January 31, 2009 - With Tata Motor's coming out with the low-cost Nano car, a group of Indian students are coming out with a laptop for Rs500 ($10), cheaper than most pocket calculators, which can be used globally for educational purposes and revolutionaries the computer market in developing countries.
The laptop, developed by students from Vellore Institute of Technology, scientists in Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and IIT-Madras with the help of companies like Semiconductor Complex, will be on display in Tirupati on 3 February, at the launch of the National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology.
Apart from a very attractive price tag, there is very little information on the specifications of the laptop but according to reports, it comes equipped with 2GB memory, WiFi, Ethernet, expendable memory and consumes a mere 2W of power.
Since there is no information on what operating system it will use, it is assumed that the Rs500-laptop will use the ordinary Linux-based GUI like the Eee PC as running Windows XP will be out of the question as the licence itself will cost more than the laptop.
The government is collaborating with Macmillan, Tata McGraw Hill, Prentice-Hall and Vikas Publishing for uploading their textbooks on 'Sakshat', a government online portal, where a small percentage of these books can be accessed for free.
The government has not clarified whether it is subsidising the entire project but says that, at the moment, the laptop will cost Rs1,000 ($20) but with mass production the cost will come down to half.
The government will give Rs2.5 lakh per institution for 10 Kbps connection from the 11th plan outlay of Rs4,612 crore and also subsidise 25 per cent of costs for private and state government colleges by providing computer infrastructure and internet connection to over 18,000 colleges and 400 universities and institutions.
Although there is widespread scepticism on the viability and specifications of the laptop, the effort itself is worthwhile, because if they are able to pull it off, then it will benefit the large number of people and students in the rural part of the country as well as students from under-developed nations to avail valuable insights into the technological marvel achieved in the field of technology.
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