Subject: i-Opener limited
To: None <current-users@netbsd.org,>
From: None <eric.delcamp@legrand.fr>
List: port-i386
Date: 03/22/2000 14:17:19
Hi !

Bad news (or just rumours ?) for i-Opener ! Here is an article from The=
 Register
(http://www.theregister.co.uk/) :

"Circuit City, the US giant computer retailer, has issued an email memo=
 to
staff, announcing that orders for multiple units of the I-Opener
Net appliance would be cancelled, due to "increased demand" and limited=

availability.
Circuit City had been selling the I-Opener, made by Texas company Netpl=
iance, as
 a $99 loss leader, reducing the retail price from $299.99,
assuming t would receive a slice of subscription fees, from customers w=
ho signed
 up with Netpliance as their ISP for $21.95 per month.
However, a hack of the unit enables the user to choose a different ISP.=
 Even
better, with minor modification, the I-Opener can be turned into
a fully-fledged, if rudimentary PC.
Sales of the i-Opener at Circuit City have been "surprisingly brisk," a=
ccording
to our informant, who says: "I wouldn't be surprised if all open
orders, which can't be filled for a couple of weeks at least, are cance=
lled".
On Saturday, news of the hack was posted on Slashdot by discoverer, Ken=
 Segler,
an electronics engineer, of Las Vegas, and picked up
by the New York Times. So that looks like the end of the game for wanna=
be $99 PC
 owners. You can see how it was done at linux-hacker.net/iopener. =AE
=


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