The Kangaroo mobile desktop is a tiny computer that sells for $99. It’s about the size of a smartphone. Under the hood it has an Intel Atom x5-Z8500 Cherry Trail processor, 2GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage. It features a fingerprint sensor, a microSD card slot, and docking connectors on one end.
The computer currently ships with a dock that features full-sized USB and HDMI ports. But part of the reason the Kangaroo has a docking connector instead of more built-in ports is that the makers of this tiny computer envision a future where you can choose from a variety of docking solutions.
Kangaroo manufacturer InFocus is showing off a few concepts at CES this week.
One prototype is a docking station with full-sized VGA, HDMI, Ethernet, and USB ports, as well as room for a 2.5 inch drive bay, allowing you to add a high-capacity hard drive to the 32GB of built-in storage already available on the Kangaro mini PC.
Another prototype is a monitor with a docking station built into its base. Slide the Kangaroo into the docking port and you’ve basically got an all-in-one desktop computer. Slide it out and you can stick the Kangaroo in your pocket or bag and carry it another location and attach it to a different display to pick up where you left off working. Since the Kangaroo has a built-in battery, you might not even need to reboot the computer.
InFocus is showing off both of these docking solutions as concepts rather than actual products. It’s not clear if either of these docks will be available for purchase anytime soon. But it shows that the company is thinking of building an ecosystem around the Kangaroo rather than treating it as a standalone product.