This tiny KVM controls your PC-anywhere!

[@jetkvm]

Big thanks to Jeff for the detailed review! Given then immense popularity of the project, we have decided to: - Add a USB-C power/data splitter - Double internal storage from 8 GB to 16 GB This will apply to all backers automatically Thanks for all the support! 🚀🚀🚀🚀

[@JeffGeerling]

And following along the discord and Kickstarter updates, it sounds like they're thinking about a PoE version at some point (but not this one) and have components secured for all orders already, and don't see a hindrance to shipping in December. All Kickstarters are risky but this one I think has a good chance! I also gained access to their codebases on GitHub pre-launch. The cloud api is pretty lightweight - React and Typescript, easy enough to set up but not yet abstracted enough to quickly replace their site on device (they're working on that). All in all, very impressed still!

[@kneekoo]

This looks like a great project. :) After watching this review, my only gripe is the eMMC. As an old time sysadmin I want all storage to be removable, so I can pop another in for any reason (failure, upgrade, etc). With eMMC and no external storage, if the eMMC dies, the whole thing is dead, which is incredibly annoying. Having to throw away a whole device over a faulty eMMC is wasteful. A microSD version would be fantastic.

[@roblatour3511]

@jetkvm Thanks - when I saw you posted this I pledged!!

[@ashuggtube]

@@JeffGeerling PoE version would be dope

[@licanueto]

I can't seem to find any data on power draw. How many watts does this take under normal use ? btw Jeff, this is something that'd be great to see on the devices you test, specially those that are designed to run continuously

[@HuskyMoment]

So, premium build quality, well designed software, actually works, while also being cheap? Hope this KVM does well so these folks can expand into more tech stuff that has a lot of unnecessary jank.

[@checksum00]

It will never ship regardless... moving on...

[@resneptacle]

@@checksum00And how do you know that?

[@TheoHiggins]

Oh hi loker

[@Kane0123]

I was surprised it's HDMI, isn't there a ton of licensing issues on that front? I wonder if DP would have been harder in the form factor

[@gizlas]

The only thing missing? PoE ^^

[@JeffGeerling]

That's already the number one feature request on their Discord :D

[@gizlas]

@@JeffGeerling good to know. Powering that device using USB, it's tempting to use the Machine you want to remote control. Which most certainly not results in stable USB Power :)

[@gabe_0x]

Still sane, Exile?

[@ChristopherFerguson]

Thank you for going over remote gaming... Someday I'd like a networked solution that isn't an arm and a leg that I can use to play my games remotely throughout my home!

[@efad3215]

@ChristopherFerguson Steam Link? Ps remote play for the 4/5s?

[@privacyvalued4134]

3:03 "I decided to try out upgrading this mini PC from Windows 11 to Linux." I love it when anyone throws subtle shade at Microsoft but Microsoft's earned it with all their recent changes to Windows.

[@Perspectologist]

I appreciate the strong KickStarter disclaimers. I decided to risk it on this. I’ve only used KVM connection switches, so it will be interesting to explore an Ethernet KVM. I hope it ships.

[@TradieTrev]

It was a long ad!

[@iammohanbathula]

Did you receive it?

[@Perspectologist]

@@iammohanbathula it isn’t expected to start shipping until early December.

[@TechnoTim]

Thanks for the shoutout for my Dark Mode shirt!

[@JeffGeerling]

#darkmodeftw

[@trojanhorses4760]

@@JeffGeerling @TechnoTim why dont you guys do a collab rating each other's homelabs, that would be nice!

[@JeffGeerling]

@@trojanhorses4760 We've been talking. I really *really* hope some of us homelabbers on YT can get together next year. Some fun shenanigans could ensue!

[@scottscopters7]

I love it

[@blahblahblahblah2933]

This is looking like a really solid, well thought out project. Thanks for looking at the hardware manufacturing background, I was curious about that too. I hope these things take off.

[@JeffGeerling]

Taking off would suit the name, haha

[@Doctor_MB]

$69 is a very reasonable price for this. Entry level PIKVM is about $125 if you use a $90 Geekworm clone and a $35 PI4 1GB.

