India launched what it calls the world’s cheapest tablet PC on Wednesday, to be sold to students at the subsidized price of $ 35 and later in stores for around $ 60.
Most of India’s 1.2 billion people are poor, and products like Apple Inc. ‘s iPad is out of reach, although many of the rapidly growing middle class.
“The rich have access to the digital world, the poor and frequently have been excluded. Aakash end the digital divide,” said Telecommunications and Education Minister Kapil Sibal.
The government is to buy the first units of the light touch-screen device called Aakash, or “sky” in Hindi, for $ 50 each from a British company that is collection of web-enabled devices in India.
A pilot run of 100,000 units will be provided to students free of charge, with the first 500 delivered at the launch of a mixed reaction. It supports video conferencing, has two USB ports and a three-hour battery life, but some users said it was slow.
India has a reputation for creating affordable products that are easy to use and robust NOK to deal with their harsh environment – from the Tata Motors’ $ 2,000 Nano car to the generic versions of drugs.
Two years in development, the pocket-size Aakash help the government aims to integrate information technology in teaching, even if critics had doubts about its mass appeal.
Despite being a leader in software and IT services to India trails second BRIC nations, Brazil, Russia and China in the drive is much connected to the Internet and mobile phones, a report from the risk analysis firm Maple Croft said this year.
The number of Internet users grew 15 times between 2000 and 2010 in India, according to a recent report. However, only 8 percent of Indians have access to. As compared with nearly 40 percent in China.
The Aakash is designed for students to digital learning through a government platform that distributes electronic books and courses.
Tests included running video in two hours in temperatures of 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees Fahrenheit) to mimic a northern Indian summer, said wind data, the small London-based company that developed the tablet with the Indian Institute of Technology.
Rajat Agrawal, editor of gadget reviewers BGR India, says that the 660 MHz processor from U.S. company Conexant Systems was “decent” for the price, but warned the machine seemed slow and the touch screen is not very smooth.
“Because of the cost is much excitement,” he said. “People can use it at first, but if it is not user friendly, they will give up within a week.”
After first giving them out free, wants the government to sell them to students for $ 35 next year. A retail version will be sold in Indian stores for around $ 60.
The device uses resistive LCD instead of a full touch screen and connected via wireless broadband. Data wind CEO Sune Singh said future versions will include a mobile connection, making it more useful in rural areas.
