Aakash 2 Indian cheap tablet

India has released version 2 of its Aakash tablet PC. The first Aakash was launched in October 2011. So after 1 year, a new update is available. Datawind is distributing the tablet to universities and engineering colleges. It is developed with cooperation from IIT Bombay. The device is subsidized by the government.

"The price is Rs 2,263 at which the government purchases the device from us. The government subsidises it by 50 percent and it will be distributed to students at Rs 1,130," said Datawind CEO Suneet Tuli. 

Source: Zeenews

The tablet will run for 3 hours on battery. Equipped with 7-inch screen, 1GHz processor and 512MB of memory. It is estimated 20,000 devices will be distributed.

India government is very supportive in the use of tablets for their education sector. This is very good news.

A 40USD Cheap Good Tablet PC in India

Trust India to make real cheap tablet PC. Available now is a US$40 tablet PC, Ubislate 7Ci. Made by London based Datawind, it is aimed for India students. The average Indian makes $200 / month, so this is a affordable by Indian standard. The sales of Apple product in India is very small, only about 1 percent of all handset sales in India. It is fascinating that India wants to also enjoy tablets, despite their individual economy situation.

The specification for Ubislate 7Ci includes 800-by-480-pixel touchscreen, Android 4.0.3, a 1GHz Cortex A8 processor, and 512MB of RAM, 4GB internal storage, USB port, headphone jack, mic, front-facing camera, and Wi-Fi. Nothing fancy, however it is good enough for daily use.

 

The tablet itself is part of government program to equip every Indian student with a tablet. The cost of assembly is estimated at $37. So there is a margin of $3. However with 2.5 millions unit ordered, that $3 turns out to US$ 7.5 million profit. So, there is money to be made in cheap good tablet PC market.

References:

1. NYTimes profiles impact of $40 Android tablet in India
2. A $40 Android tablet wants to conquer schools in India

Aakash Tablet PC Made In India

India is planning to have its own 100 percent made in India tablet PC. The base production will be the Aakash Tablet PC, currently available at Rs 1,100 to students after government subsidy. This comes down to around $ 22 US dollars.

The manufacturer of the Aakash Tablet PC is Datawind, a UK based company and it is currently selling the Tablet under the brand Ubislate7 for Rs 2,500 (Around $35 US Dollars). It is manufactured in India.

The processor that is used to power the Aakash Tablet PC is clocked at 300 MHz. It is planned for the Aakash 2 Tablet PC to be clocked at 800 MHz. It is a WiFi only device, powered by Android 2.2