[@kevinshumaker3753]

I use a Pi3, $10 HDMI capture dongle, and the PiKVM software, and it works well for me. I do want to get one for testing though, for supporting a few friends...

[@michaeldmorrison]

Yeah, even the pispeed NanoKVM went up a bit in price after his review, it's not much cheaper.

[@guanche011]

I'm not familiar with these kvm prices, but my first though was that $69 might be a kickstarter price and thought $120 would be reasonable for GA release. Seems on par with what you list. We'll see, I'm keeping my eye on it.

[@cobrasys]

I think you mean it's a very _nice_ price.

[@hw2508]

@@Doctor_MB but $20 for shipping and an extra $20 for the serial console extension is a bad joke.

[@AklemTech]

Hey just wanted to let you know that PiKVM has been aggressively removing any mention of downstream devices from their communities. Someone even had their post on reddit removed just for asking if they could run it on their Pi zero. I would reconsider calling them the gold standard with their behavior.

[@JeffGeerling]

It's a tough situation for the PiKVM community and original authors - they do have great software, and solid devices, and were pretty much the pioneers in the space. However, as a number of Chinese manufacturers started building their devices with PiKVM software but without contributing anything back, that started to turn the community a bit sour sometimes, because of the 'maker/taker' problem inherent to OSS. TinyPilot also fought a bit in that battle, as they were contributing back stuff, but were also burned-sometimes even with their code being ripped off with all the license headers removed! So I don't have ill will towards PiKVM's behavior, it's their community to maintain after all. I just think having cheaper options, *especially* if those options are on the up-and-up licensing-wise, is a huge win. Before PiKVM, IP KVMs were in the hundreds to thousands of dollars, and required subscriptions. PiKVM brought it down to hundreds, with no subscriptions. NanoKVM and JetKVM are bringing it under a hundred, which makes lights-out homelab management way more approachable to way more people!

[@AklemTech]

@@JeffGeerling Its understandable to have a sour relationship with downstream but their moderation is to the point that, like I said, they're removing even things about people experimenting with their own DIY stuff, someone simply asking if they could run it on a pi zero. Also It's tough because I'm someone who donates a considerable chunk of money towards open source I rely on, but that doesn't matter when I post "hey here's how to upgrade a BliKVM" and I have no community to post it in because it gets removed. The problems surrounding supporting open projects still exist regardless of the way I handle supporting projects I use.

[@JeffGeerling]

@@AklemTech That stinks :(

[@fairhall001]

Reddit mods acting like dictators? Reddit is full of wingnut control freaks.

[@ShaferHart]

​​@@JeffGeerlingthere's no "maker/taker problem" in FLOSS: that _is_ FLOSS if you don't want that you definitely should think before you release something. PiKVM didn't write their OS from zero now did they? Should Linus Torvalds go after any mention of them in the same way? That's not how FLOSS work. You don't get to make demands on the people who take your software and use it as the license intended.

[@doq]

"upgrading from windows 11 to linux" 🤣💀

[@dmhzmxn]

My popcorn is ready 🍿🍿. Here comes everyone's 2 cents. 😅

[@TommyLikeTom]

I've been on the same install of windows 10 since 2015. When I have to upgrade I think I will just check out

[@zee-fr5kw]

@@TommyLikeTom windows 11 isn't bad at all

[@LiLBitsDK]

@@zee-fr5kw it's worse than bad...

[@zee-fr5kw]

@@LiLBitsDK that's just admitting to never using it because it's the same as windows 10

[@altrogeruvah]

I don't necessarily have a use for it, but it's one of the best and most refined KVM projects I've come across

[@juststeve5542]

Interesting little thing, pleasantly surprised by the price. Only caveat for my use is the power. It would be nice if it had PoE or a second power only USB connection or even just a DC jack port, I don't want yet another inline "thingy" adding to the cable mess in my rack like that USB power injector you briefly showed. Just make the thing cubic and use the extra internal space for a DC jack.

