PuzzlePhone will use old smartphone modules to build supercomputers

[Shawn Knight]

Modular smartphone concepts like Project Ara, Vsenn and PuzzlePhone could very well reshape the way we buy, sell and upgrade our handsets. The pitch is that, when a module becomes old and outdated (like the CPU, for example), one can simply swap it out for a newer, faster version.

But what becomes of the old modules that nobody wants anymore? Sure, they’re no longer the speed demons they once were but they still work perfectly so why throw them out?

Circular Devices, the company behind PuzzlePhone, has come up with a clever idea. When a PuzzlePhone user inevitably upgrades their CPU module, the discarded module can be reused to power a scalable computer cluster called a PuzzleCluster.

In other words, Circular Logic wants to combine the power from multiple older CPU modules to build a fully functional supercomputer. The end result likely won’t be as powerful as a "true" supercomputer but it could meet the needs of home users or even small to medium enterprise users.

Possible applications could include research and data analysis to rendering farms and in-house cloud services.

Early iterations of the PuzzleCluster are expected to include a power supply, internal connectivity for CPU modules, support for basic peripherals and external connectivity. There will even be slots for discarded battery modules that will be used as a built-in UPS.

It’s encouraging to see companies like Circular Logic planning ahead with regards to what to do with modules once consumers upgrade to newer models. The last thing we need is more e-waste filling up our landfills.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/59518-puzzlephone-use-old-smartphone-modules-build-supercomputers.html

 

[yRaz]

Isn't one reason why they spend millions to upgrade supercomputers that the cost of electricity to run older processors is higher than that of the cost to upgrade?

 

[Kibaruk]

Isn't one reason why they spend millions to upgrade supercomputers that the cost of electricity to run older processors is higher than that of the cost to upgrade?

The end result likely won’t be as powerful as a "true" supercomputer but it could meet the needs of home users or even small to medium enterprise users

Unless a small business or a home user has the millions to buy a supercomputer in the first place, I don't think why not

 

[yRaz]

Unless a small business or a home user has the millions to buy a supercomputer in the first place, I don't think why not

A small business or home user will still end up paying A LOT more on their powerbill. Further, you can rent computing time on other supercomputers, which is MUCH cheaper for the small business or home user.

 

[Steve]

Unless a small business or a home user has the millions to buy a supercomputer in the first place, I don't think why not

A small business or home user will still end up paying A LOT more on their powerbill. Further, you can rent computing time on other supercomputers, which is MUCH cheaper for the small business or home user.

These are already extremely low powered devices anyway. Chances are a dozen of them won't make a difference to your power bill.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Prove to me a stack of these could be better than a standard desktop, and I will open my mind to the concept. Until then I see no need in using these over a standard desktop.

 

[Kibaruk]

Prove to me a stack of these could be better than a standard desktop, and I will open my mind to the concept. Until then I see no need in using these over a standard desktop.

Raspberry Pi. Nuf said.

Well entering a bit on details, a single 700 mhz computer with 256 mb is enough to handle most of home users needs (As a server, for example, small LAMP, mail, NAS, etc. ALWAYS THINKING IN BASIC HOME USAGE). There have been some projects for using a nest of RPi's to host bigger sites and even hosting hosters.

So if you take the single core 700 mhz proc, and nowadays you have a very basic double core 1,5 ghz ARM machine, you just quadrupled your raw power, and this is a very basic phone or tablet setting, now put a couple of them together and I bet this could help a lot of small business owners. Then you start scaling. Hopefuly ram will work in the same way.

 

[yRaz]

Wouldn't one mid ranged GPU out perform an array of smartphone cpus?

 

[Kibaruk]

Wouldn't one mid ranged GPU out perform an array of smartphone cpus?

Depends on the price of the whole setup, the idea is to recycle more than to improve on performance and get "awesomeness".

 

[cliffordcooley]

Raspberry Pi. Nuf said.

Maintenance Nuf said.

What kind of maintenance would be required to keep a nested configuration like this running? I can understand the performance qualifications, that is if you could stack enough of them together and never have issues with the lot of them.

Which would be simpler, maintaining a bus or a fleet of cars?

 

[Kibaruk]

Of course now we are jumping miles ahead, we don't know how it will be configured or under which governance by the OS.

If the idea is to have "plug and play" CPUs it should be simple to run and keep on running.

If you make a good config in a RPi, you don't have to worry about much, until the point you change it, but it's easy enough to mantain copies of the "drive". Of course like in any case where you need something reliable, you need to have someone who knows what he is doing.