184 - 10 best budget Android tablets for students in India for June 2013

10 best budget Android tablets for students in India for June 2013

NEWS Ananya Prabhu 15:46, 28 Jun 2013

KYMI handpicks 10 best budget Android tablets for school and college students in India

Tablets are gaining popularity among school and college students for their portablility and intrecative lessons.Since the launch of Aakash tablet in 2012, which is the world’s cheapest tablet computer, several vendors have started announcing such devices loaded with educational content to excite the students and make the process of learning easier.

KYMI handpicks the top 10 best budget educational tablets in the market for this month.

• Aakash 2 UbiSlate 7C

The Aakash 2 boasts of a 7-inch 4-point capacitive touchscreen display with a resolution of 800x480 pixels and is powered by a 1GHz ARM Cortex A8 processor and 512MB of RAM. The tablet comes with a VGA front-facing camera for video calls, 4GB in-built memory, expandable to up to 32GB and is flavored with Android 4.0 ICS operating system. The Aakash 2 packs connectivity aspects like mini USB, Wi-Fi, OTG and is equipped with a 3,200 mAh battery offering 4 hours of backup.

Price: Rs 4,499

• iBall Edu Slide i-1017

iBall Edu Slide is powered by eTeach and is specially designed for school children and is useful for both CBSC and SSC curriculum. The tablet houses a 10.1-inch multi-touch IPS capacitive touchscreen display with 1280x800 pixel resolution and is stuffed with a 1.5GHz dual-core Cortex A9 processor and Mali 400 GPU.

Running on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean OS, the Edu Slide i-1017 comes with 2-megapixel rear shooter, VGA front-facing camera, 8GB internal storage, expandable to 32GB and 1GB RAM. The other goodies of the tablet include Wi-Fi, micro USB and a decent battery life.

Price: Rs 12,999

• HCL MyEduWorld X1

HCL Learning, which is focused in launching educational devices for students brings MyEduWorld X1. The Android 4.0 ICS tablet offers a content repository of more than 6,000 visually rich 2D-3D animations, real-life examples, step-by-step illustrations and has more than 25,000 solved examples and 15,000 quizzes. MyEduWorld also has educational applications like problem solver, online encyclopedia, live-videos and more educational content free of cost.

Price: Rs 9,999

• Micromax Funbook Talk P350

The Funbook Talk P350 is a voice calling tablet oriented for students. It is fitted with a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen display with 800x480 pixel resolution and features like multi-touch and pinch to zoom. Further, based on Android ICS, the device features a Cortex A8 Core accompanied by Mali 400 GPU, 4GB internal storage, 512MB RAM and a memory card slot supporting up to 32GB additional storage. Other features of the Funbook Talk P350 include VGA front-facing camera, Wi-Fi, mini HDMI and  2,800 mAh battery delivering up to 5 hours talk time and 112 hours standby.

Price: Rs 7,249

• Go Tech Funtab 2G Talk

Go Tech recently came with Funtab 2G Talk with CBSC content onboard. The voice calling tablet sports a 7-inch LCD 800x480 capacitive touchscreen display and runs on Android 4.0.3 ICS. It comes with 2-megapixel rear camera, VGA front camera, 1.2GHz Cortex A8 processor with 512MB RAM and Mali-400 3D GPU. There is 4GB of internal storage which is expandable up to 32GB via micro SD card, Wi-Fi, 3G, USB and a 3,000 mAh battery. The Funtab 2G Talk comes with an array of pre-loaded applications like educational, gaming, social and entertainment.  

Price: Rs 6,999

183 - Comment: India's tablet revolution - Vivek Wadhwa-Foreign Policy - SBS

Comment: India's tablet revolution

27 JUN 2013, 4:40 PM   -   SOURCE: VIVEK WADHWA, FOREIGN POLICY

Indian students in new Delhi are using the newly launched 'Akash' computer tablet which retails for US $46 USD. (Prakash Singh/AFP/Getty)

As the cost of devices drops and Internet access becomes universal, we are witnessing a new kind of revolution, Vivek Wadhwa writes.

India's ruling Congress Party was stunned by the magnitude of recent public protests. For the first time in recent history, India's normally docile middle class and its youth are speaking up over everything from the country's recent rape tragedy to the Congress Party's corruption. Social media and technology have empowered these segments of society in new ways. The digital world has enabled similar rebellions in China and the Middle East.

This is just the beginning, though. As the cost of devices drops and Internet access becomes universal, we are witnessing a new kind of revolution. 

Information used to be more localised. People were barely aware of the affairs of their own villages let alone in nearby towns or the rest of the country. Governments had the power to feed their citizens whatever propaganda they wanted them to know.