[@BladeWDR]

Honestly this is the most polished web interface that I've seen on any of these. I'll back the project, why not. I still haven't gotten the nanoKVM I ordered, lol. I've honestly been looking for a tiny KVM like this that I can stuff in my go bag. Being able to just plug in one of these when I'm troubleshooting a machine onsite and not having to sit there the server room where it's cold and loud would be a dream.

[@JeffGeerling]

Now to see which one actually ships sooner!

[@andreas.grundler]

I backed it on Kickstarter and am pretty confident it will be successful. If not, I have no one to blame but myself. $69 + shipping is money I can spare, and if they succeed, I get a cool new toy for my homelab.

[@privacyvalued4134]

You can always convert Ethernet to WiFi using a router in network bridge mode. The router connects to WiFi and the KVM connects to the router. Also deals with the situation of some switches not supporting 100Mbps.

[@samuelhulme8347]

Or use an access point, as that’s the actual component that provides the Wi-Fi signal, many home routers are “combo boxes” that combine an access point + router + switch.

[@technerd9655]

Or there's ethernet to wifi adapters, IOGEAR makes one, I think it's around $60CAD but it's only 100Mbps and Wireless N. But generally speaking I suspect these are likely to have access to ethernet in over 90% of use cases.

[@Daxiongmao87]

someone is gonna run doom on this

[@CyberDunk2077]

It has to be done! Didn’t someone get doom working on a pregnancy test kit? lol

[@309electronics5]

​@@CyberDunk2077 Only on the shell of the test. The internals got replaced. If that makes it "it can run doom" you can run doom on everything once you slap a computer on it

[@SOF006]

I've backed a few days ago, been wanting something like this forever but didn't want to fork out a ton of money. This is perfect for me!

[@perkulant4629]

Yeah I’ll wait till after the kickstarter, don’t like to take a chance.

[@michaeldmorrison]

yeah, already kinda regretting getting the NanoKVM from pispeed, still waiting on shipping and not sure how the software is gonna end up...

[@PW-72648]

​@@michaeldmorrisonI would just charge back on credit card, easy.

[@xdevs23]

I'm really looking forward to this! It's the first kickstarter I'm backing simply because I want to have this and if they actually publish the source code under the GPL, I will be very happy.

[@Sight-Beyond-Sight]

I work in a data center (where customers rent servers or collocate space for their I.T. infrastructure) and KVM use is quite abundant. There are a myriad of options one could think of to add to these systems. On-board data storage for ISO's, cellular/WiFi access, even the idea of having pass-through for video feed so you can have the KVM active along with someone on-site with a crash cart. A great many servers now come with IPMI, iDRAC or iLO (depending on the mobo manufacturer) that is supposed to do the same thing (with a few other features, like powering on a shut down system). It feels like no one option has it all. Many of the systems I work with are still using the 15 pin VGA connection. Having a KVM with multiple input options (maybe modular?) would be their next upgrade.

[@RonLaws]

I'm actually really happy to see new takes on KVMs, I still remember when even just a very basic plug in KVM adapter would set you back hundreds of bucks and offered very little functionality.

[@309electronics5]

Its awesome that they promise opensource code from the start unlike nano kvm who just wants stars or sales before making code opensource. I might deffinitly consider one and might support the project

[@Gregorius421]

It's refreshing to see an all around well-designed, innovative product that solves real-world problems. And it's even open-source. This is golden.

[@astacc]

Looks awesome.. will definitely grab few early next year once the add-on boards are released as well. wanted some IPKVM for my homelab but the prices just were more than I was willing to spend ~90€ (including shipping shown on kickstarter) sounds like a steal.. now just need to hope they deliver on all the promisses

[@michaelvilain8457]

pledged for 5 units--Shut up and take my money (when you're ready).

[@Yuriel1981]

This is going to make admining my families home servers for them much easier! Lol Edit: Definitely PoE needed. But a powered USB port on your UPS would also suffice. Also love the Wendel and Techno Tim call outs! Always good to see cross support!

[@JeffGeerling]

Homelab KZbin is the bestest KZbin!

