[TMG] info

[supat at supat.eu.org]

from:

http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/22/tablet-computer-negroponte-technology-cio-network-olpc.htmlhttp://www.forbes.com/2009/12/22/tablet-computer-negroponte-technology-cio-network-olpc.html



In fact, that new form factor is just the beginning of OLPC's monstrous 
ambitions: It aims to make its tablet PC highly durable, all plastic, 
waterproof, half the thickness of an iPhone and use less than a watt of 
power, despite an 8-gigaherz processor. The price: an unprecedented $75.

Many of OLPC's goals, to be fair, are more imagination than road map. And 
Negroponte has a history of overpromising. The original XO never hit its 
original goal of $100, (it currently sells for $172) and another touch 
screen upgrade to the XO that Negroponte announced in May 2008 was quietly 
scrapped this year based on costs.

But in this case, Negroponte's plan has a twist: As OLPC assembles the 
components for its dream machine, it plans to open the architecture of the 
device to allow any other PC maker to take over the project. Negroponte is 
more interested in pressuring the industry to make cheaper, more 
education-focused PCs than he is in manufacturing any specific machine. 
"We don't necessarily need to build it," Negroponte told Forbes. "We just 
need to threaten to build it."

Regardless of who puts their stamp on the ultra-cheap tablet, OLPC's 
biggest task may be getting the various components in line. A typical 
fragile, glass LCD screen hardly seems a wise choice in the hands of young 
children, or in countries with unpredictable and scarce electricity. So 
OLPC hopes to incorporate plastic back-plane components, possibly from 
Mountain View, Calif.-based Plastic Logic, that would be far more durable. 
The tablet will also likely use ultra low-power screens from start-up 
Pixel Qi with both reflective and LCD capabilities, created by former 
Negroponte disciple Mary Lou Jepsen.

If Behar's design comes to fruition, the XO-3 will feature a camera on the 
back of the device and a finger-hold ring on the computer's corner. That 
loop, a metal cable that runs from the device's rim and is encased in the 
same rubber as the screen frame, can be used to steady the computer in the 
user's hand or to let it hang at one's side. Magnets in the loop could 
also be used to keep it tucked behind the machine, out of the way.

Those simple additions are the only departures from the tablet's 
minimalist design: Ideally, the machine won't even have a charging port. 
Behar says OLPC wants to use induction to wirelessly charge the battery 
through its rubber frame. "We wanted to remove all the scars that you 
typically see on a laptop from Lenovo or HP," he says.

While the tablet isn't slated to appear until 2012, OLPC has other plans 
in the meantime. An incremental upgrade of the XO set for release in 
January will have several times the memory, storage and processing power 
of the current machine. The next upgrade, in 2011, will boost the 
machine's performance again and replace its AMD chip with a lower-power 
processor from phone chip maker Marvell.

When it comes to his plans for the $75 dream tablet, however, Negroponte 
admits his track record of lofty promises doesn't offer much assurance 
that this latest fantasy machine will appear. But he warns the computer 
industry not to underestimate OLPC. "Sure, if I were a commercial entity 
coming to you for investment, and I'd made the projections I had in the 
past, you wouldn't invest again," he says. "But we're not a commercial 
operation. If we only achieve half of what we're setting out to do, it 
could have very big consequences."

In Pictures: The $75 Future Computer

See Also:

One Laptop Per Child--Version 2.0

One Virtual PC Per Child

One Windows User Per Child
Android App Market Splinters
Tech Is On The Mendimage
In Pictures: The $75 Future Computer
Stocks Up As OPEC Holdsimage
Reader Comments

Nope, jhochadel, any other sources saying that "8 gigahertz" was meant to 
be "800 megahertz" are just guessing. I just confirmed by email with 
Negroponte that he meant 8 gigahertz. He adds that it's [Read More]
Posted by Andy_Greenberg | 12/23/09 11:31 AM EST

It seems like, based on the forcasting software at 
TheInternetTimeMachi?ne.com (monitors 36 million sources) that this could 
be ahead of schedule. Mostly due to demand for this product, this story 
wil [Read More]
Tags: www.TheInternetTimeM?achine.com, http://bit.ly/Market?ingMythPosted 
by CurtDalton | 12/23/09 11:22 AM EST

I read elsewhere that it was only going to be a 800 mhz processor, not 8 
gigahertz. That would be a pretty impressive feat, even by 2012 (the 8 
ghz, I mean). It does seem like an interesting machine, [Read More]
Tags: processorPosted by jhochadel | 12/23/09 10:46 AM EST

Read All Comments (10)

Post a Comment