Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Aakash Tablet, Reading, Writing and USB's

Monday, January 16, 2012

Govt to bring out upgraded low-cost tablet Aakash-II in April

Amid complaints with regard to the quality of the low-cost ‘Aakash’ tablet PC, the government on Monday said it is hopeful of bringing out an upgraded version of the device, ‘Aakash-II’, by April this year. File photo

“In order to cater to the huge demand, we need several manufacturers to manufacture Aakash. We are enhancing the specifications on the basis of feedback we have received from the first version of Aakash. So we want to make sure that the upgraded product caters to the need of the customers... We have involved ITI in order to upgrade it... We will be able to bring in Aakash-II by April,” HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said.

Accepting that differences have crept into the relationship between Aakash creator Datawind and the Human Resource Development Ministry, Mr. Sibal said, “We believe in resolving issues rather than highlighting them.”

According to ministry sources, Mr. Sibal is going to meet the IIT-Rajasthan Director, Datawind officials and the Special Secretary to the Human Resources Development Ministry on Tuesday.

Mr. Sibal had launched the world’s cheapest tablet, Aakash, last year with much fanfare. The device costing $35 (about Rs 2,000) was developed as part of the ‘The National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technologies (NME-ICT)’ of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).

“When we launched the Aakash first version, we did not know the feedback... We distributed to several students in order to get the feedback. With that feedback, we are now enhancing the specifications,” the minister said.

The government had committed itself to a long-term and full supply of 1 lakh units of the Aakash tablet from Datawind.

“As of now Datawind has delivered around 30,000 tablets and the rest 70,000 will also have the upgraded version of Aakash-II,” he said.

The government did not issue a Letter of Credit to the company after receiving test reports from IIT (Jodhpur) that raised certain issues with regard to the quality of the tablet PC.

The last letter of credit is going to expire in January.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Apps for Aakash tablet can win you R 1 lakh!

New Delhi: As per a release by Datawind, the makers of "World's cheapest tablet PC" Aakash , a contest to develop apps for its product has begun.

Datawind has invited students from all over the country to design innovative softwares and applications (apps) that can make the best use of Aakash's potentials and productivity.

The company said that the best five applications will get an award of Rs 1 lakh and a share of the advertising revenue that is generated from their apps.

The company is also in talks to provide internet access at an affordable rate of Rs 99 per month.

The last date of submission of entries is 20th February, while the final app need to be submitted by 29th February.

Details about the contest can be found on aapkiapp.com.

Datawind ‘Aap Ki App’ Contest, Make Apps For Aakash Tablet & Win Rs. 1,00,000

Datawind, the manufacturer company of the world’s cheapest tablet Aakash, has announced a competition for app developers named “Aap Ki App”. The competition is for Indian students to show their creative energy and technical expertise.

Suneet Singh Tuli, Chief Executive Officer at Datawind, announced the competition in Toronto, Canada. Top 5 entries will win a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh each and these apps will be delivered pre-installed with the device. According to the official website, the advertising revenue generated by these apps will also be shared with the developers. This will help student to get noticed among other developers and will provide a good platform for their entrepreneurial journey. The table runs on android platform, but current apps are not supported by the device.

Tuli said that they have got a great response from the students across the nation. According to him Aakash will fulfill the dream of majority of Indian population to own a computing device and access internet. Last date to submit the entries is 20^th Feb and you will have to submit the final app by 29^thFeb. For more details regarding the contest you can visit the official website: www.aapkiapp.com

Last date for submitting entries is February 20th 2012.

Last day for Final submissions is February 29th 2012.

source: http://www.crazyengineers.com/datawind-aap-ki-app-contest-make-apps-for-aakash-tablet-win-rs-100000-1664/

Datawind opposes test standard of IIT for Aakash tablet

New Delhi: IT device maker Datawind today said the proposed product testing criteria by IIT (Jodhpur) cannot be applied to the first version of Aakash tablets, the world's cheapest, supplied by the company.

IIT (Jodhpur)'s test criteria include conditions like water resistance whereby a unit of Aakash tablet will be placed in a rain chamber supplying rain at a rate of no less than 4 inches per hour.

Datawind CEO Sunit Sing Tuli told PTI that the test specifications have been proposed by the IIT after the tender document was submitted and were not a part of the original tender.

"The price point at which Aakash tablets are being made cannot be compared to USD 1000 laptop. We have supplied product with better specification than what was issued by IIT Jodhpur," Tuli said.

Test criteria made by the IIT is based on millitary specification of a rugged product, he said, adding, "We have objected to it that millitary specifications do not make sense."