[@GameDr04]

I relate to your choosing to say "upgrade from Windows to Linux." I feel that in my soul.

[@JeffGeerling]

Linux Soup for the Soul

[@gabbieblue]

cant wait for this to properly release! $20 shipping to the uk via kickstarter is insane but i will absolutely be picking these up once they have PoE

[@sebastien79a]

PoE would make this far more usable commercially. Backed the project.. may try out a PoE splitter but as Jeff may need to use a board for it unless the RJ11 DC input works (added that too). Looks awesome. I hope it works ok with VGA adaptors though as servers don't have HDMI..

[@criostasis]

They have just under half of their 10k run sold so far it seems. Also a change I noticed and maybe I missed it the other week but theyve started charging the correct shipping price based on country ~$15-20 depends where you are. I think I am going to wait and see. I want to see them actually disclose their code and have a look at it.

[@LiveWireBT]

Hence my question about the CVEs. I posted an issue on the NanoKVM issue tracker with EMBA findings. Not that I expected a perfect image with no findings, but ... just look at it.

[@PW-72648]

It's always better to wait. Let free testers check it, if they even get it 😂

[@vwestTube]

I don’t play games but no audio? Oh, I think I’ll buy it anyway, doesn’t cost that much….

[@owlmostdead9492]

This is so incredibly cool, I need it .. damn Kickstarter. I'll wait for the actual delivery.

[@lis6502]

Honestlly i'll stick to my nanokvm. It's guaranteed to be shipped (else Aliexpress returns my moneys), comes with UART which is pretty useful when you play with SBCs and "atx board" with optocouplers which, suprise surprise, can also serve a purpose on SBC. And i never understand argument of aestethics of device that i see for up to 10 mins before i throw it in my makeshift home lab rack.

[@JeffGeerling]

For me, the weight of it and smoothness makes it easier to jam in my bag. I've already replaced the NanoKVM I had in there for on the go IP KVM use. It's very handy to have a highly portable one with a few cables dangling off it to plug in temporarily for debugging.

[@Steamrick]

The 10/100 mbit port has another disadvantage: Mounting any ISO over ethernet is gonna be pretty damn slow. Bad freebie USB 2.0 stick slow. As for the bright future... well you did say it won't have dark mode anytime soon.

[@JeffGeerling]

With the 10/100, the other thing is the USB port emulation is USB 2.0 as well, so you're going to max out around 10-20 MB/sec regardless.

[@joergsonnenberger6836]

I've dealt with builtin iKVM solutions that never were able to max out 100Mbit/s with their USB emulation. What are you doing with the emulated CD-ROM that needs so much bandwidth?

[@andreas.grundler]

My Internet connection has a maximum upload speed of around 35 Mbps. That's all the DSL line can handle. Even at this speed, I was able to use IPMI solutions on external servers without any problems or signs of lag. 100 Mbit/s in the Homelab is more than sufficient.

[@PW-72648]

They still buy it 😂

[@CoryMT]

This looks really nice! My NanoKVM should arrive in the next week or two, and the one Kickstarter I participated in gave me nothing in return, so I'll be waiting and hoping for their success. I may pick one up later depending on how happy I am with the NanoKVM. Thank you for putting this on my radar 🙂

[@Deraco1]

thats a pretty sweet little dude! Every time you said JetKVM, I kept on hearing "Jeff KVM" 🤣

[@jetkvm]

👀

[@jaykayenn]

It's the best kind of KVM; Jeff shows up to reboot your servers.

[@termiterasin]

That's really cool.. Very high quality build. Reminds me of Ubiquiti equipment which always has a high build quality. You're right about the mini hdmi being fragile. 100 mbit might not support different cable types in the same way gigabit does.

[@crrodriguez]

That is a really nice product..Im still not kickstarting it. will totally buy one when it actually ships.

[@JeffGeerling]

A highly logical approach!

[@CedroCron]

Thanks for the video Jeff. Definitely hope this project makes it to production.

[@maxmustermann194]

Always-on USB Power is often a BIOS/UEFI feature that you have to specifically activate. Might be worth the time to dig around in the UEFI settings.