Now, however, people are more connected. Those in the poorest parts of the world are gaining access to an equivalent breadth of knowledge as those in the wealthiest parts. They are beginning to participate in the global economy, to learn from others, and to solve their own problems.

The first global communications revolution began with cell phones. Over a 10-year period the number of cellular subscriptions jumped from a few million to nearly 6 billion (or 87 percent of the world's population, according to The International Telecommunication Union). These made it possible for families to stay in touch when breadwinners travelled to cities and for workers to connect with employers. They allowed populations to discuss what was happening in different parts of the country and to exchange political views. And they allowed the disenchanted to organize demonstrations via text messages. 

The next step in this revolution is cheap tablets. India recently launched the Aakash tablet, which provides all the features of more expensive tablets. It has a processer as powerful as the first iPad, twice as much RAM, and an LCD touch screen. One hundred thousand of these devices have been purchased by the Indian government from a company called Datawind for $40 and are being provided to teachers and school children for a subsidized price of $20. 

Meanwhile, Datawind has sold 1 million of these commercially at a price of $60. CyberMedia Research says that within two quarters of its introduction, the Aakash tablet has leaped ahead of Apple in terms of market share in India.

To add to the increasing accessibility of technology and its benefit, India has launched an initiative to connect 250,000 villages via optical fiber cable. The fiber-optic lines will provide cheap, affordable Internet. Regardless of whether the government delivers on these plans, India's cell phone carriers already provide affordable data plans. Newer versions of Datawind tablets, or "phablets" as they are colloquially referred to, have cell phone capabilities and come with unlimited web access for Rs.100 (US$1.75) per month.

India's population currently has around 900 million mobile phones, which typically cost $30 or more. When the cost of the "phablets" reaches this price point, they will undoubtedly become the replacement device for cell phones. I expect that India, because of tablets, will have more than 100 million new Internet users in the next three years. This number will grow to more than 500 million within five years, and 1 billion by the end of the decade.

The Indian government has inadvertently started a revolution that will transform India and shake up the world. It has lowered the expected base price of tablet technologies to a range of $35 to $50. Chinese vendors are competing with Datawind to bring production costs below $35. 

Cheap tablets will make it possible for farmers to watch weather reports, for village children to access MIT courseware, and for artisans to sell their goods online. These will also enable the development of Silicon Valley-style apps to transact commerce, play games, and manage bus and train schedules. Don't be surprised to see villagers developing apps that solve their own unique problems. 

Add some sensors that read a person's vital signs to these devices and connect isolated villagers to physicians over Skype, and you can provide desperately needed medical advice. This isn't wishful thinking. I asked Alivecor, which has developed an FDA-approved iPhone case that monitors heart rhythms, to test a credit card-sized version of their device with low-end Aakash tablets. Their founder Dr. Dave Albert told me it worked flawlessly. Albert's goal is to sell a version of this device in India for a cost comparable to the price of the tablet. This will provide the same functions as expensive EKG monitors. There are hundreds of such sensor-based medical devices in development all over the world.

It is only a matter of time before $49 tablets are also commonly available in the West. This will wreak havoc on the global PC, laptop, and smart phone industries. It will decimate profit margins as the number of cheap tablets in use increases exponentially and prices continue to drop. There will be thousands of new uses for these inexpensive tablets. Expect to see them in your cars, houses, restaurants, schools, and even at church. There will be billions of interconnected devices.

There will be 3 billion more people coming online in this decade. Never before has humanity been connected this way. With ubiquitous access to Internet-capable devices, the poor and the rich will have the same access to information. The lower classes will be able to educate themselves, learn about the latest advances in agriculture and farming, find out the real value of the goods they produce, and take advantage of e-commerce. They will be able to tell the world about the bribes they paid and the abuses they suffered at the hands of corrupt government officials. They will be empowered just as the Indian middle class has been.

Most importantly, the rising billions will be able to participate in global discussions and exchanges of ideas. Imagine village-developed apps showing up in our app stores. Imagine young Einsteins emerging from the villages of Kenya, Columbia, and India -- offering solutions to medical and scientific problems posed by Harvard researchers. These geniuses do exist. 

This is all going to be a reality sooner than you think.

182 - Books will last: Tharoor - New Indian Express

Books will last: Tharoor

By Express News Service - THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

24th June 2013 11:29 AM

The joy of reading could not be replaced by any other, said Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Shashi Tharoor.

He was  speaking after inaugurating the ‘a book for a kid’ programme at the Sree  Chitra Poor Home here the other day.

