Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by mschuster91 4224 days ago
Just take a PC... Windows is it's firmware and if you want to upgrade it, then you have to pay. (Or, switch to Linux).

Or take some cars which are different models, with different power/torque ratings, but mechanically they are the same - the only difference is made in the MCU software. Or cars with their maximum speed locked and only unlocked after paying a nice sum of money (iirc it was the VW Golf GTI).
2 comments
stinos 4224 days ago
Windows is it's firmware

For a PC I'd rather call it the software, or the OS, and call the BIOS it's firmware. Which can usually be updated for free.

link
mschuster91 4224 days ago
A PC with just a BIOS is unusable, though.
link
kaoD 4224 days ago
A skateboard without wheels is unusable too, and wheels are not firmware either.
link
clamprecht 4223 days ago
A PC with a BIOS can run free operating systems such as Linux. In contrast, I assume this skateboard can only run their own software/firmware.
link
pmorici 4223 days ago
The difference is a PC is an open and well documented platform that anyone can write software for. This board and other embedded devices typically don't provide the details needed to implement alternative firmwares. That is the difference between windows on a PC and firmware on an embedded device.
link