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India's $35 tablet expected to launch this month
It's been a while since we've heard any major news about India's ambitious $35 tablet, but a new report suggests that it's finally inching toward reality. According to the Times of India, the controversial project is approaching the finish line with 100,000 units expected to ship this summer, starting this month. The government is expected to deliver 10,000 tablets to IIT Rajasthan in late June, while another 90,000 units will be rolled out over the next four months.
The launch price is reportedly set at 2,200 rupees, which is approximately equivalent to $49. Although that's higher than the initial $35 target, the government reportedly plans to cut the price in half with subsidies. Assuming that information is accurate, students might be able to purchase the tablet for less than we originally thought. Regardless, it's not such a bad deal at $49, especially considering most of us doubted the device would even see the light of day.
Named "Sakshat," the slate was first announced last summer and was delayed this January following complications with its primary hardware vendor, HCL Infosystems. Designed for academic use, Sakshat features a 7-inch touchscreen, support for video conferencing, 32GB of storage, 2GB of RAM, a USB port, Wi-Fi connectivity, and enough horsepower to play YouTube videos. To keep costs in check, the device utilizes Linux and other open source software.
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User Comments (51)
Post a comment|
howzz1854
on June 16, 2011 7:23 PM |
if might be more enticing if they have someone more attractive looking than this ugly old dude showcasing the tablet. |
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PaulWuzHere
on June 16, 2011 7:23 PM |
So will it be a "Sak-of-shat"? or will it be worth the $50? Only time will tell |
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aj_the_kidd
on June 16, 2011 7:25 PM |
The words "you get what you pay for" come to mind when i hear that a tablet is only gonna cost $35 |
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Guest
on June 16, 2011 7:29 PM |
^Not meant for you people. |
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howzz1854
on June 16, 2011 7:41 PM |
what do YOU mean you people ~ tropic thunder |
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gwailo247
on June 16, 2011 7:47 PM |
howzz1854 said: if might be more enticing if they have someone more attractive looking than this ugly old dude showcasing the tablet. What's wrong, you don't find his 'come hither' look enticing? "You want to touch my tablet, yes?" |
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Matthew
on June 16, 2011 7:53 PM |
gwailo247 said: howzz1854 said: if might be more enticing if they have someone more attractive looking than this ugly old dude showcasing the tablet. What's wrong, you don't find his 'come hither' look enticing? "You want to touch my tablet, yes?" +1 For making me laugh |
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ihaveaname
on June 16, 2011 8:09 PM |
Honestly, they try to make a tablet with a seemingly impossible target, actually pull it off, and the comments here are either irrelevant or pessimistic. Where are the gasps of astonishment that this project deserves? Even if it ends up costing more than the goal, it's FORTY-NINE DOLLARS! |
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Guest
on June 16, 2011 8:11 PM |
Why not a better tablet for $100 ? |
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Guest
on June 16, 2011 8:17 PM |
Yeah is great !!! I want one better for $100, but made in china !!! |
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matrix86
on June 16, 2011 9:01 PM |
paulwuzhere said: So will it be a "Sak-of-shat"? or will it be worth the $50? Only time will tell ..............you really expect a $50 tablet NOT to be a "sack-of-shat"? lol But really, it'll be interesting to see how it turns out. At least if it turns out to be no good, you only wasted $50 instead of $400+. So you couldn't really say "man, I got jipped" :P |
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blimp01
on June 16, 2011 9:31 PM |
anyone else thing that dude looks like the final boss from Star Fox on the nintendo 64? what was his name andross [link] |
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captaincranky
on June 16, 2011 9:31 PM |
The Eleventh Commandment....: "Thou shalt not bad mouth the same wonderful people that answer all our customer service calls"...... if might be more enticing if they have someone more attractive looking than this ugly old dude showcasing the tablet. Watch your mouth buster, Moses was an ugly old dude when he showed off his tablets. Hey wait, maybe that's what they're trying to get across....! I hear the splash screen is going to tell you it's 60 dollars, and you have to haggle with it for a couple of hours, before you get the 35 dollar price..... |
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gwailo247
on June 16, 2011 9:35 PM |
ihaveaname said: Honestly, they try to make a tablet with a seemingly impossible target, actually pull it off, and the comments here are either irrelevant or pessimistic. Where are the gasps of astonishment that this project deserves? Even if it ends up costing more than the goal, it's FORTY-NINE DOLLARS! Gasps of astonishment like "OMG, the Indian gov't is going to subsidize this tablet! OMG, Indian taxpayers are going to cover the full cost of this device! Gasp, that country's labor costs are so low that they're able to manage to pull off such a low cost tablet. Gasp, they're selling something at a loss!" I'm sure lots of stuff is cheap in India, tablets, cars, life. |
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captaincranky
on June 16, 2011 9:38 PM |
Batteries not included.... Honestly, they try to make a tablet with a seemingly impossible target, actually pull it off, and the comments here are either irrelevant or pessimistic. Where are the gasps of astonishment that this project deserves? Even if it ends up costing more than the goal, it's FORTY-NINE DOLLARS! Not it you haggle. BTW, if you had enough people to work cheap, suppliers to donate material, and the government subsidized the remainder, you might be able to have a $49.95 Volkswagen. That being said, I don't want one of these either.
