Sinomanic

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Tianhua GX-1C

Manufacturer	Sinomanic
Type	Subnotebook
Connectivity	10/100M Ethernet ADSL modem
Media	40GB IDE hard disk
Operating system	Linux Future Alpha
Input	Keyboard
CPU	Loongson I (Longxin) CPU
Memory	MCom 128MB SDRAM
Display	8.4 inch diagonal LCD 1280 x 1024/24

The Sinomanic Tianhua GX-1C is a specially tailored subnotebook for Mainland primary and secondary school students in China using China's proprietary Loongson I (Longxin) CPU. The device is designed to both introduce young students to computers, and as an educational aid.

1 History
- 1.1 Pricing
2 Sinomanic model comparison table
3 Technology
- 3.1 GX-1C Hardware
- 3.2 Software
4 See also
5 References
6 External Links
- 6.1 News articles (by date)

[edit] History

Sichuan based Sinomanic Co., Ltd. launched four models of low-cost personal computers in 2006. Sinomanic is the second manufacturer of Loongson based Personal Computers in mainland China. The company has announced a sales target of 500,000 to 1 million units for their Tianhua GX-1C model. The Sinomanic GX-1C uses a Loongson I (Longxin) CPU similar to that used in the commercially distributed Longmeng Municator from a Chinese startup named Yellow Sheep River. Loongson (Longxin) translates as "Godson".

Sinomanic has created four different models for distribution to very specific markets. The Tianhua GX-1 and Tianhua GX-1C are marketed towards education. The Tian Yan GX-2 is a rural computer marketed towards farmers, Tian Yan is designed to be used with a television standing in for the standard computer monitor, much like the Commodore 64 and Amiga. the operating system for the Tian Yan is tailored for use with a television display. The Tianlong GX-3 is a more robust machine marketed towards business. The Tiansheng GX-4 with slightly less memory and processor speeds that vary between 400MHz and 600MHz marketed towards multimedia users. All desktop units support both VGA and Television video output.

[edit] Pricing

Sinomanic's Tianhua GX-1 and Tianhua GX-1C subnotebooks currently cost 1,998 Chinese yuan, about $250 United States dollars, or £131 British pounds sterling.

[edit] Sinomanic model comparison table

Prices of the desktop models do not include displays

Model	Name	Price	CPU	Memory	Storage	Market
GX-1C	Tianhua	1,998 yuan	400MHz	128MB SDRAM	40GB	Education
GX-1	Tianhua	1,998 yuan	400MHz	128MB DDR	60GB	Education
GX-2	Tian Yan	988 yuan	400MHz	128MB DDR	1G SD	Rural
GX-3	Tianlong	2,998 yuan*	600MHz	256MB DDR	60GB	Business
GX-4	Tiansheng	1,398 yuan*	400MHz	128MB DDR	60GB	Multimedia

[edit] Technology

Tian Yan GX-2 rural PC running Debian Linux & using a custom television interface

[edit] GX-1C Hardware

The reference hardware specifications as of October 28th 2006 are:

CPU: Loongson I (Godson) 32 bit CPU - GS32I
CPU clock speed 400MHz (32KB cache level Godson RISC Instruction Set)
Xiancun 1280 x 1024/24 8.4 inch LCD display (TFT 24 bit color)
MCom 128MB PC100 SDRAM
40GB Notebook IDE hard disk
32-bit PCI IDE controller IT8212 (two IDE channels, supports four IDE devices)
RAID controller (supports PIO Mode 0-4, DMA mode 0-2, Ultra DMA Mode 0-6, embedded CPU RAID function)
10/100M ethernet
ADSL modem port
Integrated USB 1.1 host interface
AC97 2.2 18 48kHz Audio (maximum sampling frequency of 48kHz supports voice communications)
Built in stereo speakers
Stereo 2 channel audio, jacks for external stereo speakers and microphones, Line-out, and Mic-in
Integrated keyboard
Power source:
- unspecified notebook power supply

[edit] Software

According to a translated FAQ on the Sinomanic website and an article on Sanhaostreet.com, Sinomanic technicians were having trouble getting Loongson's proprietary RISC instruction sets to work with Debian Linux and Windows CE, however, the use of the MIPS instruction set allowed them to correct many of their compatibility issues.^[1]

Versions of Debian Linux and Windows CE will be available for the units that ship initially. But because these operating systems cannot be optimized for Loongson's unique RISC instruction set, Sinomanic has continued development on their own second generation micro kernel operating system codenamed Future Alpha. Future Alpha has apparently been customized for compatibility with the 32 bit Loongson I (Longxin) processor. And Sinomanic recently tested an updated version of Future Alpha, for the 64 bit Loongson II microprocessor. The company said that the 64 bit version of their Future Alpha operating system had successfully passed testing on January 19, 2007.^[2]^[3]

In a press release dated March 3rd, 2007, Sinomanic demonstrated a custom version of Debian Linux running on the Tian Yan GX-2 their rural computer. The unit appeared to be using GNOME as its Graphical user Interface. Software applications shown were: the Mozilla Firefox browser, an unnamed text editor, Gaim instant messenger, a PDF reader, and the Novell Evolution email client.^[4]

[edit] See also

XO-1 (laptop), also called the $100 Laptop Project or One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)
Classmate PC, a low cost machine developed by Intel
Digital Textbook a South Korean Project that intends to distribute tablet notebooks to elementary school students.
Longmeng or Dragon Dream is a low-cost computer being designed in China
OpenBook Project, a project functionally similar to the Children's Machine
Simputer is an earlier project to construct cheap handheld computers in India
VIA pc-1 Initiative a project of VIA Technologies to help bridge the digital divide.
Wizzy Digital Courier: Internet access for rural schools via USB stick
Edubuntu: A free Linux distribution designed specifically for use in schools and home classrooms