Akash tablet details

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don570
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Akash tablet details

#1 Post by don570 »

Latest details on Akash tabletHERE
I am hoping for nearly 100,000 customers per month
for my tab which may be priced around Rs.2,500-3,000."

Tuli further said the company's manufacturing facility capacity in Hyderabad
would be increased from the current 700 units
per day to nearly 100,000 units per month.

"We have to eventually increase the capacity to 100,000 units
in the coming time to meet the demand."

The company was also scouting for an alternative manufacturing
site to increase production.

Barry has details in his blog
http://bkhome.org/blog/?viewDetailed=02541
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Last edited by don570 on Sat 12 Nov 2011, 18:48, edited 7 times in total.

nooby
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#2 Post by nooby »

Would be cool if them really made them available world wide.

What OS did it use now then? Ms Win? I mean what else? :)

Sorry just me friendly teasing. It has another equally guarded OS
Android. You need to jail break it to become root and load Puppy on it!

Specifications:

* Conexant's 366 Mhz Processor with Graphics accelerator and HD Video processor.

* 256MB RAM, 2GB internal storage, up to 32GB external storage supported.

* 7" display with 800x480 pixel resolution, resistive touchscreen.

* 2 Standard USB ports.

* WiFi, 3G, GPRS connectivity supported.

* Runs on Android 2.2 Froyo operating system.
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don570
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Canadian connection

#3 Post by don570 »

There is a Canadian connection. The company that
has designed
the project is based in Montreal.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story ... india.html
"People laughed, people called us lunatics," ministry official N.K.
Sinha said. "They said we are taking the nation for a ride."

Although the $10 goal wasn't achieved, the Aakash has a color screen and
provides word processing, Web browsing and video conferencing. The
Android 2.2-based device has two USB ports and 256 megabytes of RAM.
Despite hopes for a solar-powered version — important for India's
energy-starved hinterlands — no such option is currently available.

Both Sibal and Datawind CEO Suneet Singh Tuli called for competition to
improve the product and drive prices down further.

"The intent is to start a price war. Let it start," Tuli said
Last edited by don570 on Thu 20 Oct 2011, 23:51, edited 2 times in total.

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#4 Post by BarryK »

[url]https://bkhome.org/news/[/url]

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#5 Post by jpeps »

well...I'd like to test it out with adobe flash. Seeing is believing..

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8-bit
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#6 Post by 8-bit »

With only 256 megs of ram, there is not much room for cache in memory for viewing videos.
But then again, with the graphics chip it is using that is supposed to get with it, you never can tell.
Also, the India site in the specs says the tablet has 1 USB port.
The site in Canada in specs says the tablet has 2 USB ports.

Different models maybe?
Opps. I just realized that the specs list 2 gigs of internal USB storage.
So internal and external would indeed make 2 USB ports.
But it makes you wonder if the internal USB has a standard plug in port.
It sure would make increasing storage capacity easy.
I also noticed it limits USB storage to 32 gigs.
And I wonder if that is due to memory address decoding hardware or availability of USB flash drive size currently being 32gigs max.

I know on a laptop I have, the max memory listed is 512 megs.
and with it, I assume that if I tried to go above that, hardware memory decoding would not let me.
It is like max memory on 8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit, and 64-bit computers.
An 8-bit computer is only capable of directly addressing a 16bit address.

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don570
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#7 Post by don570 »

a BBC review
... what you really need are the apps and content ecosystem.

While the courseware development happens, the world will move on,
with even better tablets that leave the Aakash further behind.


The low battery life of the tablet is a concern
And while I like the 7" size for its portability, students
will find it less friendly than a 10" display for educational apps.
But yes, that would cost more.

And the battery is rated for three hours; we got a bit over
two. The Aakash warms up in use. That means precious battery
power is going away as heat.

So every school kid who uses it will probably need a charging
socket in their desk. And that's not likely to happen soon.
Leaving it to charge repeatedly in common areas is not practical,
for a variety of reasons.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-15302663

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#8 Post by nooby »

The worst thing for a poor Indian young student has to be replacement of the battery after two years of usage.

AFAIK every standard LiIon battery lose much of it's capacity after about two years of daily usage. Even to just have such on a shelf make them lose capacity.

And to save money these are most likely soldered in place automatically at production?

it would be less costly if them used NiMH which can be replaced by the student themselves and which now and then go on Sales to low prices which I have not seen LiIon go. And them usally are special made for each gadget so them are not interchangeable the way an AA cell is.
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#9 Post by don570 »

double post :oops:
Last edited by don570 on Tue 18 Oct 2011, 22:43, edited 1 time in total.

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#10 Post by don570 »

From Wall Street journal
SEE HERE
Aakash may prove a failure because, first, used computers are
available at dirt cheap prices. Second and more important is the phenomenal
rise of cell phones. They can increasingly do things that
computers and tablets do.

A basic Indian cell phone costs just $15, far cheaper than an Aakash. In
fact, the cost of the cell phone is only slightly higher than the government's
subsidy, and calls are only two cents a minute. Cell phones can be charged by
batteries in rural areas with little or no electricity. The Aakash, by contrast, will have
an extra charge in the cost of a wireless connection. At this rate, the people
most likely to buy the Aakash are better-off Indians—clearly not those
at whom the subsidy is aimed.
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Last edited by don570 on Thu 20 Oct 2011, 23:50, edited 1 time in total.

