Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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Q: What is Coffee Pie®?

A: Coffee Pie® is an open technological ecosystem that provides a general-purpose computing service, like an "internet café" or "cybercafé", but from the comfort of your home, office or public space with internet access, with flexible capabilities, no high costs, no ties, no maintenance, no heat, no noise, and without generating electronic waste.

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Q: Is the ecosystem completely free and open source?

A: We are an open community, anyone who wishes can participate in the development of the ecosystem based on their knowledge and possibilities, however, to maintain operations, improve the service and increase the scope, it's necessary to monetize the service somehow, so we decided to begin the process of becoming a BIC, that is, a company with social-environmental awareness and give users the choice between watching ads on-demand, where advertisers cover the cost of the service, or paying directly for credit packages, which is way cheaper and convenient than buying a traditional PC. If you are a manufacturer, you can freely integrate your modules and accessories around our service, however, if you wish to manufacture the codec terminals themselves, you will have to pay a small percentage of royalties through licenses so they can connect to our backend.

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Q: What does EaaS mean?

A: It stands for Electronics as a Service, this means that, in reality, the devices we offer are not owned by us nor the user, but by the manufacturer itself. Therefore, they are only available for rent or loan, not for greed, but for environmental care. This way we aim to change the incentives for hardware manufacturers to design and produce more durable, modular, repairable and recyclable devices, avoiding extremely polluting practices like planned obsolescence, which is the root of the problem we want to solve, electronic waste and environmental pollution.

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Q: Does Coffee Pie® manufacture its own products?

A: No, Coffee Pie® is a fabless company providing various services, primarily acting as an 1) intermediary between the supply and demand for general-purpose computing, but also as 2) intermediary between advertisers and their potential clients, and 3) intermediary between users and manufacturers for the rental of their products, offering them services such as tune-up, repair, recycling and final disposal.

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Q: What is a codec terminal?

A: Codec terminals are a series of devices specialized in encoding and decoding signals faster than average human eye can perceive, they are part of a patented dynamic distribution system known as QFDM. These terminals connect to a cloud computing infrastructure network, a series of servers in commissioned datacenters, to be able to provide the public a general-purpose computing service affordable, flexible and on-demand, optimizing the use of computing resources with high vertical and horizontal scalability. The terminal codec is the "human-machine interface" through which users can easily use these resources, without needing to buy a traditional computer, without needing any technical knowledge, and without needing to use a command line (CLI), simply by creating a free Coffee Pie® account and a couple of clicks on an intuitive graphical interface, user-friendly even for a senior citizen or a child (supervised by a responsible adult).

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Q: How much does a codec terminal cost?

A: Codec Terminals are NOT for sale to general public, as they are fixed assets managed by the operating company. They are leased mainly to internet services providers (ISP), so they can lend them to their users for accessing the service, replacing the old television decoders and the classical computers, however, these must be returned to the company once you no longer need them or when changing ISP, so ideally, you should ask your ISP to provide you with the codec terminals you need for your organization or home. You can also lease them monthly or yearly from our Store, or leave a refundable deposit.

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Q: How much does the service cost?

A: We have a free service tier, where you can watch "Ads On-Demand" (View Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy), but if you don't want to watch ads nor experience interruptions, you can also purchase flexible packages with fixed amount of credits valid for weekly, monthly or annual periods from the Pricing page or from the platform via a codec terminal.

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Q: If the product and service are virtually free, then how does the company make money?

A: Excellent question, the company's main revenue streams are 1) licenses and royalties for the rental of codec terminals from manufacturers to third parties 2) selling massive highly targeted digital spaces to advertisers 3) partnerships with the public sector, educational institutions, libraries, NGOs, etc 4) providing services to manufacturers such as tune up, maintenance, repair, recycling and final disposal 5) direct consumers who don't want to watch ads or have a high need for computing resources, but prefer the convenience of our service instead of buying a "NASA computer".

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Q: What's the difference between the basic terminal and the pro terminal?

A: The Basic terminal supports a single Full HD (1080p) display device, ethernet RJ45 with PoE connection (doesn't require current adapter nor external power supply, just ethernet cable), while the Pro supports direct optical fiber input via an SFP module without the need for external adapters (lower latency), supports one 4K display device or up to 3 simultaneous 2K (1440p) displays, but it requires external current adapter and its lease is significantly more expensive.

