India announces $10 Laptop

Laptops are getting cheaper. However the race to bring laptops to the masses at the lowest cost is getting crazier. I had earlier blogged about Negroponte who was trying to get a $100 laptop aimed at school kids in developing countries in Asia, Africa and South America.

Now, its the Indian government that has announced a $10 laptop.

Specifications
  1. 2 GB RAM
  2. Linux powered OS
  3. WiFi
  4. Expandable memory
  5. Works on 2W of power
How so cheap?
  1. Current prototype can be produced for $20
  2. Large scale production should cut the price in half
  3. No R&D Costs - Developed by students from Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Tamil Nadu jointly with Indian Institute of Science,(IISc) Bangalore and a partially-public entity called the Semiconductor
  4. Government has tied up with 4 educational providers - Macmillan, Tata McGraw Hill, Prentice-Hall and Vikas Publishing to provide digital content for these notebooks.
Got to see what happens if the government's program succeeds when the rollout begins in July 2009. Sorry OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) program, you have competition.

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