How to Turn Your iPod Into Your Full, Working PC

[tjw61]

How to Turn Your iPod Into Your Full, Working PC

Mon Sep 25, 2006 6:10AM EDT

What if your entire PC could fit on your iPod (or any other MP3 player, hard drive, USB flash device or even a cell phone)? No more struggling with excess laptop weight and your fully-rigged mobile "computer" would fit right in your pocket.

RingCube Technologies, Inc. says that's when you've got your Mojo working. It just launched a new software application called MojoPac. Essentially, it turns any storage device into a bootable PC that can store all of your important applications and data on it. To access them, all you need to do is plug your device into any PC or Mac. MojoPac will boot itself to life and the PC you're working from can look just like the one you left at home.

The company plans to sell MojoPac as downloadable software. You visit their site, plug in your iPod or other device and access it as an external drive. Then, load the MojoPac software. Once you've got MojoPac, you start loading all of your favorite applications by reinstalling them on the new drive. That could be Outlook, PowerPoint, Quicken, Adobe PhotoShop, or whatever apps you download from the web. You can play games, chat, use IM and email, too. Move any documents and files you want to access as well.

When you plug the MojoPac into any PC you can use the PC screen, keyboard, PC mouse…the iPod or flash device acts as your hard disk and you can access all of your applications and documents. According to Shan Appajodu, the CEO, the BIG IDEA here is to decouple the soul of the machine (the hard drive) from the body of the machine (everything else). With iPods and their ilk you're carrying around enough "soul" in your pocket to leave the PC at home.

RingCube envisions a bunch of scenarios where Mojopac is useful. There's the commuter, travelling between home and office PCs, the family with multiple iPods they can customize for each child to keep the main PC more pristine, avid gamers, and, of course, the travelling road warrior.

Consumers can try the product with no obligation for 30-days. Afterwards, there's a special introductory one time fee of $29.99. After that it's $49.99 for one liscense. Extra licenses are available.

By my calculations, for the right scenarios, MojoPac gives you the power of a portable PC for an investment of $50 in software plus the cost of a storage device. Not a bad deal.