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Q: How can I get access to a Coffee Pie® compatible codec terminal?
A: You can get a codec terminal loaned through Internet Service Providers (ISPs), for rental through our store and authorized third parties stores, or based on a refundable deposit scheme, depending on the options available in your region.

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Q: What's more convenient, a deposit or a lease for the Coffee Pie® compatible equipment?

A: If your ISP can't lend you the equipment and you need service for less than 2 years in a row, it may be more convenient to lease the equipment. However, if you need the service indefinitely, it's usually better to leave a refundable deposit, as it only depreciates at a rate of 7% E.M., and we'll refund between 10% and 90% of the deposit based on its condition and wear. If you have a credit card that charges low interest, you could use it to pay the deposit and, once you return the devices, pay off the debt with the refund plus depreciation and interests. Therefore, in practice, the cost of our hardware is very low, this is because our "core business" is not selling hardware, but providing services.

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Q: Does the service have any permanence clauses?

A: No, the service is completely prepaid and on-demand. There are no recurrent subscriptions, just flexible packages with more or fewer credits and validity time based on the size of your needs, so you can use them on the Platform how, when, and where you need them. You can also watch ads on-demand, so the service is virtually free and without any permanence clauses.

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Q: Can I change the capacity of my machines?

A: Yes, you can easily increase the capacity of your machines at any time or whenever your needs increase, but it will consume proportionally more credits. However, if you want to reduce the capacity of your machines, you'll have to create a new machine with the capacity you need and transfer only the data that fits. Imagine you have a 5 oz glass full of water, you can pour it into another 5 oz or larger glass, but you can't pour it into a smaller than 5 oz, as it would spill, this means you would lose information that only you as its owner can determine its relevance.

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Q: What operating system does Coffee Pie® use?

A: No single operating system is used. The "default machine" uses Linux Mint (Cinnamon), due to its lightweight, low resource consumption, ease of use and wide software offering. However, the users can mount other system of their choice, which can be free systems such as Debian, Steam OS, Arch, Manjaro, Bodhi Linux, Fedora, etc, or proprietary systems such as Microsoft Windows™, Mac OS™, Red Hat Enterprise™ (RHEL), etc, as long as they have an original license and the "installation image" (.iso files). The native instruction set architecture of the machines is x86-64, we can also emulate ARM and RISC-V architectures, although these are experimental, so they can be unstable and lose some performance.

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Q: How is Coffee Pie® different from other cloud services?

A: The main differences are that cloud providers traditionally only offer you space to store your files. If they offer more than that, you need advanced technical knowledge and high programming skills to use them, they also lock you into a specific capacity, with annual subscriptions or monthly with permanence clauses, requiring you to purchase a classic computer or device, which are already expensive and easily obsolete, just to access their service. While our service on the other hand, offers you an integral solution, a complete computer of variable capacity (processor, memory, storage, graphics card, power supply, etc), which you can access from a lended codec terminal with a circular, modular, repairable, recyclable approach, with a simple graphical interface, without need for technical knowledge, nor the purchase of expensive equipment, paying just for what you really need, without subscriptions nor ties, since our service is completely flexible, prepaid and on-demand, even free if you are willing to watch ads from time to time (free service tier).

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Q: How does Coffee Pie® contribute to sustainability?

A: Coffee Pie® promotes the circular economy through its patented QFDM system which optimizes the use of commissioned computing resources (datacenters), plus the use of highly modular, repairable and recyclable devices, thereby avoiding the generation of waste and extending the lifespan of all our devices to the maximum, highly reducing electronic waste to practically zero. Under no circumstances will we tolerate Planned Obsolescence in our technological ecosystem, as it is precisely what we aim to avoid with this project.

 

Q: What materials are used in Coffee Pie®-compatible devices?
A: Recycled and recyclable materials such as Aluminum, Copper, PET, PC, etc, as well as low-impact components like Post-Consumer Recycled Resins (PCR) are all prioritized to align with sustainability principles.

 

Q: Does Coffee Pie® use recycling processes at end-of-life of the devices?
A: Yes, Coffee Pie® implements circular systems for its certified devices for return, assessment, preventive and corrective maintenance, refurbishment, repair, remanufacturing, or lastly recycling, highly contributing to the reduction of electronic waste.

 

 

Q: Can I use a Coffee Pie® terminal anywhere?
A: Yes, as long as you have access to a stable internet connection, you can use a Coffee Pie® terminal in any location that supports the service. However, please note that high latency may impact your experience, geographically speaking the further away you're from the datacenter, the higher the latency. Check with your internet service provider (ISP) the latency of their service, ideally optical fiber with responses under 10ms.