[@fujinshu]

I'll happily buy a bunch of IPKVMs if they support multi-management in a single interface, which the JetKVM has partly done by allowing you to manage all of your JetKVMs from a single account over the web.

[@anadventfollower1181]

Love your videos man. You got a great calming voice, and being just yourself is well enough for these reviews and explainational contents.

[@ottermanuk]

The aluminium case and screen seem a bit redundant but the actual kit looks decent. PoE [and a boring simple rackmount like you say] and it'd be perfect

[@optical_ideas]

Oh wow, this might be the most beautiful kvm i've ever seen. +1 for the Lenovo tiny on your desk 😜 i do have 4 of them representing my homelab with proxmox, docker, nas and stuff like that...

[@JeffGeerling]

They're great little 1L PCs!

[@kettusnuhveli]

I guess it looks sleek and all but it's so small the moment I plug all the required cables to it, it will slide off the table. I'd prefer it if they offered either a rackmount kit or something that fits in a PCIe slot so it can be placed in a more robust location!

[@JeffGeerling]

I think a little silicone sleeve would hold it in place nicely. I haven't had time but would like to design a 3D printable rackmount ear that holds it in place.

[@EDIIIZ]

NanoKVM has a PCIe version coming. 40$ atm.

[@astral6749]

This is one of the best kickstarter products I've seen

[@chrisdixon5241]

Looks like a nice device and the price is pretty good. Shame there is no PoE :( I guess that would have added extra cost, and maybe will come in a v2 if things go well. In the mean time, I'd probably hang it off a powered USB hub to resolve the issue of PCs that cut power to USB when they shutdown in that case

[@crystalyzzed]

Change aluminum alloy for polycarbonate, remove touch, add POE and full HDMI port

[@sailorgreg1184]

PoE would be awesome, but mini HDMI is actually a deal breaker for me

[@zukaro]

I like it. I don't have any use for it right now, but if I need a remote KVM in the future I'd absolutely consider one of these.

[@nuvotion-live]

I'll be waiting for gen 2 on this one. My excitement dissipated as the video went on. Great review.

[@kc0eks]

Seems like a neat little device id love a few

[@digitalsparky]

I ended up backing the JetKVM earlier today after thinking about it for a bit. It's perfect for helping the parents from afar etc :P.

[@middle_pickup]

This looks sick. I really hope they ship.

[@ascot4000]

10 Mbps ethernet is a bit of a barrier to me as some of my infrastructure does not go below 100 Mbps. The bottom rung of ethernet is slowly being dropped as adoption above 1 Gbps becomes more common.

[@PeterRichardsandYoureNot]

Yeah, it kind of blows chunks when it’s only 10/100 Ethernet when gigabit has been the standard for decades. I can live with a usb dongle for power even, but then you are sucking up another ac outlet…however, on a server rack you could use a usb hub and power a bunch of them with that. Lack of gigabit, and now that you mention WiFi….that would be icing on the cake.

[@rakeau]

Honestly for anyone from a tinkerer to a pro, something like this would be better than needing a spare monitor, keyboard and mouse in most cases. Cheaper, more portable, no space to store or transport it .. Very tempting just to have one kicking around.

[@NickyNiclas]

This seems surprisingly good for the price. I'm surprised by how well developed it already seems. So, what's the catch? Also, USB power while system is off, is often a BIOS setting.

[@efad3215]

The catch is needing to figure out how to provide power while the remote pc is off. Also, afaik, no VPN/internet access yet, only intranet

[@JeffGeerling]

Note their cloud service is already up and running and works well, if you are happy with that. The other thing is this is a device built by BuildJet, a YC-backed startup, so they probably invested some of their funding into the project after they realized it would be popular in the homelab/sysadmin arenas.

[@michaeldmorrison]

Easy enough to use a wall wart for power, have plenty and wouldn't take up much room in my racks power strip, it does just seem like a better pispeed NanoKVM, though that one has the MB pins for a tad cheaper.