IIT was given the responsibility to procure USD 35 (about Rs 2,000) tablet under 'The National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technologies (NME-ICT) of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) programme.

Tuli said that the company has communicated its view to the concerned IIT Director and he is confident that changes in the proposed test criteria will be made soon.

On recent reports of complication in the Letter of Credit issued to the company by the government, Tuli said it is valid till end of January and as after resolving issue of test criteria, it will be extended further.

"I am confident that Letter of Credit will be extended," Tuli said. The Letter of Credit will enable Datawind to get payment from banks after the government approves it and communicates to banks for making payments.

Tuli said the government is committed for a long-term and full supply of 1 lakh unit from Datawind.

source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/datawind-opposes-test-standard-of-iit-for-aakash/221014-11.html

College students to get Aakash 2 from Feb

Aakash, world's cheapest tablet computer

College students across India will get an enhanced version of Aakash tablet without the government having to pay a penny extra.

Datawind had already supplied 30,000 tablets by the time IIT, Rajasthan report came. The ministry held-back the order and asked the company to improve Aakash as per the deficiencies citied by the IIT report.

Ministry sources said that company was initially reluctant to upgrade the tablet without increasing the cost. However, the company agreed when ministry officials threatened to cancel the order.

Tuli was not available for comments but a company spokesperson said the product manufactured to date has met and exceeded all the specifications, features and criteria specified in the government tender.

"The product road-map and future enhancements are not 'news' and not a sign of failure," the company said in a statement.

"Not only Aakash from Datawind but all future tablets will have minimum Aakash 2 specificians," said N K Sinha, additional secretary in the HRD ministry. These improvements included a 240 minute battery instead of 180 minutes, better firmware and a 700 mega hertz (MHz) Cortex A8 processor instead of the 366 MHz ARM 11 processor.

The HRD ministry is expected to invite bids from companies to supply Aakash 2. The target is to provide about a million Aakash tablets to college students in the next few years.

Datawind has already got two million booking for enhanced Aakash tablet, sold under the brand name of Ubislate, for which it sought online booking earlier this month. The tablet is being sold at Rs 2,999, which is Rs 749 more than price of Aakash for HRD ministry.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/College-students-to-get-Aakash-2-from-Feb/Article1-796740.aspx

Now 'flawless Aakash' for students at same price

New Delhi: Montreal-based DataWind, the makers of the world's cheapest computer tablet, agreed to upgrade the tablet without increasing the cost, a day after reports of the HRD Ministry deciding to put its agreement with the company on hold.

After the deal, college students will be able to get an enhanced version of Aakash tablet without paying extra cost.

As per reports, the company was initially reluctant to upgrade the tablet without increasing the cost. However, the company agreed when ministry officials threatened to cancel the order, a daily newspaper reported.

The after-sales reports of the Aakash Tablet are extremely disappointing and those who have bought the low cost gadget have only one reason to be happy- they are the privileged early users of the gadget.

According to experts, the new version will have a look similar to the Chinese tablets and have the SIM card option.

The upgraded version of Aakash, Ubislate 7+ tab will be available in the Indian market by last week of January, 2012.

Check out its configuration below:

Hardware

• Processor: Connexant with Graphics accelerator & HD Video processor

• Memory: 256MB RAM / Storage (Internal): 2GB Flash

• Storage (External): 2GB to 32GB Supported

• Peripherals: 2 Standard USB port

• Display and Resolution: 7 inch display with 800x480 pixel resolution

Software

• OS: Android 2.2

• Document Rendering

• Supported Document formats: DOC, DOCX, PPT, PPTX, XLS, XLSX, ODT, ODP

• PDF viewer, Text editor

• Multimedia and Image Display

• Image viewer supported formats: PNG, JPG, BMP and GIF

• Supported audio formats: MP3, AAC, AC3, WAV, WMA

• Supported video formats: MPEG2, MPEG4, AVI, FLV

• Communication and Internet

• Web browser- Standards Compliance: xHTML 1.1 compliant, JavaScript 1.8 compliant

• Separate application for online YouTube video

• Safety and other standards compliance

• CE certification / RoHS certification
http://zeenews.india.com/business/technology/now-flawless-aakash-for-students-at-same-price_37083.html

Kapil Sibal's low-cost Aakash tablet may be shelved

168564.html

Friday, January 13, 2012

Aakash Tablet To Be Discontinued?

The project of providing tablets to students may be altogether shelved after a series of faults were detected in the device.

Aakash, tablet, slate, upgraded version, world

Friday, January 13, 2012: There are all possibilities that the Union human resource development (HRD) ministry may not extend the letter of credit (LC) to the makers of world's cheapest tablet Aakash as a lot of faults have been detected in the device, since its launch in October.

The tablet manufactured by Montreal-based Datawind is priced at Rs 2,250 but still has been almost ridiculed by buyers and users alike, owing to the poor tech specs and performance of the device. The tablet was manufactured specifically for students with the aim of bridging the 'digital divide' between the rich and the poor, states an India Today report. However, now the government is planning to dump the faulty device in rural villages.

It is even possible that the entire project to provide cheapest tablets to students launched by HRD minister Kapil Sibal may have to be shelved. According to sources, the idea which was conceptualised by Sibal has now been hijacked by Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). The corporate is now working on its fourth generation (4G) latest tablet, which will be priced around Rs 3500. The 4G long term evolution (LTE) network has much higher speed than the 3G network and many companies will be launching the 4G network worldwide this year.

According to industry people, there are also possibilities that RIL may get into an agreement with Datawind or some other firm to launch the 4G network. So far, RIL is the only firm that has a pan-India spectrum to offer wireless broadband services on the 4G technology platform. It had paid Rs 13,000 crore for these airwaves.

Initially, the HRD ministry had placed an order of one lakh Aakash tablets and received 30,000 tablets as part of the pilot. The feedback on the devices as part of the pilot project was not good at all and below par.

Aakash tablet that was initially given to students runs a basic Android 2.2 Froyo version. It has a 366 MHz processor and a 17.8-cm (7-inch) resistive touchscreen. It is said to have a battery back up of three hours. The next version of Aakash is said to have an improved 766 MHz processor with an improved battery life.

DataWind had reportedly refused to upgrade the remaining 70,000 tablets of the second lot as it required more funds for that. However, now, the company will complete the remaining order with an upgraded version of Aakash, which will be available at the original price tag of Rs 2,250. There are also reports that the HRD ministry is looking for other vendors for selling the 70,000 upgraded units of Aakash. Even IIT-Rajasthan, the tendering authority of the project, has not come out with new testing standards of the tablet.

According to authorities, these are clear indications that the LC, which lapses this month end, will not be extended by the ministry. Despite the fact, Datawind has got over 20 lakh retail bookings for the tablet so far.

DataWind had said that the LC would be extended beyond 30 January. According to an official from DataWind, the firm has not yet been paid for the 30,000 units of Aakash that they have delivered so far.

Within 15 to 20 days, the fate of the much touted Aakash would be sealed, may be for the good of the students atleast.

source: http://news.efytimes.com/e1/76883/Aakash-Tablet-To-Be-Discontinued

India Launches US$50 Aakash Tablet PC

Jan. 13 – India has launched the initial pilot run of the Aakash tablet PC, with some 100,000 units having been delivered this week. The PC, similar in look and functionality to an iPad, has been designed to specifically cater for Indian students and the Indian Ministry of Human Resource and Development is set to purchase 10 million of them to distribute to schoolchildren in attempts to improve literacy and educational standards across the country.

Jointly developed by the Canadian company Datawind and the Indian Institute of Technology Rajasthan, the Aakash is being manufactured in India at plants in Cochin, Noida and Hyderabad. By the end of March an updated version tweaked from observations made during this week’s run will be launched and distributed throughout the country at a rate of 5 million a month.

The Aakash – which means “Sky” in Hindi – is expected to have a transforming effect on Indian society.

“We expect that within 5 or 10 years everyone will have one – and every year there will be greater capacity. There will be children learning, farmers checking on irrigation or crop prices, pregnant women getting medical assistance, all through the Aakash. It is empowerment on a global scale,” said Professor Prem Kalra of the Indian Institute of Technology Rajasthan.

A key factor in India, where many of those lucky enough to have a job earn no more than US$3 per day, is cost. Kalra and his team said the specific goal was building a functioning computer that a daily wage laborer could buy if he saved one day’s earnings a month. This gave a US$50 target.

Recent estimates indicate that 112 million Indians currently have internet access, a distant third behind China with 485 million and the United States with 245 million. The level reflects India’s low relative levels of education, creaky infrastructure and persistent poverty. But the number is set to reach 230 million within three or four years, according to industry estimates. The government is aiming for 600 million Indians using the internet by 2016 in a market that is expected to overtake China to see Indians become the biggest single internet user population in the world within less than a decade.

