Another Low Cost PC Project Nixed
Techtree News Staff, Nov 14, 2006 1556 hrs IST
AMD has pulled the plug on its Personal Internet Communicator (PIC), once envisioned as an inexpensive PC designed for the developing world.
Joining the ranks of failed low-cost PC projects will be AMD's Personal Internet Communicator (PIC) that was once envisioned as an inexpensive PC designed for the developing world.
Introduced in 2004 as part of AMD's ambitious "50x15" project that aims to bring Internet access to half of the world's population by 2015, the PIC was conceived essentially as a PC without a monitor, featuring one of AMD's Geode processors, besides being based on a modified version of Windows CE. The PIX came as a closed system; meaning, it was virus- and spyware- resistant.
Tipped to cost around $185, the PIC bundled with it, word processing, spreadsheet, presentation viewer, email, media player, and instant-messaging software. AMD claimed it could withstand extreme conditions like temperature and dust.
Commenting on the PIC and its failure to see the light of day, Eric DeRitis, Global Communications Director of AMD, said that when they were launching the PIC, their intention was not to be the manufacturer. DeRitis said they had developed a reference unit, but since no one else was producing that kind of device, they had ultimately donned the manufacturers hat.
DiRitis said the PIC, which was typically designed for emerging markets, failed to generate adequate interest. People never really managed to hear about it! While demand in Latin America and Africa turned out to be quite high, in countries like China, demand did not match up to AMD's expectations.
Explaining that AMD had struck a deal with Radio Shack for people in the US to be able to buy the PIC through Radio Shack's online store, DiRitis said that the deal had eventually fallen apart, and that Radio Shack had actually returned many of the units to be sold to AMD.
As of now, partners who helped AMD make the PIC in each country will continue to support the machine. Meanwhile, the company is working on a replacement program for the PIC, which will be launched in early 2007.
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