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#11 Post by don570 »

Pakistani company will provide software
See Here
Pepper.pk, which is a Lahore based company, has three world No. 1 titles
to its name including the four-time AppWorld No. 1 app, Photo Editor and
has won numerous local awards as well as significant international recognition.
The company’s apps are available across all major mobile platforms including
iPhone/iPad, BlackBerry phones and BlackBerry PlayBook, Windows Phone 7, Android
and Nokia.
The company said that it would start customizing relevant apps from its
current 150 offerings for the Aakash tablet as soon as it becomes commercially available.
Last edited by don570 on Thu 20 Oct 2011, 23:49, edited 1 time in total.

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#12 Post by don570 »

news item HERE
Minister Kapil Sibal today said the low cost computing device Aakash
has generated a lot of "enthusiasm" among the American public and several companies
there have evinced interest to associate with the project to further raise
its efficiency and productivity.

Several people and big companies met us who are into this business (IT).
They expressed interest to partner with this project, to increase its application
and speed, increase the processor from 300 MHz to 800 MHz,"
Sibal told reporters here.

However, he said the price tag of USD 35 willl remain
the same and the US firms have agreed to this.

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#13 Post by nooby »

A basic Indian cell phone costs just $15, far cheaper than an Aakash.
In fact, the cost of the cell phone is only slightly higher than the
government's subsidy, and calls are only two cents a minute.
Such is important. People are extremely conservative in habits.
This phenomena has fancy names. Social inertia or similar terms.

You see same behavior in choice of OS. some 90% of all sold computers
to the common average Joe has Ms Windows on it. Social inertia.

Same with email choice. Some 99% of every average person use Hotmail as their email. At least that is how it is in Sweden among those I know.
Social inertia again.

Same with Social Networking. Them are all of them on Face Book and not Google + or some other such platform. Social inertia again.

So that quote may be right. If a typical Indian average Joe has bought a cell phone then them go on texting and making calls on that one and
to buy even a subs is not what them do. Only geeks would and the richer families for their kids.
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INTEL

#14 Post by don570 »

Apparently INTEL wants in on action...
Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal wrote:"IBM and Intel want to collaborate with India for further
development of this product without touching its price," he said,
adding that the next edition of the device would be much
more advanced, but will be available at the same price of $35.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes ... apil-sibal


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#15 Post by me7i »

im intriuged, what would be the equivilent price in £ (BPS) ?

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Aakash2 details

#16 Post by don570 »

Aakash2 details...
Latest news
The world's cheapest tablet will be launched in February 2012 and
will be available at the same price of Rs 2,276 or $49.

Aakash-2, will have a new microprocessor of 800 megahertz as compared
to the present 366 megahertz processor. This will solve the existing problems
of quick overheating, frequent system freeze,
poor sound quality, absence of support for all
formats and inability to install free online software.

It will also enable downloading of videos from YouTube, another popular
activity among internet users.

Also, the RAM of the new version will be enhanced to 1GB from 256 MB in
Aakash-1, which was the reason behind restricted multi-tasking.

An in-built camera, which was the major application missing in the first
version, will also be integrated in Aakash-2, to enable front online video
chatting on an improved 7’’ screen.
Last edited by don570 on Mon 14 Nov 2011, 19:29, edited 1 time in total.

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#17 Post by don570 »

more details of aakash2

http://www.mobiledia.com/news/116360.html
The tablet's designers at IIT Rajastan say the Aakash 2 will contain "a more
capable processor, more memory and more onboard storage" for the same
low price. The next-generation Android 3.2 Gingerbread version may also
contain new hardware, according to one of Aakash's project managers,
Professor Anupam Gupta.

"We think that if we have our own chip, the performance will shoot up and
the price will come down drastically," he said.

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#18 Post by Farlane »

I think in this time all are thinking this is a small laptop while it was once projected as a laptop computer; it is actually a tablet computing device. Akash is the cheapest tablet in the world and is cheaper than the basic models of some mobile phones. The device was announced under the name Aakash on 5 October 2011 in India. Akash is produced in Kwad electronics solutions pvt ltd Hyderabad. The product is currently under testing and in the first phase one lakh products would be released and later 9,00,000 more would be released and the price may come down to less than 2,000. The device has been developed as part of the National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology. The Aakash tablet hardware and software details given below.

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#19 Post by Ernest »

Guys I was wondering government has planned to sell this tablet ubislate7 aka Aakash to students at a cheaper price of Rs1800 or less as compared to shops which sells at Rs3000. But the question here is where to buy it from and what proof to show that I am a student? Anyone here on TDF bought it? If yes at what price because I'm thinking for going for it...

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#20 Post by don570 »

CTV in Canada has a story about the Canadian company
that is designing the computer

http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/sta ... 20199.html

[quote]Datawind CEO Suneet Singh Tuli said accusations against the company are driven by envy, sour grapes and corruption in the Indian media. His firm has followed its contracts to the letter, the device does everything it was meant to, and a deluge of orders for the ultra-cheap tablet speaks for itself, he said.

The Ministry of Human Resource Development, which commissioned the product, did not respond to repeated requests for comment from the Globe and Mail. A week ago, HRD Minister Kabil Sibal reportedly told the Indian media that there were “differences

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