India's $35 Tablet Computer 294
NotBornYesterday was one of many readers sending in news that the Indian government has announced it is helping to develop a $35 tablet computer running Linux. "India has unveiled the prototype of a $35 basic touchscreen tablet aimed at students, which it hopes to bring into production by 2011. The government plans to subsidize the tablets so the cost to students could be $20; and eventually, they hope the cost will fall to $10 per unit. India's human resource development minister, Kapil Sibal, says, 'The motherboard, its chip, the processing, connectivity, all of them cumulatively cost around $35, including memory, display, everything.' Using a memory card instead of a hard drive, and running a Linux OS, the designers have managed to keep the price low, and are now looking for manufacturing partners. The tablet can be used for functions like word processing, Web browsing, and video conferencing. It has a solar power option too, which is important in India's less developed areas, though that add-on costs extra."
At that price.. (Score:5, Interesting)
Sign me up for one. Maybe 5.
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Informative)
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Why, are you imagining a beowulf cluster of them?
Re:At that price.. (Score:4, Insightful)
Why? Plentiful electricity is a much bigger issue in India. It's bound to be frugal with energy, most likely having some ARM, etc.
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Funny)
This Etch-a-Sketch here? Yes, I can confirm that it has dual "arm" sub-units controlled by a powerful neural net CPU (a learning computer)!
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Why am I picturing something that resembles an Etch-a-Sketch?
The resemblance ends when you try to plug an Etch-a-Sketch into the wall. Apparently running a current through one is not a good idea...
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:At that price.. (Score:4, Interesting)
It will likely use a fraction of electricity that a modern laptop uses. If for no other reason than at that price point you can't get batteries with big capacities plus all the other components.
So the bill won't be higher, even with 5. Now, if you did a beowulf cluster with 1000s, yeah, some pricier components probably will give better performance per electrical unit.
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Insightful)
Just don't be surprised then [sic] the electricity bill will be [sic] much higher then [sic] using some modern hardware.
What information do you have that would remotely support this conclusion?
To make a $35 laptop, they don't have a huge R&D effort making their own parts to compete with Intel and Corsair. They're going to use commodity (read: cheap, reliable, off-the-shelf) components (motherboard, cpu, ram, etc.) that are Linux-supported -- or close enough to be able to add support without too much effort.
Considering that they're going to have a solar-powered option -- with solar power generating about 10-watts per sq ft -- how big exactly did you imagine this laptop?
The basic formula for posting on a forum is:
1) Think.
2) Type.
You missed a step.
Re:At that price.. (Score:5, Funny)
1) Think. 2) Type.
Whoa there, buddy. This isn't any old forum.
This community is comprised of people who have already done all the thinking they need to do; furthermore, both the *amount* and the *comparative intelligence* of the thinking of a single slashdotter surpasses the collective mental output of a medium-sized nation of Joe Sixpack, Suzie Handbag, and the other normals. We are each already are experts on any topic that could come up in an article discussion.
Your formula is one step too long for those that inhabit the nerve centers of the beast we call Slashdot.
It seems you put a lot of thought into your post -- which is wrong, for Slashdot. You should already know what to type without thinking. You, sir, are a poseur.
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This community is comprised of people who have already done all the thinking they need to do;
You know, I was just about to post a reply to this, then a committed a cardinal sin and thought about it.
In an effort to drag a shred of on-topicness to this though, has anyone seen any proper specs on this device?
The best I've found so far is
According to the details,the tablet will come in three versions of 5, 7, and 9 inches display. It will be packed with 2 GB RAM memory, wi-fi connectivity, USB port and powered by a 2-watt system to suit poor power supply areas.
but I'm sure there is more out there. That info was found at http://androidos.in/2010/07/35-android-tablet-is-here-in-india-price-can-go-down-to-10/ [androidos.in], for the sake of interest.
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Have you seen modern hardware? Below a thershold, the lower the cost, the less power it uses. Sure, a cheap laptop using a desktop Intel processor will use more power than a cheap laptop using the latest Laptop Enhanced (tm) processor. But I assure you, a nice little dirt cheap C3 Erza will hardly be noticed by anything.
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If you wanted the same performance; but were willing to pay $100, you could almost certainly get better efficiency; but this isn't one of those
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Nice Job (Score:3, Insightful)
Now the only question left is: when does it come to a shop near me?