“Books are the happiness and hope of future. Computer or other technological advances cannot give the joy of reading,” he said.

The Minister of State for HRD distributed books and sweets to all children at the home. The programme was organised by the State Institute of Children’s Literature.

181 - Aakash tablet maker Datawind yet to get BIS tag - Hindu Businessline

Aakash tablet maker Datawind yet to get BIS tag

S. RONENDRA SINGH

NEW DELHI, JUNE 24:  

Datawind, the company that manufactures Aakash or Ubislate tablets, could run into trouble as it has not sent its application to get the product registered by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).

“We have not got any application for registration from Datawind. There were 27 applications we got from different companies and we have given registration numbers for two products,” a BIS official told Business Line.

Suneet Tuli, Chief Executive Officer, Datawind, did not respond to questions sent by e-mail.

According to an order passed by the Government, 15 electronic products including video games, microwave ovens, laptops, tablet computers, LCD television, telephone answering machines, electronic music systems and printers, and the companies manufacturing these products have to get registered before July 3.

However, according to the BIS official, there are only nine testing laboratories in India for giving registration numbers to these products. Therefore, the Government may allow companies to sell the products as long as they have applied for registration before the deadline.

The Government may not extend the deadline, according to an official in the IT Department.

“Companies that have already sent applications for registration will be allowed to sell the products in the market even if they do not get registration numbers by July 3. But, those who do not send any application will not be allowed to sell their products,” a senior official at Department of Electronics and Information Technology said.

Companies such as Datawind have only one more week to meet the deadline or stay out of the market.

The move is aimed at making sure that all products sold in the country meet the safety measures set by the Government, passed by BIS-approved testing laboratories.

Under the order, if any product is found to be sub-standard or defective under these norms, it will be treated as scrap and disposed and all companies, whether domestic or multi-national, have to get the registration number for each product they sell in the market.

According to a CyberMedia Research report, 9.05 lakh tablets were sold in the first quarter of this year by as many as 53 domestic and international vendors.

The overall growth market of tablet computers registered a 159 per cent year-on-year growth in which Datawind led the market with 15.3 per cent. Micromax and Apple followed by 12.3 per cent and 11.7 per cent respectively.

ronendrasingh.s@thehindu.co.in

(This article was published on June 24, 2013)

180 - Tablet-maker AppThoughtz tapping into education segment - Hindu Busines Line

Tablet-maker AppThoughtz tapping into education segment

VENKATESH GANESH

In talks with TN Govt after launch in Karnataka, AP

BANGALORE, JUNE 20:  

Soon, students in Tamil Nadu can buy a tablet computer that would come along with study material for two years.

Hyderabad-based AppThoughtz is planning to bring iTopper, a tablet that aims to do the education sector what Amazon’s Kindle did to books.

The company has launched this tablet in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka with course content as defined by the State syllabus and is talking to the Tamil Nadu Government to roll out this tablet in line with its syllabus.

The tablet, which runs on Google’s Android software, comes with a SIM card and without one. It is priced at Rs 11,500 and Rs 10,500, respectively, and is the size of an entry level Kindle. It is in talks with distributors and e-commerce retailers to sell this tablet. For the course content, AppThoughtz has tied up with companies such as Cambridge University Press and others.

While the price points may be attractive, industry watchers are not convinced whether this would find takers, especially after the unsuccessful attempts made by Aakash tablet that was subsidised and sold for around Rs 2,500.

“This tablet comes with the course content, which put together could be anywhere in the region of Rs 9,000 and also comes with voice calls and SMS capabilities, which would make it an attractive buy,” said Naidu Vinnakota, Product Manager, AppThoughtz. The company is also upbeat about the fact that with broadband penetration in tier-II and other places lagging behind metros, gadgets like this will find takers.

According to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Tablet tracker data, in 2012, the overall tablet market in India has reached approximately 2.66 million units, a nine fold increase over 2011, driven largely by Apple, Samsung and others who had a 47 per cent marketshare.

venkatesh.ganesh@thehindu.co.in

(This article was published on June 20, 2013)

