The support problem is presumably solved by owning the distro and having automatic updates enabled.

Whether a hardware vendor is the right kind of business to own such a distro is another matter. With a little effort, it wouldn't need to be tied to particular hardware, but would need to be very tightly controlled at the software level. Since access to the distro and its updates could be protected by password/licence key, presumably there's a way of extracting money from grateful customers. Whether there are enough grateful customers to make the business viable is another matter.

All they need is a dirt cheap box running Linux, a browser and a picture viewer all wrapped up in a simple GUI, with a USB port to plug their camera memory card reader into. No upgrades needed.

Then, they can use an existing (Google?) web based office and photo storage service. You could knock up a web service as a mashup portal and charge them a monthly fee to use it. Rig up some forum server for them, then they can chat with like minded friends.

They're just sitting there waiting to be milked, go get them!!

Push Linux for the kids too, dish out supported Linux boxes to schools as part of a charity drive (for the tax benefits) and give it a year, then the kids can do their linux support thing.

Like 5 years ago another german based company had a wonderful idea and tried to place a PC system configured especially for older people in the market.They failed completely. Because elderly people usually dont need a PC, dont want a PC, plus they dont want to spend money on it. I think the firm almost went bancrupt by that wonderful idea...because of the "special features" they couldnt sell it to anybody else...

A friend of mine who I occasionally help out with computer related tasks is in his mid-80s and in the key demographic for this product.

Except he has a shiny Mac, a Vista PC, an iPhone and an Apple TV, all networked together. He's not hugely technical but would exhaust the capabilities of such a simple device very quickly.

The old aren't stupid any more than the young, and even those who are stupid don't want to be made to feel like they are through cut-down products. The market has proven this time and time again - WebTV, that Amstrad e-mailer thing, Microsoft Bob, this Fujitsu box, etc.

Products aimed at the stupid have to offer the perception of full functionality and even marketed as improvements over dry, boring technical variants - AOL, Fox News, etc...

I can agree with much of Gareth's sentiments, especially as I am somewhat connected with a group of people that are hardly in their first flush of youth who are quite active, technologically speaking. They use systems that are easy to use and, on the whole, are quite happy with that. Of course, that wasn't the real idea behind these machines - they were designed for the entire other end of the spectrum, but they do the job well enough.

Oh, didn't I mention what they were? Nah... I'll only annoy the M$ users... and the Linux and Mac users... and the BOFH readers... well, some of them....

A good about that system is that people who have started out on it rather than on other systems, generally can cope with other systems quite well.

Shame it was never marketed properly.

... getting inexperienced users on Linux ASAP - that way they have no prejudice/´this is different´ factor. I tried to do this with my dad. Sadly the Microsoft ´I just want a computer that works´ took over...