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Tablet implies a touchable screen... (Score:3, Interesting)
...but what kind? TFA didn't make any mention of it (or any specs, for that matter). Anyone have any additional info on this thing?
Re:Tablet implies a touchable screen... (Score:5, Interesting)
I guess it could have just as well an UI like ATMs or, basically, many "feature phones" - buttons around the screen (is it even color? Or maybe just CSTN, etc.?) corresponding to functionality. That would complicate some stuff of course - but it could even have a full mini keyboard? (mobile phone style? Kindle has it) Throw in USB for some external one, they're inexpensive.
Or perhaps touchscreens have become in reality cheap enough, we just aren't allowed to experience it... (certainly it seems they can potentially become cheaper? - massively easier mechanical design, not much addition of electroncic stuff)
I'm really glad from this announcement (and XO-3) - they show what the price really can be. Now, hopefully this category of devices won't be derailed a bit, like what basically happened to netbooks so far...
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Well, for some definition of "really can be". This seems to be very simil to the same thing that India first announced as a $10 laptop, then revealed not to be a laptop but to be some kind of device with storage and an LCD screen but no keyboard and actually be likely to cost $30. Now its a tablet with a hoped-for initial $35 price -- without any manufacturer lined up, and with nothing cited supporting the $35 price
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Re:Tablet implies a touchable screen... (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Tablet implies a touchable screen... (Score:5, Informative)
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Hell, I'd buy one just to take notes in meetings at work. I can hardly read my own handwriting, lol
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I can bet you can run Flash on it (Score:2)
Funny thing is, it will likely have "gnash" installed/enabled as you can really do some education software easily with Flash. Lots of "kids games" too. :)
As there is no "h264" etc. involved, I am sure gnash will have no problem.
Of course, if dinosaur Adobe wakes up and codes the actual Flash platform for it, it would be better. Now that would be some real thing to do against Apple, rather than blog-trolling
AP link (Score:4, Informative)
Pics are on the second link here: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/07/23/india.thirty.five.dollar.laptop/ [cnn.com]
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Pics are still less than satisfactory. What goes into this design, and what are the catches ? Slow as hell ? No touchscreen ?
Incidentially the second part of the article is (potentially) revealing :
"The aim is to reach such devices to the students of colleges and universities, and to provide these institutions a host of choices of low-cost access devices around Rs 1,500 ($35) or less in near future," the human resources ministry said at the launch of the computer.
Meaning it's not this tablet that's $35, it's just that they're working on devices like that. Could this mean that they don't actually have device schematics for this device at $35 ?
Re:AP link (Score:5, Informative)
Better pictures here:
http://androidos.in/2010/07/35-android-tablet-is-here-in-india-price-can-go-down-to-10/ [androidos.in]
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"According to the details,the tablet will come in three versions of 5, 7, and 9 inches display. It will be packed with 2 GB RAM memory, wi-fi connectivity, USB port and powered by a 2-watt system to suit poor power supply areas. It will laso have apps like internet browser, PDF reader, video conferencing facilities, open office, sci-lab, media player, remote device management capability, multimedia input-output interface option, and multip
Bad FA (Score:3, Insightful)
No specs at all. How fast is its processor? How much memory? Is it touch enabled? TFA doesn't say.
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Could not agree more. $35 for this would be incredible, at this price point it is even more attractive than simple e-readers. Like any other tablet this is perfect for portable internet browsing. But at this cheap price I would be more comfortable taking it into the kitchen to read recipes or out to the garage to review car repair walkthroughs, those are things I would not do with a $600 iPad.
Though one point I wasn't exactly clear on in the article was the subsidy that India would provide to students
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"India has unveiled the prototype of a $35 basic touchscreen tablet aimed at students, which it hopes to bring into production by 2011. The government plans to subsidize the tablets so the cost to students could be $20; and eventually, they hope the cost will fall to $10 per unit."
Sounds like the unit actually costs $35 to make in India.
With initial subsidy: $20
Cost drop with sustained subsidy: $10 hopefully (cheaper parts, etc)
You know it won't be a great PC for $35, but if it has WiFi, does basic web br
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I would too, but I'm still curious as to what the specs are.
They may be cheap and junky, (Score:3, Funny)
but at least my dream of having a stack of "PADDs" piled up on my desk (Star Trek TNG style) may finally come true!
I have the communicator, now for a working tricorder.....
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http://www.stim.com/Stim-x/0996September/Sparky/tricorder.html [stim.com]
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Forget PADDs, I want a matter replicator!
