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Project Novena, a Mostly Open Source Laptop, Goes on Sale

TMCnet Feature

April 04, 2014

Project Novena, a Mostly Open Source Laptop, Goes on Sale

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By Steve Anderson
Contributing TMCnet Writer

In an age of backdoors, big data, and general unease about just who's watching what a user's doing online, the idea of buying a computer has never been quite so uncomfortable. For those who are particularly concerned, the idea of building a computer comes to mind, but not everyone is so sufficiently mechanically inclined. But for a pair of engineers in Singapore, the idea of a mostly open-source computer was an idea worth following, and that leads us to Project Novena, now available for sale.


Project Novena offers a way for users to be perhaps more sure than ever before that a laptop is secure. With a mostly open-source setup, users would be able to track changes contained within the laptop, if any were made, and be able to theoretically spot anything that looks abnormal, like a potential backdoor or the like. One of the laptop's makers, Andrew “bunnie” Huang, noted that “The motherboard, battery board and display adapter board are designs from whole cloth. Every trace on those PCBs was placed by my hand.”

Those interested in getting a Novena laptop need only head over to Crowd Supply, a Kickstarter-style site in which users can put up money to get a company founded, and in return get a product. Users will have four levels of project in this case, starting with “just the board” for $500, an all in one desktop for $1,195, a laptop version for $1,995, and finally, an ultra-customized version for $5,000.

The board itself comes with four gibibytes—which is within striking distance of four gigabytes, but is measured slightly differently—and a four gibibyte microSD card. It boots to a Debian desktop using an HDMI connection, and will ship six months after the Crowd Supply campaign ends. This board is then used in the construction of the other three devices, with several levels of connectivity and capability therein. That $5,000 ultra-customized version, for example, is contained in a hand-crafted case of wood and aluminum made by Kurt Mottweiler of the Mottweiler Studio.

Users will note right away that the case opens “the wrong way,” instead of flipping up from the front to the back, it instead flips up from the back forward. This makes it useful in a wall hanging capacity, and makes it difficult to access the internal systems for quick hacking.

Admittedly, the target market here might charitably be described as a niche market. Not that many people—even with the Snowden affair still fresh in people's minds—are that concerned about the idea of backdoors so deeply embedded in the system that said backdoors might be contained at the basic code level. Some of course might call that willful ignorance, but others might call it a means to preserve one's sanity in the face of an increasingly insane world. Still, for those who want the most protection involved in putting a laptop to work, then the Novena may be just what those people would want.

The Crowd Supply campaign is, at last report, a little short of half funded with $105,300 raised out of a goal of $250,000. So for those who want a laptop with incredible protection offered at a discount from what its final price will likely be, it will be a good time to get in early. Some may never want this level of protection, but for those who do, the Novena should qualify nicely.




Edited by Cassandra Tucker


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