Chumby
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
| Founded | August 25, 2006 |
| Founder | Andrew "bunnie" Huang (lead hardware engineer) |
| Defunct | 2012 |
| Fate | Liquidated; assets acquired by Blue Octy, LLC |
| Successor | Blue Octy, LLC |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Andrew "bunnie" Huang (lead hardware engineer), Duane Maxwell (former CTO) |
| Products | Chumby devices (original Chumby, Chumby One), software widgets platform |
| Website | www |
The Chumby was a consumer electronics device developed by Chumby Industries, Inc., functioning as an embedded computer that provided Internet and LAN connectivity through Wi-Fi. It supported a range of software widgets. In 2010, Sony introduced the Sony Dash, a product derived from a Chumby variant.
Devices
The initial Chumby resembled a compact clock radio, featuring a resistive touch-screen housed within a leather-and-plastic enclosure available in six different colors. It operated on power from an AC adapter, while the Chumby One model included a 9 V backup battery. Devices such as Best Buy's Infocast 3.5 and Infocast 8 ran Chumby software but relied solely on AC power. Users could customize the device extensively; by accepting the Chumby HDK License, they gained access to schematics and hardware specifications. Wired recognized it as one of the leading gadgets in 2008. Its Linux-based operating system was predominantly open source.
Operations ceased in 2012 when Chumby Industries liquidated its assets, with former CTO Duane Maxwell acquiring them and establishing Blue Octy, LLC. Blue Octy continued to operate the core server until March 2013, after which it was taken offline, leaving devices displaying only the "Space Clock" widget. On July 1, 2014, Blue Octy restored full Chumby services under a subscription model priced at US$3 per month. Although open source firmware remains freely accessible, it offers limited features and may violate widget copyright terms. Devices without an active subscription still function as alarm clocks and music players.
History
Andrew "bunnie" Huang served as lead hardware engineer for Chumby. The product was first unveiled on August 25, 2006, at Foo Camp with approximately 100 alpha testers.
Shortly thereafter, Chumby distributed free alpha units to applicants who proposed innovative software or hardware concepts to foster an early developer community.
In July 2007, the "First 50" program released next-generation units to selected participants. This was succeeded by an "Insiders Release" in September for interested users. The commercial launch took place in February 2008 through the Chumby Store, priced at $179.95 for three color options. International sales commenced in Japan via Zyyx, Inc. starting October 2008 and in Australia through ISP Internode.
November 2009 marked the introduction of the Chumby One: a white plastic casing with blue accents, equipped with a faster processor, one USB port, FM tuner, and a physical volume control knob. The plastic housing allowed for a reduced retail price of $119.95.
By April 2012, hardware sales ended following inventory depletion and cessation of manufacturing the previous year. The company soon after dissolved. Enthusiasts maintained service operation briefly until February 2013 when servers were shut down, leaving only a basic clock widget functional. Open source firmware was developed to preserve some device capabilities.
As of January 2013, Blue Octy engaged in efforts to revive Chumby technology with involvement from original developers; updates were posted on www.chumby.com.
Beta testing for the relaunched service commenced in March 2014.
On July 1, 2014, Blue Octy reintroduced Chumby as a subscription-based service designed for sustainability.
In July 2017, Blue Octy began supporting the Sony Dash following its discontinuation by Sony, releasing patches by August that enabled Dash HID-C10 models to connect to Blue Octy servers and extend their usability.
Between late 2022 and early 2023, developer Doug Brown contributed Linux 6.x kernel support for the Chumby 8; much of this work was integrated upstream.
Hardware
The Chumby platform is engineered for user customization, providing access to schematics, PCB layouts, and packaging blueprints. The principal hardware details are as follows:
Original Chumby
- 350 MHz ARM9 Freescale i.MX21 processor
- 64 MB SDRAM memory
- 64 MB NAND flash storage
- 3.5-inch TFT LCD touchscreen with a resolution of 320×240 pixels at 12 frames per second
- Stereo speakers delivering 2 watts, audio output jack, built-in microphone
- Dual USB 2.0 ports
- Embedded Wi-Fi connectivity
- Bend sensor enabling squeeze-based controls
- Motion detection via accelerometer
Chumby One
- Freescale iMX233 ARM926EJ-S CPU running at 454 MHz
- 64 MB DDR SDRAM
- Internal microSD card storage of 2 GB (subject to manufacturing date)
- 3.5-inch color TFT touchscreen with 320×240 resolution
- Single-channel 2 W speaker
- Wi-Fi support (802.11 b/g standards)
- FM radio receiver
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (sold separately), offering roughly one hour of operation
- Physical dimensions: 4 inches wide × 4 inches tall × 3.5 inches deep
- One high-speed USB 2.0 port
- Stereo headphone output with volume control knob
- Built-in accelerometer for motion sensing
- ABS plastic chassis including an AC power adapter
- USB-to-Ethernet compatibility
- Adjustable backlight brightness
| Feature | Chumby One | Infocast 3.5 | Original Chumby | Chumby 8 | Infocast 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display resolution | 320×240 | 320×240 | 800×600 | 800×600 | |
| Screen size | 3.5" | 3.5" | 3.5" | 8" | 8" |
| Complimentary subscriptions updated by Chumby | No | No | Yes | ||
| Event scheduling interface | No | No | Yes | ||
| Capability to upload photos/videos to sharing platforms | No | No | Yes | ||
| Support for external media devices | Yes | Yes | SD, MMC, CF, USB | ||
| Enhanced sharing functionalities | No | No | Yes | Yes | |
| WebKit-based browser (chumbrowser) | No | No | Yes | ||
| Motion sensor (accelerometer) included | Yes | No | |||
| USB ports count and type | One high-speed USB 2.0 port | One high-speed USB 2.0 port | Two high-speed USB 2.0 ports | ||
| FM radio tuner presence | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Wi-Fi capabilities (802.11 b/g) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Processor specifications | ARM processor at 454 MHz | ARM processor at 454 MHz | ARM9 at 350 MHz | Marvell ARMADA at 800 MHz | Marvell Mohawk |
| RAM size and type | 64 MB DDR SDRAM | 64 MB DDR SDRAM | 64 MB DDR2 SDRAM | 128 MB DDR2 SDRAM | 128 MB DDR2 SDRAM |
| Firmware storage medium | Internal microSD card firmware | Internal microSD card firmware | 64 MB NAND flash ROM | Internal 2 GB microSD FLASH storage |
Hacks
The manufacturer actively promoted hardware modifications by providing schematics and technical documentation under the Chumby HDK License agreement. Enthusiasts within the community developed battery hacks that allowed limited operation without reliance on AC power.
A variant known as the Chumby Hacker Board shared similarities with the Chumby One motherboard but featured alternative hardware interfaces; however, it lacked official endorsement from Chumby Industries.
Software
Chumby devices operate on a customized Linux kernel platform running software tailored to display configurable widgets—small-scale Adobe Flash animations that supply live data through an embedded Adobe Flash Player. These widgets leverage hardware components such as intelligent alarms, web-enabled photo viewers, cameras, RSS feed readers, and gesture recognition enabled by the flexible casing.
Firmware updates were automatically deployed through the Chumby network using a modified BitTorrent client, facilitating upgrades to open-source elements of the system software.
Restrictions on multimedia
Although initial models did not feature video playback, every edition released from May 2007 onward includes support for Flash Lite 3, allowing compatibility with video formats such as Sorenson, FLV, H.264, VP6, and On2.
See also
References
External links
- www.chumby.com — official Chumby website
- Chumby profile at WikiSpecs
- Product overview from O'Reilly
- Chumby evaluation at Broadcasting World