[@efad3215]

@michaeldmorrison No dedicated power in though

[@NickyNiclas]

@@efad3215 For me, being able to input power via the RJ11 is good enough just gotta figure out the pinout since it's not in their current documentation.

[@Cybernetic_Systems]

I’m impressed by this device and the price. I’ve pre-ordered for one my Plex Server.

[@michaelhoffmann2891]

Came here from your LinkedIn post, and while interesting there's some immediate questions: - how is the performance with a GUI OS? (Windows, MacOS) You cover some of that, but only with Windows. The devil is in the mutli-OS detail. - how is it switching back and forth between Windows, Linux, MacOS? (many KVM get pretty confused, I speak from experience) As above. - how many computers can be connected? (is that dependent on the model? 2, 4, ...?) A 4-port unit would be ideal. In short: is is full-blown remote access solution or mostly a remote management approach? You do point out some latency issues. My use case is WFH with your typical locked-down corporate laptop (often a Macbook), and being sick and tired of having to either work on the dinky monitor keyboard, replug keyboard/monitor, have multiple ones cramming my desk, etc.

[@jfseaman1]

I like it. PiKVM is "expensive" even DIY NanoKVM is no ship JetKVM is wait So, I'll wait.

[@checksum00]

That will never ship lol

[@affieuk]

What do you mean about "no ship" for NanoKVM?

[@jfseaman1]

@@affieuk I don't believe NanoKVM will actually ship if I order it. Just my feelings. Nothing about the "pre-order" process seems "smooth" and the price jumped as soon as Tubers made vids.

[@vinod.mishra]

@@jfseaman1 I have had mine for 2 months and it works well. Not sure where you are getting no shipping from.

[@jfseaman1]

@@vinod.mishra Cool. Is yours one of the first batch? I'm old by "computer" standards. Don't over react. Delays, price rises and some other things. Just a "feeling" based on years of experience. I am usually an early adopter but sometimes I don't get what I ordered or the product was misrepresented. So...

[@4b978]

Thank you Jeff, I'm buying this when they start shipping

[@kwinzman]

Even if the Kickstarter delivers, unfortunately my experience shows that people buying from other sources the 2nd generation that already has its kinks worked out often get their devices sooner than the Kickstarter backers. Also Kickstarter mostly offers no legally backed warranty. Even if I like the product, I will always wait until I can purchase a product, not *donate* in hopes of eventually maybe receiving something. If they don't have enough money to finance the initial run: get an investor. I am not the Salvation Army handing out donations.

[@brandon_bates]

Thanks for mentioning Ventoy, I hadn't heard of it and always use Rufus or windiskimager.

[@sampletext69420]

3:04 upgrading from Windows 11 to Linux sounds personal 💀🗿

[@Nobe_Oddy]

I think $70 isn't too bad for slick, high quality KVM like this... it's got a touchscreen for cryin out loud!!! lol And the software looks pretty dang good do! Disappoint about POE, 10/100, mini-HDMI, and NO AUDIO .... but they aren't deal breakers.... KICKSTARTER MIGHT BE THO.... well for a lot of people it is... I think I'd go for if I was in need of a KVM of this caliber... but I'm not....

[@PW-72648]

This hardware feels like a beta product as it is

[@timotheegoulet1511]

Neat, I’ve been reading up on this kickstarter. If I worked at the old Dat-center/NOC I’d wear two of those.

[@bepstein111]

yeeeessss so glad you covered this. been wondering about it since I saw ads on instagram.

[@bepstein111]

i think it was instagram? idk, maybe it was just ars or something

[@DAVIDLIFUHUANG]

We have already made equipment for advanced IT needs such as IP KVM. However, due to the slight difference in size, we cannot use the design of standard HDMI cables. I have no way of understanding whether this is something wrong. The current small-sized IP KVM gives me the feeling that it is redundant or excessively designed to reduce the size. In fact, all IO ports only need to be laid flat on a flat surface. If you really need an OLED display panel, It is also possible to put it on the upper cover of the flat body, but the usage rate of this OLED display panel is also very low. Instead, I would rather give me a Micro USB-shaped serial console that is more practical.

