Laptop Makers Skeptical of $100 Laptop Schedule

coolgadget wrote to mention an article at DigitalTimes reporting that the production schedule MIT has laid out for the $100 laptop may be unrealistic. From the article: "Quanta Computer, Compal Electronics, and Inventec, which are reportedly bidding to manufacture the world's cheapest notebook distributed to schools directly through large government initiatives, consider that meeting the volume shipment schedule for the US$100 notebook would be 'unlikely' given the current technical hurdles that need to be overcome ... The OLPC project will need huge support from governments to solve a variety of software and hardware problems including handwriting recognition, translation, and panel issues, all under a low-cost production budget, Taiwan notebook makers stated. Related components for the low-cost notebooks are still in the design stage, indicated the makers, noting that a 7.5-inch display sample for the US$100 model could be released by January of next year at the soonest." We've previously discussed this story.

Comments

It's a feature

[Overzeetop]

Though lack of planning, the $100 laptop is in thousands of small pieces..

Maybe they should have had the Archbishop of Canterbury's brother do the demonstration?

The $103.67 laptop

[chunews]

This really should be indexed for inflation. By next month, the $100 laptop project should be changed to compensate for those on a fixed income.

I thought we would have learned by now that refusing to index the cost and benefit of items (Alternative Minimum Tax, 401(k) maximum contributions, defined pension plans) is just the wrong way to go.

By the time the $100 laptop takes off, $100 will buy you 4 gallons of milk, 3 loaves of bread, and 5 sticks of butter. And who wants to compute when there's buttery milky bread to injest!

Re:Linux based?

[Hosiah]

and please don't make this the start of a "What distro is better?" flamewar.

Nice trick. What do you do for a follow-up, part the Red Sea? (-:

I can't wait :-)

[WaterDamage]

I'm very sure that they can get $100 laptops by next year. I can't wait to get signed up on the waiting list!

Here are the proposed specs:

486sx 25 MHz
2 Gig HD
16 MB RAM
2" Passive Matrix LCD
MS-DOS 3.2

Dupe Protection v0.3

[hagrin]

We've previously discussed this story.

If I were the Slashdot editors, for dupe protection sake, I would add this statement at the end of every submission.

Because here in Amerika we have ..

[My_guzzi]

An existing product for underprivileged children. It is about one inch thick and roughly the size of a piece of paper, has a screen in the center, a red (usually) border and two very ergonomic rotational controls at the bottom right and left corners. It has advanced security features and is erased by shaking.

I guess no one gives a shit for technical development / opportunity in rural Amerika. Just don't teach any of that dammed Monkey science ...