India’s tablet is no iPad, but it sure costs less

India has unveiled the prototype of a $35 computer, a basic touch-screen tablet aimed at students.
The government hopes to bring the device into production by 2011. If a manufacturer can be found, the Linux operating system computer will be the latest in a string of “world’s cheapest” innovations to hit the market out of India — home to the $2,127 compact Nano car.
The tablet, designed by students and professors at India’s top technical universities, can be used for functions such as word processing, web browsing and videoconferencing. It has a solar power option, too — important for India’s energy-starved hinterlands — though that costs extra.
Mamta Varma, a government spokeswoman, said falling hardware costs and intelligent design make the price plausible.
The tablet doesn’t have a hard disk but instead uses a memory card, much like a mobile phone. The tablet design cuts hardware costs, and the use of open-source software also adds to savings, she said.
Varma said several global manufacturers have shown interest in making the device, but no manufacturing or distribution deals have been finalized.
“Depending on the quality of material they are using, certainly it’s plausible,” said Sarah Rotman Epps, an analyst at Forrester Research. “The question is, is it good enough for students?”
Profitability is also a question for the $35 machine.
Epps said government subsidies or dual marketing — where higher-priced sales in the developed world are used to subside low-cost sales in markets such as India — could convince a manufacturer to come on board.
If it works, Epps predicts, the device could send a shiver of cost consciousness through the industry.
“It puts pressure on all device manufacturers to keep costs down and innovate,” she said.