I'm sure lots of stuff is cheap in India, tablets, cars, life. "To speak to a representative press 9.....please hold, your call is important to us........zzzzzzz........Hullo, my name is "captaincranky", vut is da problem vit your tablet"?
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Guest
on June 16, 2011 10:51 PM |
Well, the old dude in the picture is Kapil Sibal, the union minister who made the tablet see the light of day! It is somewhat like all you ugly dads lovingly holding their new-borns posing for your first picture together with your little-one, while the ugly, exhausted, bloated wife is recovering from all that she just went through. Give the guy and the tablet a break. If they said it costs 50 bucks, it probably costs 50 bucks... |
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aj_the_kidd
on June 16, 2011 11:11 PM |
ihaveaname said: Honestly, they try to make a tablet with a seemingly impossible target, actually pull it off, and the comments here are either irrelevant or pessimistic. Where are the gasps of astonishment that this project deserves? Even if it ends up costing more than the goal, it's FORTY-NINE DOLLARS! You've come to the wrong place if you expect that type of behaviour, especially on the internet |
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Wendig0
on June 16, 2011 11:42 PM |
Guest said: Well, the old dude in the picture is Kapil Sibal, the union minister who made the tablet see the light of day! It is somewhat like all you ugly dads lovingly holding their new-borns posing for your first picture together with your little-one, while the ugly, exhausted, bloated wife is recovering from all that she just went through. Give the guy and the tablet a break. If they said it costs 50 bucks, it probably costs 50 bucks... When the guy looks like someone Chris Hanson would be telling to "have a seat over there", and there is some mystery schmutz all over the screen, it doesn't really make for an attractive buy. Overall though I am impressed by the specs, and their ability to build it so cheap, but it seems to me that you're taking all the jibes just a little too serious. |
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Guest
on June 16, 2011 11:56 PM |
Sure lots of stuff are cheap in India, for example I can buy Crysis 2 for the PC, which was recently pulled down from Steam(still costing 60$), at any retail store for approximately 22$. In fact 95% of new PC titles do not cost more than 22$ at launch.So, I'm happy that I live in India. |
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gwailo247
on June 17, 2011 12:10 AM |
captaincranky said: "To speak to a representative press 9.....please hold, your call is important to us........zzzzzzz........Hullo, my name is "captaincranky", vut is da problem vit your tablet"? I swallowed it. My tummy hurts. |
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Guest
on June 17, 2011 12:43 AM |
ha ha. apple kill yourself! |
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hitech0101
on June 17, 2011 1:57 AM |
What most non-indians don't know is that after its launch it is going to be followed by a scam whose headlines will be carried by the same newspaper Times of India. |
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hitech0101
on June 17, 2011 2:01 AM |
Matthew said: gwailo247 said: howzz1854 said: if might be more enticing if they have someone more attractive looking than this ugly old dude showcasing the tablet. What's wrong, you don't find his 'come hither' look enticing? "You want to touch my tablet, yes?" +1 For making me laugh That old dude is the minister of IT & Communication just appointed recently after the last minister caused a loss of over US$ 40 billion to the country. |
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Kibaruk
on June 17, 2011 6:17 AM |
Shut your traps man(s)! To me it having 2 gb of rams and 32 gb of hard drive makes it amazing for less than $50, even if it is just to play music. Now not only that but it has wifi and a USB port. To me it sounds like an amazingly cheap home download/music/stream/(almost-whatever-you-want) server (And a bunch things more). |
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herpaderp
on June 17, 2011 7:19 AM |
Seriously, they couldn't maybe give it a quick wipe-down before they held it up for photos? |
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