Innovation! (Score:5, Insightful)
I think this is a big deal. Who really believes that outsourcing technology operations to India and China does not have a long-term consequence? With time, India and China will become innovators -- if they have not already. Reportedly, China has already built the world's second-fastest supercomputer, and is fabricating its own chips (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/01/science/01compute.html).
Imagine, now, young people thoughout the world writing software. What platform would they choose? If I was growing up in India and had an accessible computer for $35, I probably would not want to pay a whole lot more for a Windows computer.
Maybe this tablet does not quite have it right, technologically. But it is a step forward and an indication of intention on the part of the Indian government.
Re:Innovation! (Score:4, Interesting)
This is simply an example of countries trying to develop themselves and their resources. It may be shitty compared to what is available in the developed world, but its a start -- we have all paid through our noses for costly micro-processing power that sometimes are pathetically underutilized doing tasks such as browsing and occasional document composition.
Though I am aware that the original article is sorely lacking details, and it seems more a marketing hype, but even if they manage to do take off with this, it will be marvelous and a little help to millions who at this point cannot even hope to achieve a life with basic necessities, leave alone sitting comfortably ordering a powerful computer.
This is not for Americans, nor should it be expected that the hardware would be any comparable to what is considered minimal in America, but its a start; an attempt to introduce a bit of technology so people who would otherwise have no chance to even aim for a middle-class life are empowered.
Re:Innovation! (Score:4, Interesting)
This is not for Americans, nor should it be expected that the hardware would be any comparable to what is considered minimal in America, but its a start; an attempt to introduce a bit of technology so people who would otherwise have no chance to even aim for a middle-class life are empowered.
It should be. I have customers running my software at their office for whom this would be an ideal system for their employees to use in the field. It doesn't have to be a high-powered computer. It just has to be powerful enough to run a field version of my software, and have functioning wireless or an Ethernet port (either will work).
If the unsubsidized price is low enough, this would have great small business marketability in the U.S.
Re:Innovation! (Score:4, Interesting)
This is not for Americans
Well, it will be. once someone's gathered the venture capital finance to acquire a company set up specifically to purchase, import, sell for $200, and (most important) squirrel the profits away in a tax-efficient, highly-leveraged off-shore subsidiary.
Isn't that the American Way?
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I had a friend who was working on dynamically changing advertising screens, but the costs were prohibitive. Assuming a retail markup, a 70 dollar screen-with-wifi jammed under a big block of plexiglass might enable them to do a lot.
Similarly, museums and tours could hand people tablets as they came in, and collect them on the other side. One broke? Whatever, just grab another one off a rack.
A touchscreen computer this small would be great for Point Of Sale in Mexico, as people who normally conduct all tr
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Did you think it was a "big deal" and "innovation" last year when India announced they would make a $10 tablet?
Do you remember how that turned out?
web browsing in less developed areas (Score:2)
It has a solar power option too, which is important in India's less developed areas,
I predict that the added cost of the satellite phone link up will be a show stopper.
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Part Cost != Sale Cost (Score:2)
I can easily believe that they could get the bill of materials cost down to $35, but...
That doesn't mean it costs $35: manufacturing adds a lot. The cheapest mobile phone (which has roughly the same part cost except the screen is VASTLY cheaper) is still $50 unsubsidized.
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I know you can get Nokias for under 30 bucks...
http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.209-1392.aspx - alcatel do one for 15 bucks. Bluetooth, Colour screen... This is with the manufacturer and the store making a profit.
Don't think profit is the driver on this project though.
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They'll be making a loss at that price, though. They'll make their profit from the cost of the calls. You can't do that trick with a computer.
Inevitable (Score:2)
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India Tablets: One Man's Story (Score:5, Funny)
I found myself having fainted for dehydration outside a small village in Uttar Pradesh. I came to but was apparantly delirious, blathering wildly about my deadlines - but it was my gestures which were to change my life from there on. My hands, so used to typing out at the desk, had begun to reanact keystrokes in the same manner as the fellow who plays Mozart's hands dash across the pianoforte keys in Amadeus.
A peasent stumbled across my slumped corpse; he last asked me what I was doing in a business suit in the glaring heat of the northern hemisphere in late June (this was about a month ago) . Fortunately he had water, and was able to drag me in to a nearby village. I apparantly spoke about all sorts of computing stuff. I even confessed I dreamt I left comments on tech sites but woke up of course to find none - sombrely the young man, a mere kid in his 20s, got up and left without even a word.