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Q: What are the acceptable and recommended latency ranges of the internet service?

A: Total Latency Including Electronics Input Lag (ping):

Excellent: 1 to 30 ms
Good: 30 to 50 ms
Regular: 50 to 80 ms
Bad: >80 ms

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Q: What happens if I don't have internet at my home or office?

A: To be able to provide the service you must have internet access, if you don't want or can't afford to pay for an internet subscription, you can go to a cybercafé, to an educational institution or to a public library to check if they have available codec terminals that they can lend you, or internet connection if you already have access to a codec terminal. You can also get a 5G module in our store or in third-party stores, which will allow you to connect to a low-latency mobile network, if you already have one of these subscriptions.

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Q: What should I do if my assigned terminal fails?
A: In the event of a failure, you can contact Coffee Pie® technical support for assistance, or guidance if you need to replace it. Additionally, since these are modular devices, depending on the source of the failure it's very likely you may be able to replace specific components without asking for another terminal.

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Q: What happens if I no longer want to use the service?

A: You must contact us and state that you no longer require the service. Our staff will instruct you to place the devices in a cardboard box with a laser-printed label and take it to a partner courier office (Servientrega, Coordinadora, TCC, etc). Once the package is received, the condition of the devices will be assessed and any applicable maintenance and repair costs will be deducted (View Returns & Refunds Policy). If you left a deposit, those costs will be deducted, and the difference will be credited to the authorized account (bank certification is required). If you wish to completely unsubscribe, you can request it, and we will delete all your personal information from the system and your public profile from our API, with the exception of security logs for cybercrime traceability, as required by law, such information can only be shared with the corresponding authorities with a valid court order issued by a judge.

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Q: Can I modify my assigned codec terminal?

A: You can change superficially all the modules, accessories, switches and keys to your liking, we actually encourage our users to do so, but modifying the internals and electronics of the devices is DANGEROUS, doing so could generate an interruption in the service, harm you due to sharp edges, parts flying out, electrical shock or even cause a fire, so the only thing you should NOT modify is the internals and electronics of the devices, unless you're a certified technician authorized by Coffee Pie® for such task or the manufacturer itself. Coffee Pie® will not be responsible for any harm caused by the fullish or inadequate use of the service and its devices.

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Q: What does it mean for a device to be Coffee Pie® certified?

A: It basically means that it has a high degree of modularity, repairability, recyclability, than the manufacturer is willing to rent it, provide support and spare parts indefinitely, and accept the return or pay for its recycling once it's no longer in use. Therefore, we can provide them with maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and recycling services. Additionally, you can access our computing service from these devices without needing to purchase a Large Package, which is the only option for accessing our services from "non-certified" devices. Stand-alone devices won't disappear, but they will be only for exceptional cases where users don't have a stable internet access, such as farmers without stable satellite internet, offline content creators, journalists and scientists in field, ultracompetitive gamers requiring latencies under 50ms and/or very high refresh rates (>60Hz), etc.

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Q: What is the QFDM system?

A: QFDM, from: "Quantized, Fractional, Distribution and Management System", is a patented on-demand computing management system, which enables dynamic distribution by demand quantization through a series of devices known as codec terminals, plus supply fractionation of resources, instantiation of the machines, and real-time streaming, even for users with zero technical knowledge. In simple terms, imagine a large computer like an airplane, and each seat in that airplane as a "portion" of that big computer; You wouldn't consider "buying an airplane" for just a couple trips, you get one ticket each time you need it, several tickets if you're traveling with someone (several parallel users) or need more space to store your luggage (files). In this case, the QFDM System would be the equivalent of the "Airport", where airlines (datacenters) operate with their airplanes (servers), together abstracting all its complexity, high investment, operation, maintenance and marketing costs, dividing them in thousands of small tickets (slices) providing a simple, affordable and accessible service for great benefit of the users and the environment, since this reduces the cost of infrastructure and natural resource extraction, going from an exponential O(n²) problem with no clear limits (infinite resources extraction and infinite waste) to a linear one O(n) with a clear limit, the maximum demand for the service at a given time (rush hour), in addition, it can be implemented with already commissioned infrastructure, reducing adoption risk to practically zero.

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Patent NC2025/0012723: