In Today we are having considerable amount of hype over Aakash, which is being touted as the worlds cheapest tablet. It will be sold to students at a subsidized price of $35. The machine is quite slow, and its touchscreen is not very agile. Well, with low horsepower 366MHz processor, all you can have is a real snail of the tablet space. What kind of computer related education will students in this country have with a device that is so substandard?
Most middle-level mobile phones available in India are probably capable of giving a better computing experience than Aakash tablet.
The device uses resistive LCD displays rather than a full touchscreen. As it connects via WiFi, its usefulness in rural areas is seriously compromised. In urban areas students probably have access to better devices. At a time when HP is conducting a fire sale of its super-advanced Tablet, the TouchPad, at $99, and Amazon is retailing its brand new tablet, Kindle Fire, at just $199, we are trying to palm off $35 piece of plastic packed with obsolete hardware and software on our students!
The launch of Aakash showcases just how non-serious this country is about the education of its students. This tablet is a proof of the really low level of ambition in this country. If the govt. wants Indian students to have access to best quality software and hardware, then why doesnt it remove the taxes and duties on such products? Prices will fall on their own, and the students will have access to best quality products.
The need of the hour is to make the best hardware and software available to our students; we cant keep foisting useless plastic junk, which is tablet in name only. Can we even imagine countries like China, Korea, Japan, USA, France, UK, and others foisting such low-tech devices on their students!
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