The man knew what was up; after my delirium had passed and I was coherant - a small, $35 Indian Tablet Computer lay infront of me. 'It is the best thing we can do instead of a keyboard' - said Ranvir, who had taken the exact funds from my wallet in exchange for it in the local tech market close to the Ganges. It was then my capitalist attitude morphed into a centre-left smorgasbord from a simple act of kindness. Of course it didn't make economic sense to rescue my incapicitated husk...it did not square with the Rand stuff I'd worshipped so libertarianistically.
Upon squaring together an Internet connection with mere gaffer tape and a mini-co axial carefully hammered into the 3.5mm audio jack...I was on. The world opened up, and as I sat in that little squalid shack which was my temporary home...blogging became something completely new. The egoistic, day-to-day mundane became the selfless and vivid recollection of events in the village who had granted me honorary citizen status. I got to know what broadband would feel like at 56k speed, but not due to poor latency...but instead economy components. Upon blogging my experience with the good samaritan and the villagers, a commenter posted:
"Hey man you should be like the chieftain or leader or some crap? Lead these folks into a revolutionary tech thing! -- Lance"
It was that night that I near-emptied my bank account buying 200 Tablets at $35 - that's $7000 bucks. I gave a tablet to every villager bar a few spares. It was then I set about making speeches about online rights. Having educated the villagers to open source rights, technology issues, we set about changing the world. Our first stop was a pilgrimage to the Nepalese steppes to sabotage a Dalai Lama press conference for publicity, but as about fifty of us packed up to go I received a call from David in editorial back home - my HTC Android! It was still on!
"Pete? Pete. Hi we need you back here in England as soon as possible there's a few urgents things to cover. Can you fly back tomorrow afternoon?"
A tear had already dropped from my face to the Tablet on the nearby bed. Two villagers had entered and were looking at me intently as I had my conversation in English: "Yeah, yeah I can make it...can you wire some cash over; I had some unexpected expenses and..."
Dave was in a hurry and brusque: "Okay, money will be in your account within a few hours. Be back here Tuesday morning - deadlines to fill and all that. Your computer has been pining for you I swear....later man."
Tablet PCs in India changed my life, and though my plans to become the head of a village failed and the depression built upon leaving...the experience shall never leave me.
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You are a satirical bastard with too much talent.
Thanks for the enjoyable read.
-FL
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I've been to rural Indian villages. If you give these guys computers, most of them will sell them to buy new axles for their ox carts or whatever. Most of these people can't read, so what could they do with a computer?
All these tablet stories... (Score:3, Insightful)
I can't be the only one that's tired of hearing about them. And I'm willing to bet that the majority of them will never be in production.
Then again, I'm firmly in the netbook camp, so a tablet wouldn't appeal to me.
If outsourcing to India has taught me anything... (Score:3, Funny)
If outsourcing has taught me anything, this is going to BSOD unless you follow the step-by-step script that comes with the tablet.
At $35 a piece... (Score:3, Interesting)
$100 floor (Score:2)
This is wonderful. Talk about crashing through the $100 floor. Was nice when desktops smashed through the $1000 floor.
And there's still much waste in PC design. Look at the size of an average notebook versus a typical desktop, There's huge overprovisioning everywhere in the desktop. Computers have been in our faces for so long that we're not only accustomed to them taking substantial space, we practically demand it. Admit it, contemptuous thoughts about slowness, limitations, and compromises flit thr
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And there's still much waste in PC design. Look at the size of an average notebook versus a typical desktop, There's huge overprovisioning everywhere in the desktop. Computers have been in our faces for so long that we're not only accustomed to them taking substantial space, we practically demand it.
That space directly translates into sturdiness. Laptops overheat and die sooner than desktops, unless the desktops are packed tight like laptops (iMacs) then the desktops die sooner.
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Fool me once... (Score:5, Interesting)
Or not. Last year, Indian officials announced a $10 laptop for the masses, which turned out to be much more than $10, and nowhere close to a laptop [indiatimes.com].
I wouldn't expect much from their "$35 tablet" announced when the OLPC XO-3 tablet is getting some attention.
Waste of money. (Score:2, Troll)
If this thing truly costs $35 it's likely not much better than a calculator. Anything more than that and it didn't actually cost $35. Either someone's eating the cost or the government is subsidizing it.