Indian computer tablet could herald an internet revolution

Aakash device is cheap and will, say enthusiasts, help overcome problems with literacy and skills – especially in rural areas

The Aakash tablet computer, which can be made and sold for under £35, could help India reach its target of 600 million internet users by 2016. Photograph: Getty Images

In a laboratory on a leafy campus in the Indian desert city of Jodhpur, Professor Prem Kalra believes he is overseeing a revolution. It takes the form of a computer "tablet" – a basic form of device similar to the Apple iPad – which can be made and sold for under £35.

Already 100,000 of the devices, called Aakash, which means "sky" or "ether" in the local Hindi language, are to be manufactured for testing.

Within weeks a new version, which will allow hundreds of millions of Indians in remote rural areas to connect to the internet via local mobile phone networks, will be launched.

"We expect that within five or 10 years everyone will have one – and every year there will be greater capacity. There will be children learning, farmers checking on irrigation or crop prices, pregnant women getting medical assistance, all through the Aakash. It is empowerment on a global scale," Kalra, who heads a team at the Rajasthan Indian Institute of Technology, said.

But the new tablet, originally developed by a small tech company called Datawind, is only a small, if crucial, part of a radical change which may, some believe, see Indians become the biggest single internet user population in the world within less than a decade.

According to the most recent estimate, 112 million Indians currently have internet access, a distant third behind China with 485 million and the US with 245 million.

The level reflects India's low relative levels of education, parlous infrastructure and persistent poverty.

But the number is set to reach 230 million within three or four years, according to industry estimates. The government claims there will be 600 million Indians using the internet by 2016.

"Now we've crossed the 100 million milestone, the 600 million is possible. Perhaps not as fast as the government say but we can get there if the investment is there too," Subho Ray, of the Internet and Mobile Association of India, said. "Whatever happens, the internet will be a major force to reckon with."

A key factor in India, where many of those lucky enough to have a job earn no more than £2 per day, is cost. Kalra and his team said the specific goal was building a functioning computer that a daily wage labourer could buy if he saved one day's earnings a month. This gave a £35 ($50) target.

Students receive a significant government subsidy. Enough to mean, Kalra points out, that a family with two children could effectively buy one of the tablets and get a second almost free. The government hopes to use the Aakash tablets to overcome chronic shortages in educational resources through distance learning packages. India has a shortage of a million teachers and many schools lack books or basic facilities.

Experts say infrastructure – though far behind that in regional rival China – is improving. But the main driver is likely not to be public investment but the private sector, said Prashant Agarwal, a Mumbai-based analyst.

"The major portion of the expansion is big commercial players like Facebook, Google," said Agarwal.

Internet shopping is another major factor in the explosive growth.

Though it faces a lack of consumer confidence, slow download speeds and the same infrastructure problems that any company trying to run distribution networks in India has to cope with – bad roads, insufficient freight capacity on railways, corruption and red tape – the sector is growing rapidly.

The online travel market is now thought to be worth £6.6bn.

FlipKart, an Indian home delivery site launched four years ago offering books alone, has gone from $10m to $100m (£66m) in a year. It now sells everything from kettles to computer games, allowing nervous customers to pay cash on delivery.

"There are some specific difficulties here but we don't see the economic downturn affecting us too much. We aim to hit a turnover of a billion dollars by 2015 and may get there a bit earlier," Ravi Vohra, Flipkart's vice president, said.

However, many believe the government predictions of growth in internet use are too optimistic.

"It will grow but at a much slower pace," Agarwal the analyst said.

One challenge is literacy. Around a quarter of Indians are unable to read or write and at least another quarter are very limited. Another is maintenance. Previous attempts to distribute cheap laptops to villagers ran into problems as access to servicing was very difficult.

A third problem is skills. One state government in south India is handing out tens of thousands of computers to schoolchildren. But there are not enough trained teachers to demonstrate how to use the free equipment.

A final issue is power. Many villagers don't have electricity with which to charge any device.

There are solutions for all these issues, Kalra believes.

His team say they can develop a system of icons to overcome the problem of users being unable to use a keyboard with letters.

They are also developing a solar charger for the Aakash tablets because, he says, "one thing we are not short of in India is sun".

Aakash tablet available to Mumbai students for Rs 1,000

MUMBAI: City college students will now be able to purchase the Aakash computer tablet, which was launched in October, at just Rs 1,138. While the market price of the low-cost tablet is Rs 2,500, students will get it a much lower price.

Union minister Kapil Sibal launched the Aakash tablet for students across the country in October. It will now be made available to 100 varsities, including Mumbai University.

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Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Monday, January 16, 2012

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Friday, January 13, 2012