Will this country’s obsession with things that are related to or somehow connected to “sticks” ever end? Maybe. But for now, it seems like there are plenty of stuff that are so much better when they are “on-a-stick” — or so it seems. PLDT today announced a breakthrough partnership that involves top entertainment corporations in the U.S. as well as home computing desktop Microsoft, in a move to launch a new gadget that’s intended to turn any TV into a personal computer.
Dubbed the PLDT TVolution Stick, it’s a variation of the Intel Compute Stick that was first announced locally a few months back, and joins the first OTT (over-the-top) device from PLDT HOME which was aimed at raising the bar in terms of both home entertainment and home computing.
According to PLDT VP and HOME Marketing Director Gary Dujali, the aforementioned Intel Compute Stick launch was the signal needed to forge the current partnership, based mainly on the “overwhelming consumer response” after the original TVolution Stick was first introduced. Now, the TVolution Stick not only turns any TV into a Smart TV, it actually works seamlessly as a full Windows computer.
The default OS on the PLDT TVolution Stick is Windows 8.1, and it offers users free access to Microsoft Office 365 as well as up to 15GB of free OneDrive online storage. There’s also free credits for Skype-to-non-Skype calls every month, and it will be possible to upgrade the OS to the latest version — Windows 10.
With today’s new TVolution Stick from PLDT, it will be possible to convert an HDMI-enabled TV into a Windows PC. As Microsoft Consumer and Channels Group GM for Asia Pacific Carlos Lopes states in the press release, “It’s a full PC on a stick, so you can turn any HDMI screen into a get-it-done machine.” The higher-ups at both PLDT and Microsoft are apparently counting on the fact that the Philippines is a “mobile-first, cloud-first world” and most people are essentially always on the go.
The TVolution Stick is up for grabs to all new PLDT HOME subscribers as well as existing subscribers with Plan 999 or higher. It’s also provided for free to all PLDT HOME Fibr and DSL Plan 999 subscribers, with access to Fox and iflix until the end of December 2015. You can find out more at the official web site, pldthome.com.