And for this sort of thing it's always smarter and cheaper to go with something off the shelf. The money wasted on the OLPC project would have been better finding an existing cheap computer. Better yet, that money should have been used improving the quality of schools and education. Computers aren't some kin
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resistive touch (Score:2)
at that price it's resistive touch. if you wanted a palm pilot you can pick one up on ebay for about $20.
Re:resistive touch (Score:4, Informative)
When we talk about a $35 tablet computer, "average price" is not even remotely in the picture. It makes no sense for you to compare averages when we're talking about something extreme.
Don't like ebay? Palm IIIx runs for about $25 at Goodwill. $20 on Craigslist. And $15 at Weirdstuff(and places like it). But I don't know why you don't like ebay, there are a couple IIIx in good shape for $7 on there right now.
Here's a $75 Palm m500 [amazon.com] on the same site you linked. Prefer color and WinCE? Dell Axim x51 runs for about $60 these days, which is coincidentally roughly what it would cost wholesale to produce with the same specs.
I have some idea what this stuff costs from working on the Kindle and other products, especially given that I actively tried to put together a minimalist low-cost tablet/ereader project. It is quite possible to get to a $35 BOM on a tablet computer, but I it won't be a very modern style tablet. sub-500MHz ARM9, no 3D acceleration, 128MB or less RAM, slow flash interface, poor battery life, not multi-touch, and the list goes on. I think with the right software it could be a practical gadget for the right purposes. But most people scoffed at me when I have proposed these kinds of minimalist devices at the places I've worked.
Hmm (Score:5, Funny)
2. Hold press conference about a $35 tablet running Linux.
3. Wait for Microsoft to offer $$$ to switch to Windows.
4. Profit
??
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Keyboard (Score:2)
USB port = keyboard?
If so, I'm buying one.
This is for us? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:This is for us? (Score:4, Interesting)
I mean just doing a quick scan of the article it makes it sound like it's more for Indians ... and other 3rd worlders. ... If it helps improve their standard of living more power to them. (Hopefully it gets further than that One Laptop thing.)
It's weird that this got a "troll" mod, when it's directly to the point. It's especially appropriate in comparison with all the posts saying in essence that it'll be a crappy machine for 1st-world countries. People have missed the point that wealthy populations aren't the intended customers. Don't expect to order one of these from Dell or Amazon. The customers are people whose annual income is less than most /. readers make in a day.
The OLPC comparison is also relevant. One thing this price point should help with is that we might not see a repeat of Microsoft sending in reps to "talk to" the managers looking to order these machines. That was partially effective at limiting the OLPC, but it's clear that this machine is aimed at a market in areas where Windows is available, but people can't afford it even if they can get it free.
This thing's main competitors are cheap phones, for which it is an upgrade. Comparing it with first-world laptops and desktops merely shows cluelessness.
(Actually, comparing it with the iPhone/iPad pair might be relevant. But there's no real competition there, because they're aiming at a market in which an iPhone or iPad costs more than the mean annual income. ;-)
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I'm half feather half dot, you insensitive clod.
Re:Here we go again. (Score:5, Insightful)
India isn't trying to sell you anything. From the article:
Re:Here we go again. (Score:5, Interesting)
You can get a second-hand tablet for how much?
I scored an X41 Tablet for about $150 total, with two worn batteries and a busted up stylus. Not a touch screen, but a tablet. Works fine, but that's not $35. I spend more than that for the recovery disk set. Yes, I am that obsessed.
For even $100, this gives Negroponte's dream a run for the money.
India strives for self-sufficiency. It;s not cheap to them, it's affordable and sustainable.
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:It's going to suck. (Score:4, Insightful)
It may suck compared to what you and I are used to, but it's better than nothing at all.
I imagine those that will be using them will sing a slightly different tune than you do.
Re:It's going to suck. (Score:5, Interesting)
And your statement brings out my real question:
If india can make a working tablet for $35 that, while probably underpowered, can do web, email, and wordprocessing,
Why are the big companies cheapest products $200 or more?
Hopefully, after (if) these get rolled out in India, the other manufacturers will start competing a little harder.
Also, if this Indian tablet supports flash, I'll have a nice little chuckle.
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$35 is the parts cost, not the cost for the consumer. You need to compare like to like, and we don't have a consumer cost for this, and we don't have parts cost for the others.
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When you don't actually have anyone committed to manufacture any of the devices at any price, its easy to say the price will be $35.
Its a little bit harder to deliver.