Keywords: AppThoughtz, education segment, 

179 - License brand Aakash? Ha. Ha. Ha. (Short Take) pluGGd.in

pluGGd.in: License brand Aakash? Ha. Ha. Ha. [Short Take] 2013-06-19 3:03am -07:00T  Visit pluGGd.in Outtake: This is easily the funniest thing I’ve heard all morning: The Government is planning to license “brand Aakash.” So this is the government’s plan to resurrect the Aakash tablet, which was declared dead a few months ago. According to a new report, government agencies or private companies meeting “certain criteria” and specifications would be able to use the brand. The report says that an inter-ministerial panel has finalised a set of specifications for tablets and is in the process of laying down a procedure to license the brand name Aakash. What a waste of time and energy. The Business Standard quotes Rajat Moona, the Director General of Center for Development of Advanced Computing “The entire Aakash project was a government of India initiative but several companies are driving mileage out of its publicity by selling anything in the name of Aakash.” Aakash is a brand that has taken a beating like no other. As we’d written earlier, the Aakash project has had stumbling blocks right from the very start. The project began when Kapil Sibal, then Union Minister for Human Resource Development, announced his grand vision for the future of education in India: A $35 Tablet. Despite proven failure of previous such attempts, the Government went ahead with the so called plan. Soon, it would appear, that the plan was to announce the project, put together some specifications and float a massive tender to get these devices manufactured by a private player. Fair enough. Six months in, only 10,000 units were shipped where as nearly 4 million orders were claimed. Technical snags irritated early buyers. And negative press followed. The government tried to save the project by laying out new specifications and calling it Aakash 2. So what’s the new plan? The same as the old one. Decide on specifications, float tender, outsource. Again, the manufacturer, DataWind, had trouble meeting deadlines. Customer complaints were in plenty. Finally, when President Pranab Mukherjee launched the second generation Aakash, we anticipated that things would get better. But that wasn’t the case. In other words, shit hit the Reports soon pointed out that DataWind was simply importing Chinese equipment and selling it to the Indian government at a mark up. Although DataWind did everything it could to refute the claim, the damage was done. Brand Aakash, was battered. And government now wants to license it. *And radio plays : ‘hum honge kaamyaab  ek din..man mein hai vishwas aakash’ Recommended Read: Dear Mr Tuli, we’d be grateful if you could start shipping: An open letter to Datawind CEO

178 - Will Tablet Makers Be Interested If Indian Govt Licenses Aakash Brand? - Medianama

Will Tablet Makers Be Interested If Indian Govt Licenses Aakash Brand?

By Apurva Chaudhary on Jun 19th, 2013

The government of India wants to convert “Aakash”, under which it had launched Aakash tablets, into a brand name, reports Business Standard. The report also states that any private company or government agency that fulfills certain criteria and specifications could license the brand name.

Rajat Moona, director general of the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), said to the publication that the entire Aakash project was a government of India initiative but several companies are driving mileage out of its publicity by selling anything in the name of Aakash. The report states that government will allow private companies to licence Aakash logo if it fulfills criteria set by the government.

As per the mandate, the tablet will have to have at least a 7-inch capacitive screen with 1GB RAM, 4GB of internal SD card memory expandable up to 32 GB and should run on Android OS with added capability to run on open-source Linux software.

Aakash project, which was conceptualized in 2010, has been mired in controversies ever since its inception. The Aakash project which was supposed to be a shining knight for the government has instead become a laughing stock worldwide. It had taken a major hit after reports surfaced that the tablet was bought off the shelves from China, instead of manufacturing or designing it in India. It’s very presumptuous of the government to think that major brands would want to licence the Aakash logo and suffer from the market wrath.

Note that in March 2013, the government itself was confused about the status of the project. The government was close to shutting down the project, with Raju stating that the overall focus of the project should be on how they enable students to access educational content and allow them to access this content on a device of their preference. The same week, he had contradicted his own statement and said that the government was planning to launch the next version of Aakash tablet shortly.

It appears that the government has finally found a solution to carry forward the project. We feel that it should have taken this approach from the beginning itself instead of signing a contract with a single OEM (Datawind). The problem that might arise now is, while brands who earlier might have wanted to participate in the project, would not want to licence the logo because of its murky image in the market. That said, will licensing Aakash logo help the Indian government make better tablets?

Controversies surrounding Aakash

In November 2012, there were reports that Aakash 2, the second iteration of the Indian Government’s ambitious low-cost education focused tablet project in partnership with Datawind was designed and manufactured in China for $42. Datawind CEO, Suneet Singh Tuli, had however refuted the allegations.

Datawind vs Quad Electronics: MediaNama had earlier filed an RTI on the original Aakash Tablet and it was learnt that Datawind had placed an order for 50,000 tablets with Quad Electronics Ltd, Quad produced only 20,000 and Datawind took only 10,000. 2000 tablets were provided to IIT Rajasthan for testing before October 5th 2011, after which Datawind stopped taking tablets from Quad because of poor performance. Out of the  6440 tablets supplied to IIT Rajasthan, only 650 tablets were accepted. Quad Electronics had sued Datawind in April 2012 for non-payment of $1.12 million against dues outstanding and inventory procured for DataWind.

