By Yesterday, we reported on a great movement by the non-profit organization One Laptop Per Child to focus on providing affordable tablet devices to under-privileged children. After seeing that these tablet devices would initially be offering Android as their operating systems, we immediately took notice.
One thing we couldn’t find, however, was a picture of how these devices might look. Thankfully, OLPC has provided some prototype renderings of what they expect the tablet devices would look like when they show them off in January 2011 at CES. The tablets share the same funky designs as the laptops they also manufacture.
We also learned that they are going to be aiming for $75 – a great price that puts it considerably lower than the $99.99 they were aiming at before. The tablet will have a 9-inch screen (bigger than some of the high-end offerings out there!) What do you think of it? These will be aimed at children, of course, but with Android being used to power these devices, is it going to be one you keep your eye on?
[via CNN]
So now we are going to have millions of kids with carpel tunel syndrome. Great. Give them netbooks!!!
Sign me up for the buy one for a kid and buy one for myself promotion.
looks nice, but for a kid, that’s an awfully large exposed screen. what are their plans from protecting it? also what about power supply? I see no ports on that prototype and if they are intending this for use by the poor in developing countries, recharging batteries would be a very real issue. Otherwise it looks like a neat device. I would love to give my 3 year old something like this to play and learn on.
It looks like there’s some kind of pullstring to manually charge it?
It looks quite decent. Much better value than an iPad anyway.
I assume they’ll use the same charging model as the XO laptops they’ve been distributing. You can either plug it in for solar, or connect it to a manual crank/pedal generator.
I don’t think that’s a pull string, it’s a handle. Less likely to drop, as a lot of kids in developing countries might not have a good laptop bag.
Wonder how much food you could trade one for ?
Here is some magic beans for your tablet little boy.
Gates will not stand for this, with the out look in the phone market Gates is going to start giving needy children cell phones loaded with Windows mobile 7 .
That is very cool! Sign me up for a few. I’d like to get each of my nieces and nephews one of these.
Isn’t that the render they said would have an 8ghz processor?
Yeaaaahhh right!! I assume this type of device will be possible for $75 if some multinational corporation is forking over at least another $1,000 for each unit.
I always love how ridiculously ambitious these non-profits have to sound to drum up donations. This think will most likely look more like a Kindle, but 10 times the thickness and an eInk screen.
You guys are a little behind the times. Nick already said they probably weren’t going to look like that. More like this.
http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/27/olpc-sees-bandwagon-hops-on-with-xo-tablet-based-on-marvell-mob/
I think this is a great idea and design. They may be using a new technology that allows touch screens to be produced in a roll fashion. Discovery news reported on this technology a week or so ago. The touchscreens have the same general touch technology as the current glass touchscreens but the new ones are made out of a plastic of some sort and are extremely flexible. Since they could be mass produced in the “roll” fashion, it makes them very very cheap. This would be perfect for kids.
Sign me up for the buy for a child and for myself promo that they had with their netbooks if it does indeed stays under $100.
This design is impossible with current technology.
No, It’s very possible with todays technology
HOWEVER, NOT for under $100. ;)
BTW, it’s only a prototype rendering.
This actually looks pretty sick, I hope they can get all this stuff to work.
A lot of things in this world could be helped/changed with more connectivity.
I wonder though if this is going to be the only way people talk in the future (à-la wall-e) probably not but still… freaky!
Good idea! Better if they offer each person (adult) in the world one of this to one old notebook or PC donated to an under-privileged child… it seems too fragile for a kid.
OLPC is really jumping the gun with this kind of campaign. The so-called “tablet revolution” has only JUST started. Plus who qualifies as “under-privileged children?” Which countries would receive tablets like this? There’s so much more going on with “charities” like this, it’s not just about “helping people.” Especially if multinational corporations are gonna be somehow in on this, because they only care about helping themselves. I hope nothing becomes of this. If we really want to help under-privileged people, maybe we could try not exploiting them and their resources with puppet-governments that do whatever multinational corporations want at the expense of people and legitimate democracy.
@msgnyc
I know, they’ve been “prototype” renderings of this design for a couple years now. I was commenting to all the “I want one” folks. Also, no, it’s not possible to have this exact model with current tech. It’s still too thin to hold the electronics, display and battery. Now if it was say, about as thick as the iPod, sure, no problem. Though the screen bezel is still too thin.