Hey, guess what...? (Score:2)
I bet a lot of Indian kids would be ecstatically happy with Best Buy home theater, as would YOU if you had nothing else.
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Back in the day we used to get a lot done on 8mhz [wikipedia.org] and half a meg of RAM with a B&W screen.
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Real men don't need more than 3.25 MHz, 2K of RAM, and an old TV.
http://oldcomputers.net/ts1000.html [oldcomputers.net]
Get off my lawn!
Re:It's going to suck. (Score:4, Informative)
But I think a lot of price considerations have to do with the fact that most westerners aren't going to buy something with a price point that is "too" cheap. People are used to paying $200 for even the cheapest notebooks/netbooks/tablets, if people see a $35 one, they are probably just going to buy the more expensive one to save on "quality" even if they are the same device.
Of course, this was the same India that created the $10 non-laptop-component-printer that cost $30... So take any reports from cheap electronics in India with a grain of salt...
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I would take gladly B&W screen in the least expensive versions; why do we need color for most of the stuff we do on PCs/etc. anyway? (accidentally, the /. page on which I'm writing this reply is completelly greyscale except for yellow "DON'T FEAR THE PUNGUINS"...that's why we need color?)
Cheaper, saving battery, can be made very good even without backlight (saving the costs and even more the battery) - what's not to like?
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how the hell do they think they can do it in less than 25%?
It's being overseen, designed, and manufactured in India. All of the benefits of outsourcing with none of the overhead.
Joking aside, a $35 tablet would probably hit $100 on a real market, after company and retailer profit. Further, being a government with educational institute ties the development cost is entirely eaten, and not reflected in the price. Add in real packaging and materials and a marketing campaign, and you might actually be pretty
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Pandigital Novel - Best of them all as it runs Android 2.0
Archos 7 -- utter and COMPLETE garbage... Hardware was designed by a insane idiot that was being hit in the head with a hammer while being designed.
Archos 5 -- Better than the 7 but still complete crap.
Matricom tablet - Can we put a slower processor in there as well as not let it sleep?
Camangi Webstation -- Just plain old junk.
E-Lectio M5 This one crashed on a regular basis. it also would turn its self on for no reason at random times.
Several of th
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The car does exist you pretentious moron!!! it's called the TATA Nano and it's running on the roads!! do a friggin' google search! and there was never a sub-$100 shuttle!! atleast much better than the stupid NASA running losses!!!
Re:Later that day (Score:5, Informative)
Nano explodes driven off dealers lot (Score:2)
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Well, sometimes government gets involved because the private business are too busy running around each other to show any kind of creativity and explore a new market. That is not aways, mind you; not even most of the time. It is just that some times that happens.
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Look at Ethanol, sounds great, gas from plants, renewable and good for the environment... Except for the fact it takes more energy to make it than the ethanol contains. But of course the government subsidizes it which leads people to grow corn for ethanol rather than for feed and so taxpayers not only have to pay higher
Re:Indian government develops computers? (Score:4, Informative)
And how is it worth it for the science? You burn more fossil fuels trying to make the ethanol than you can create in the ethanol! You can't just add more energy to the ethanol, its like in the 1990s when dot-com businesses would sell things at a loss and make up for it in "volume", only rather than a dot-com you have no money invested in it is instead the government stealing money out of your paycheck.
Sugar Cane is another thing totally fucked up by governments in allowing massive tariffs to be placed on it whenever you import it, whenever the government messes with private enterprise, the consumers lose. By placing barriers to free trade in place, it pretty much means that corn syrup is cheaper than sugar cane because the US simply doesn't have enough places to grow sugar cane and because of artificial barriers its nearly impossible to import it.
As for algae, it is in its early stages, it is certainly something to watch.
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Just like here in America, you have people who do not want government to be involved at all and then there are those who support government takeover.
However, since the Indian economy has largely been a pseudo-capitalist economy and largely socialist until the early 1990s, the government gets away by doing this without any rigorous study of whether it should be doing it or handing it to private enterprise..
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Great! They should be buying up those $35 netbooks floating around India. You know, from all of those companies chomping at the bit to meet the technological educational needs of India's broke youth. As opposed to trying to make as big a profit as possible.
It's a very different perspective when you're someone that is fundamentally ignored by a capitalist market.
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The middle-class in India thinks it is by education. Which happens to be largely correct. Poverty and hunger are not isolated problems individually, they are usually the result of:
How would you then eliminate tho
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