[@Sqaaakoi]

I've seen other people cover this before, though this video shows the limitations of the device very well. I want to know, is the lack of audio a hardware issue, or is it just not implemented in software yet?

[@JeffGeerling]

I believe it's a hardware level limitation... I don't think the CSI lanes can accept audio, but I'm not 100% sure of that.

[@marcus_w0]

That's what I wonder, too. This has to be a software problem, because hdmi transports audio as well...

[@Sqaaakoi]

​@@JeffGeerling That's a little bit of a disappointment, but it isn't a deal breaker.

[@marcus_w0]

@@JeffGeerling Oh, if it's connected over CSI, this could be an issue. But why would you do that, if you can simply connect it using gpio and software? The CPU must have plenty of power for that. The hardware encoder acceleration should be another step.

[@sammcj2000]

100mbit Ethernet is a show stopper - many 10gbit and 2.5gbit switches don't support them and it's too slow to load ISOs

[@kritikusi-666]

$69 is not bad at all. Nice review. Thanks JEFE.

[@kchiem]

It looks like there ought to be room to put a full size HDMI port on it. And since it's HDMI, sound should be possible..

[@michaelhuss0]

It's using a hardware decoder to receive the HDMI signal. If that decoder doesn't support audio... Fortunately, since it uses USB, they could emulate an audio interface there.

[@chrisw1462]

" _upgrading_ Windows 11 to Linux." I see what you did there. And I approve!

[@mofoq]

I hope more ipkvm projects would add power-isolation as an option (not grabbing power from host but using "aux power") and yes, I have one of those blikvm usb-c power splitters 🤣

[@Technopath47]

IF this thing actually pans out, is GPL licensed, and follows through, this is EXACTLY what I've been needing for my home setup. One particular thing that's annoyed me is I actually separate my secure file server from my media server so I can do stuff like reboot and do maintenance on the media server remotely. I can't remotely do work on my file server that requires a reboot due to the LUKS encryption, as I need to physically be there to enter the key. I'd love to be able to finally merge these two servers together and use a KVM to remotely manage it in a single box (especially as I've got a tiny apartment and don't have room for a massive setup). I'm sure I could hack together a Raspberry Pi KVM or something, but I love the idea of a simple all-in-one solution like this. This would also be a good excuse to change from a RAID 1 array to something a bit more scalable too. lol

[@MarkusWeber-d8f]

What is with cryptroot-unlock or initrd-dropbear? I use that for years for my Servers.

[@Technopath47]

@@MarkusWeber-d8f I didn't realize that was a thing, I'll try 'em out. lol TYVM :)

[@fgregerfeaxcwfeffece]

A working prototype is always a really good sign. Most Kickstarters that don't deliver are filled with red flags from the start. Most of the rest deliver. That said: Many still go back on big promises made at the start. So in this case I am most concerned about the Open Source part.

[@festro1000]

definitely sounds like something I will be keeping an eye on though I'll probably wait until after kickstarter; I've been burned too many times on early access products, even when they offer an enjoyable first experience (namely games).

[@JeffGeerling]

Getting burned on a Kickstarter is like the tech enthusiast starterpack

[@festro1000]

@@JeffGeerling yeah, but when you're a tech enthusiast on a shoestring budget, kinda hard to justify splurging even $69 on something that might not even show up.

[@superangrybrit]

I don't need such a device but this is top notch. Wow! 😎

[@vladislavkaras491]

Darn... For it's price this is a way to awesome I must say! As I understand, USB is required only for the power, aka you can just connect it to your charger instead of relying on the PC it is connected to? Also, as others have said, PoE would be awesome for such device. Thanks for the video!

[@DavidAlsh]

The lack of dedicated power is a deal breaker for me sadly

[@JeffGeerling]

They just confirmed on the Discord (they'll update Kickstarter soon) that they'll ship a USB-C power/data splitter along with every unit.

[@jetkvm]

@@JeffGeerling Thanks for spreading the word, Jeff!

