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from the who-remembers-when-a-mini-computer-was-the-size-of-only-three-large-refrigerators? dept.
China's Zhaoxin CPU Is in Its First Mini-PC
Networking specialist Ruijie Networks on Tuesday launched its first mini-PC featuring China's homegrown Zhaoxin KaiXian KX-U6780A processor.
[...] The RG-CT7800 takes the form of a 2.4-liter, black chassis. The device features a custom motherboard for the KaiXian KX-U6780A, since the processor is ball grid array-based. The motherboard comes with two SO-DIMM DDR4 RAM slots too.
[...] Ruijie Networks offers the RG-CT7800 with 8GB of DDR4 memory and a 256GB SSD. One of the product images show the device with what appears to be four USB 2.0 ports and two 3.5mm jacks for heaphones and microphones. It's unclear what other ouputs are on the RG-CT7800.
The RG-CT7800 is compatible with the Chinese-developed UOS (Unity Operating System) and NeoKylin operating systems, which are both based on Linux. Ruijie Networks has made the necessary software modifications so that the RG-CT7800 can run streaming software and office suites, such as Kingsoft WPS Office and Yongzhong Office. The mini-PC also supports a bunch of peripherals, including Pantum printers, CZUR document scanners, digital drawing tablets and bar code scanners.
KaiXian KX-U6780A is a "high-end" 8-core x86-64 CPU from Zhaoxin, a joint venture between Via Technologies and the Chinese government. Any way you measure it, performance is relatively low, but that is not the point:
According to GeekBench, the Zhaoxin KX-U6780A comes in at a 1910 on single core score and a 8670 on a multi core score. This is roughly comparable to a modern high-end Intel Atom, or 2012 era four-core Intel Core i5-3550U.
However, where this gets interesting is how it fits into China's "3-5-2" plan. This is Beijing's mandate to wean China's public sector off foreign technology. By the end of 2020, 30% of the technology infrastructure needs to be domestic, while by the end of 2021 this number jumps to 50%, while the remaining 20% would need to be replaced by the end of 2022. The RG-CT7800 -- while technically unremarkable -- will be a perfect cog in the machine for this plan.
(Score: 2) by arslan on Tuesday February 25 2020, @11:45PM (16 children)
If the pricing is lower or helps drive overall price lower even better. But I do want to know how much "extra" stuff are built in though
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @01:00AM (5 children)
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @12:37PM (2 children)
Tell that to the two commentators that were fired for being on-screen during the "Blitzchung" incident. They are not PRC citizens, and were punished by an American company for someone else mentioning freedom for Hong Kong. Reach of PRC is growing and is orders of magnitude more oppressive than US.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @03:41PM (1 child)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @08:06PM
In other words, "it will be very difficult for them to (...) do offline mischief to you" is false.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @04:19PM
So far the US government hasn't seen fit to use the DRM embedded in my AMD and Intel devices to steal my credit card info or empty my bank account. I think the risk that someone in China would use their DRM to do it to me is extremely small but somewhat higher than the risk from the US government through AMD and Intel.
Of course, every US president seems determined to expand executive power. So in two years if I email my brother stating that I hate President Trump/Sanders/Buttigieg/Biden/Warren/whoever from my AMD box, maybe I'll find myself a victim of identity theft or arrest from my own government.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @11:25PM
Well I don't if its a curse or blessing, I'm not in China nor US, but both have very strong interests in our extending influence into our sovereign nation, I suspect most other countries would be in the same spot. So we're all kinda screwed.
It may not be apparent to Americans, so you can say things like "Unless you're Chinese or in Chinese Territory you have nothing fear". That's actually not true, they have been expanding their influence to other countries and some pretty aggressively including influencing local political constituents. Having dirt on corrupt politicians, directly or indirectly, is a leverage too tempting to avoid I'd say. We've had a recent case of a local MP candidate that blew the whistle on this and he had a fatal "accident" before going to the judicial panel.
(Score: 2, Funny) by Frosty Piss on Wednesday February 26 2020, @01:06AM (9 children)
You’ll be fine, the Chinese are not interested in your tentacle porn collection or your Yoda Fleshlight videos.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @01:42AM (2 children)
asking for a friend...
What kinky porn *is* glorious leader Xi into?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @01:45AM
Winnie the Pooh rule 34
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 26 2020, @11:18PM
Recently, he's into Uighurs...
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Wednesday February 26 2020, @04:33AM (4 children)
They are very interested in whether you spread dirty dirty lies about things that clearly never happened and were made up to discredit the Party.
God forbid the bytes 5469 616e 616e 6d65 6e ever enter your CPU's registers.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 2) by shortscreen on Wednesday February 26 2020, @04:52AM (1 child)
The CCP only approves of little-endian?
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday February 26 2020, @04:09PM
Big Indians are too frightening? Or just out of style?
To transfer files: right-click on file, pick Copy. Unplug mouse, plug mouse into other computer. Right-click, paste.
(Score: 2) by engblom on Wednesday February 26 2020, @10:14AM (1 child)
Or something as dangerous as 57 69 6e 6e 69 65 20 74 68 65 20 50 6f 6f 68.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday February 26 2020, @04:10PM
That doesn't make sense in EBCDIC.
To transfer files: right-click on file, pick Copy. Unplug mouse, plug mouse into other computer. Right-click, paste.
(Score: 2) by arslan on Wednesday February 26 2020, @11:27PM
Actually they are. Especially if you're in a position of influence in some shape or form, regardless if you're not in China or US, as long as you're in a country they would like to exert economic leverage - which is pretty much most countries, especially in Asia, excluding the dirt poor ones.