Ybox: the set-top internet box in an Altoids tin
The folks at Uncommon Projects have taken the venerable Altoids tin where no Altoids tin has gone before, turning the scarily-versatile mint case into an always-on Internet appliance that'll work with any old TV. Dubbed the Ybox, the device works a bit like an Atari 2600-era Konfabulator, delivering a constant stream of stock quotes, weather forecasts, and other customizable information in ultra low res-fashion, controllable with nothing more than your standard TV remote. Currently, the Ybox requires an ethernet cable to get that info, though the developers say WiFi's a possibility in the future. Unfortunately, this is only a proof-of-concept device, meaning that you can't get your hands on one, although its intrepid creators do tantalizingly say that it's ultra-cheap to make, yet fail to make any plans available. Let's hope that their second place finish at Yahoo's recent Hack Day event will spur them to crank these suckers out, bring-yo'-own-tin-style.
