts] Raspberry Pi 2 to shame," and Ian Paul of PCWorld said it made "Raspberry Pi's price seem luxurious."

The Washington Post, Time, and Fortune also covered it. An enthusiastic user community communicated on NTC's bulletin board system, which at the time of NTC's demise had over 10,000 users, hundreds of active users, and over 100,000 total postings. After NTC declared bankruptcy in March 2018, leaving many pre-order customers undelivered, surviving users launched preservation efforts using the Internet Archive, including a standalone site for binary packages and a Git repository.

A community wiki site ceased functioning by 2021, but its content is available via an Internet Archive snapshot from November 2020.