[@romayojr]

cool watch and that's an expensive coaster 😁

[@spoonikle]

I need this so bad! please JetKVM please come to market🤞

It's really cool. Unfortunately the form factor looks a little bit annoying to deal with. They say it's designed to look good in a rack, but I'm not even sure how you would install them in one besides sticking it to a shelf with some double sided tape.

[@PeterRichardsandYoureNot]

People who ask why you need a kvm at the hardware level instead of using Remote Desktop, probably should NOT be using kvm in any capacity as it means they also do not understand security,

[@PW-72648]

That kind of people will buy it anyway as it is for now 😂

[@johnsimon8457]

Supervisory control like this across an entire rack is definitely a “separate the men from the boys” kind of feature for enterprise

[@niv8880]

I'll be keen to get my hands on a few of these.

[@onecalledchuck1664]

As long as it doesn't try to get off my local network with phone-home packets, requiring web login or anything nasty, I'm all for it. I have the stuff to roll my own PiKVM, I just haven't gotten a round-to-it token. Purchasing already made hardware would be great right now.

[@baylinkdashyt]

Here's a specific thing to look for: even if the USB it's plugged into has continuous power, 1) does that hold up across a reboot, and 2) if not, does the unit carry over a short power drop without resetting?

[@krisclem8290]

I imagine this is really great when paired with a normal kvm that supports hotkeys for switching between hosts.

[@the_beefy1986]

Not a huge fan of the cloud remote control feature. From a security perspective, I'd rather it just not be present. The target audience here likely already does their own thing for remote network access.

[@grokknar]

They've stated on their discord that the cloud feature software is also OSS - so you can run your own. But all it really does is mediate a direct peer to peer connection from your browser to the KVM.

[@ischmidt]

Yeah, the inevitable reveal that these are cheap because it's stealing all your data is gonna be funny.

[@jetkvm]

Hey! Other than the API being open source, it is purely an opt-in feature hidden in the settings. So, no need to enable it if you don't want to.

[@daylen577]

Was expecting the pricing to kill it, as per usual, but at $70 it's well worth it

[@fastabst]

this is next gen kvm, looks so fresh, if write drops by a lot that would be great

[@WesBrownStories]

I've been fighting with a PiKVM for years. EDID is just a nightmare. On my intel nuc's I never got an EDID that would allow me to access the bios on them. Not to mention changing EDID's on the PiKVM is just a PITA to begin with. On my rack mount servers that don't have HDMI but VGA I've tried multiple recommended active adapters PiKVM works in bios but once linux boots up they lose the console. I was an early adopter of PiKVM did my own rig home grown then bought their first bits of hardware then I bought their complete kit. While the hardware got better and better I've never managed to work through the software issues. I backed this little KVM because Jeff mentioned the ability to change EDID's and it is all of 88 bucks shipped. It's the last one of these things I buy though. Next up will be trying to find a newer used ipkvm I guess.

[@JeffGeerling]

The EDID thing actually came in handy on my streaming PC. For some reason the default wasn't working, so I just switched to I think the Acer profile, and it worked immediately. Quite handy to have a quick settings menu for it!

[@WesBrownStories]

@@JeffGeerling That is good to know! Thanks again for being you and the awesome content!

[@flandrble]

the usb splitter is perfect for fast charging your phone when connected to android auto too if your headunit has poor usb power output.

[@KalelAr]

Having WiFi would increase lag but open up way more possibilities. I’m hoping they add it in the next rev!

[@krzysiek2768]

I think most of good hdmi video encoders have about 100 ms of latency. Software encoding on PC (with hardware acceleration) is only a few ms latency + network but KVM has benefit of not having any software requirements on server/host side.

[@CameronVanNatta]

I will buy one when it releases for sure!

[@whette_fahrtz]

shame about the mini-HDMI

[@hannescampidell]

Wow, this would be so nice when helping others setup their computers or servers I will probably get one once it will be available

[@EagleMitch]

The other important note with NanoKVM is I had placed an order back in July and still not received it even last week. SO, I opted to cancel that order and try jumping on this one. I think this will be way better in the long-run anyways!