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Intel to Get 'Classmate PCs' to India

Techtree News Staff, Jun 14, 2007 2010 hrs IST

With a price tag as low as between Rs 9,000 and Rs 11,000, Intel's classmate PC is seen as a direct competitor to the AMD-powered One Laptop Per Child...

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Possibly inspired by Nicholas Negroponte and his $100 laptop, Intel is reportedly now planning to bring its range of low-cost 'classmate PCs' to India.

It was sometime around the middle of 2006 that Intel brought the first 60 classmate PCs to India for a pilot test. By the end of the current year however, Intel plans to ship about 100 more such classmate PCs.

The first pilot test was conducted in December 2006 at the Delhi Public School, Vasundhara. The company will start the second round of pilots most likely at Navodaya Vidyalaya, also in Delhi.

A small laptop based on Intel's 900MHz Celeron-M processor, the classmate PC features a flash disk memory instead of a hard disk. As the name suggests, it is designed particularly for school going children.

Significantly, sporting a price tag as low as between Rs 9,000 and Rs 11,000, Intel's classmate PC is definitely seen as a direct and dangerous competitor to the AMD-powered One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project.

And, the original price of a classmate PC is learnt to be around $285 but as the company expects to manufacture in volume, prices are also expected to fall to about $200. Meanwhile, OLPC's laptop is currently estimated to cost around $175.

According to sources at Intel, bringing classmate PCs to India is part of the company's World Ahead Program where Intel works in conjunction with federal and local governments to be able to reach the next 1-billion PC and Internet users.

USER COMMENTS

its great to hear a MNC gaint like Intel is really envolved in a social cause.Surely its a example to be set by MNCs

by SaNTOSH, kOCHI, on Jun 18, 2007 05:03 PM, Report abuse Reply

It is fine.It should be with touch screen facility.Children should be able to load the programms according to their requirements so that they can use the same note book for many years and hence it willbe at range below 2000 rupees

by jose George, Thrissur, on Jun 15, 2007 04:42 PM, Report abuse Reply

First of all, let this technology avilable to the remote area children, and make them aware of the knwoledge. This OLPC proejct is for the higher section of society but not for other. May INTEL bring those technology to the rural area.

by Phaneendra, Hyderabad, on Jun 14, 2007 10:00 PM, Report abuse Reply

very good. In India science, technology and development schemes are started only with high society and in big cities, until these techniques reach to village and low per capita income society the techniques goes old.

by Nirmal Singh, Spain , Palma de Mallorca, on Jun 15, 2007 12:14 AM, Report abuse

I hope basic stuff like food, clean water, health services etc are given a higher priority than gadgets.

by Sandeep, Calcutta, on Jun 15, 2007 12:33 PM, Report abuse

doctors be ready to treat children!! for RSI effects of using laptops...

by Amarnath, hyderabad, on Jun 15, 2007 11:03 AM, Report abuse Reply

Original price of a classmate PC is more than 400$, do your research and don't just copy quotes from Intel representatives. They don't tell you the real price, and they don't want to mass produce cheap laptops (proof is they are only sending a few hundred laptops to India)

by Charbax, Copenhagen, on Jun 15, 2007 09:39 AM, Report abuse Reply