DIY PC for $150. CNN Money

[Geek-9pm]

Yeah, CNN  has a report that somebody is doing a Do It Yourself PC for $150. And it is targeted for children. Really!
Wait! Don't run  away! They have a nice v video with tow cute kids.
Take a look.
DIY computer kit gives gift of coding

Last year, Kano raised $1.5 million on Kickstarter -- far surpassing its $100,000 campaign goal, which it hit in just 16 hours. And it attracted the attention of high-profile backers like Apple's (AAPL, Tech30) Steve Wozniak. Now available for the general public, Kano has shipped 20,000 kits around the world.

It was said that kids can learn  do some graphic game coding. 

[patio]

The CH News Editor position is still accepting applications...

[Geek-9pm]

The CH News Editor position is still accepting applications...

I would apply.
But I can not work on Monday,  Thursday and Saturday. 
EDIT: forgot  to mention, by attention span is about twenty minutes.

[camerongray]

It's a nice idea but it is still just a raspberry pi which could be purchased a lot cheaper, it just doesn't come with all the other parts to make it appealing to kids.  You are paying for the extras such as the accessories and documentation which would be nice for kids to have, not the computer.

In the end, while it is a cool device, it's not powerful and struggles even with basic web browsing.  They are a great idea in developing countries or for fun projects, but it is not fast enough to be used for any sort of programming at a comfortable speed.

$150 could easily buy a much more capable machine such as a second hand desktop/laptop or a new Chromebook (Which could run Linux if required).

[Geek-9pm]

It's a nice idea but it is still just a raspberry pi ...
$150 could easily buy a much more capable machine such as a second hand desktop/laptop or a new Chromebook (Which could run Linux if required).

Point well made. Still, if the documentation is good, it would be a fair investment.
http://www.kano.me/kit?gclid=CJ6k0rGBwsICFU-TfgodtqEAkA
The above link provides some more detail.
But it seems they are not too keen on traditional book learning.

Manuals are boring. Kano is a story. With illustrated ideas and simple steps, build a computer, make stuff, and explore a new world. Meet cool characters and level up. 

Personally, I would be reluctant to give something to a child that does not load to a real book not encourage reading skills.

[DaveLembke]

$150 could easily buy a much more capable machine such as a second hand desktop/laptop or a new Chromebook (Which could run Linux if required).

This was my same exact thought when reading about this. I have seen refurb desktop systems for sale for $89.99 with Windows 7 Core 2 Duo CPU, 2GB RAM, 80GB HDD with 1 year warranties which are more powerful. * Note: Most of these refurbs assume you already have a display to use with them as for they come with everything except for the display, but a used flat screen that works such as an old 15 or 17" display could be bought for around $20.

[strollin]

It's a nice idea but it is still just a raspberry pi which could be purchased a lot cheaper, it just doesn't come with all the other parts to make it appealing to kids.  You are paying for the extras such as the accessories and documentation which would be nice for kids to have, not the computer. ...

You're also paying for the custom Kano OS which comes preloaded on the SD card.

You guys can poke fun at this all you want but it really is a nice little kit and not outrageously priced at $150.  Yes, you could buy a Raspberry Pi for $35 but then you still need an SD card, keyboard, power supply, speakers, case and cables.  You could buy a Chromebook or 2nd hand computer for about the same price but then you would just have the computer without the Kano OS and other parts that make up the whole kit.

If you guys have experience with the Kano OS and can honestly say that it isn't well designed for kids to learn from then I could see your argument but since I doubt you do, I'm not sure why you're knocking it down.

I have a Raspberry Pi and I am currently downloading the Kano OS from their website and plan to put it on an SD card and check it out.  That's the only way I know of to truly know if this kit would be something I would recommend to parents with young children as a learning tool. 

[camerongray]

A Raspberry Pi starter kit could still be put together for around $60 so you are still paying a lot for the kit, sure you don't get the custom OS out of the box or the books however as you stated, you could put it on a RPi yourself.  I totally agree that it is nice to have as a complete kit for young kids (especially if they want to learn how to code but don't know any technical people who help them get it set up), but it is not the amazing bargain computer that it was originally made out to be - It has a very niche market.

If kids are learning to code, they are going to be capable of working a regular OS, be it Raspbian, Ubuntu or even Windows on a refurbished PC.  Kids nowadays are extremely quick at learning technology and don't really need a super easy to use operating system.  A Raspberry Pi would be potentially okay for the most basic of programming but kids would very quickly outgrow it.

I mentor at a group that helps kids learn to code and where they can work on their own projects, a few kids there started off using Raspberry Pis however they quite quickly outgrew them and are now using regular (albeit fairly basic) laptops.  Raspberry Pis are still used, but as a platform to build projects on top of such as little robots.etc, not as their primary programming machine.

The way I see it is that for the average kid who wants a computer to learn to program, for $150 you could easily find quite a nice used laptop (At least a Core 2 Duo, possibly even an older i3/i5).  This could handle all their programming work (from Scratch all the way up to Java/Python.etc) as well as be able to do web browsing at a decent speed.  It also has the advantage of being a single, portable unit whereas the Pi needs to be connected to a monitor, keyboard and mouse.

Don't get me wrong, the Raspberry Pi is a fantastic bit of kit, but $150 seems to be a lot of money for such limited computing power.  The kit has a niche market such as in schools and developing countries, but for the average computer user or kid wanting to learn programming, there are better options out there.

[strollin]

You make some good points but I think there is still a market for this kind of thing.

What age group are you working with?  The Kano kit seems to be aimed at pretty young kids.  The fact that they "build it" may give them an additional sense of accomplishment in addition to learning to use and code with it.

I got the Kano OS downloaded and burned onto an SD card but I have to get my RPi back from my son before I can try it.

[camerongray]

We work with anyone under 19 - Most kids are in the age range of 7 - 18.

You make a good point about building it, my concern really is just that it is quite expensive compared to a standard starter kit, if it were under $80 I'd consider it but $150 is pretty steep for what you get.