The Indian Government had unveiled Aakash 2 on November 11 and Datawind had announced that they will be providing 100,000 units of Aakash 2 to IIT Bombay in the first phase, which in turn intends to distribute these tablets to Engineering students across various colleges and universities. However, the goal appears to be far from reality. For its first installment, IIT Rajasthan had distributed 572 of the 6640 Aakash Tablet devices received by Datawind, the college said, in response to a Right To Information request filed by MediaNama.

177 - Govt plans to license 'brand Aakash' - Rediff

Govt plans to license 'brand Aakash'

June 19, 2013 11:55 IST

The comprises officials from the ministries of HRD, communications and information technology, along with several professors from various Indian Institutes of Technologies and CDAC.

As per the mandate, the tablet will have to have at least a 7-inch capacitive screen with one gigabyte (GB) of Random Access Memory, and 4 GB of internal SD card memory expandable up to 32 GB.

The tablet should be Android-based (Google’s mobile operating system) with an option to also support open source software Linux.

176 - Govt plans to license 'brand Aakash' - Business Standard

Surabhi Agarwal  |  New Delhi  June 19, 2013 Last Updated at 00:36 IST

Govt plans to license 'brand Aakash'

Any company meeting certain criteria would be able to use the brand

Almost on the verge of being buried after a series of faux pas and controversies, the government is now trying to salvage its low-cost tablet project, Aakash, by turning it into a brand name. Any government agency or private company meeting certain criteria and specifications would be able to use the brand, according to government officials directly involved in the matter.

An inter-ministerial panel has finalised a set of specifications for tablets and is in the process of laying down a procedure to license the brand name Aakash.

“The entire Aakash project was a government of India initiative but several companies are driving mileage out of its publicity by selling anything in the name of Aakash,” said Rajat Moona, director general of the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), the government’s technology research and development arm.

Private companies can ‘license the Aakash logo’ if they conform to the set specifications, Moona added. “The Centre for Development of Telematics may be roped in to award the licences, but the proposal is yet to be finalised.”

The Aakash project was conceptualised in 2010 by the then Union minister of human resource development (HRD) Kapil Sibal as the world’s cheapest tablet costing $35 (Rs 2,060 today). This was to be indigenously developed as an educational tool for students. However, several controversies relating to the quality of the product and the delay in its delivery came up soon after the first Aakash tablet was unveiled in October 2011.

Recently, the HRD ministry said in the future, the government might focus more on building the infrastructure and the educational content rather than developing the hardware. This indicates the government might not go ahead with the earlier plan of distributing five million Aakash tablets after the pilot project involving 100,000 devices.

While the HRD ministry is still to figure out its plan of action with regard to Aakash, the scope of the tablet has  expanded beyond educational institutes to segments such as e-governance and other government departments, a government official said.

“To make it easier for a government department to procure such devices and to ensure that certain quality standards are met, we are mandating these minimum specifications,” said the official, requesting anonymity.

According to CDAC’s Moona, while the basic specifications of the tablet will remain the same, the respective departments can develop applications relevant to their operations for the tablets.

The inter-ministerial panel will soon release the specifications after some final approvals, Moona added.

The comprises officials from the ministries of HRD, communications and information technology, along with several professors from various Indian Institutes of Technologies and CDAC.

As per the mandate, the tablet will have to have at least a 7-inch capacitive screen with one gigabyte (GB) of Random Access Memory, and 4 GB of internal SD card memory expandable up to 32 GB.

The tablet should be Android-based (Google’s mobile operating system) with an option to also support open source software Linux.

175 - IIT Madras to work on next version of Aakash - Indian Express

IIT Madras to work on next version of Aakash

Anubhuti Vishnoi : New Delhi, Fri Jun 21 2013, 02:06 hrs

Roping in a third IIT to get the Aakash tablet project moving, the Human Resource Development Ministry has now asked the Indian Institute of Technology Madras to steer the project. IIT Madras will work on the next version of the Aakash tablet while IIT Bombay will continue to field test the tablet and evolve related pedagogical method and tools.

HRD Minister Pallam Raju said that his ministry was "very supportive of the R&D on the Aakash tablet". "We have now asked IIT Madras to help develop the next version of the tablet. IIT Bombay will continue the testing of tablets and training teachers and students to use technology in education with its help," he said.

IIT Madras's Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala, who is closely involved with the Aakash tablet project -- in developing its newer versions and an ecosystem for it -- is expected to head it at the institution.

Incidentally, with the ministry showing little enthusiasm in the project of late -- amid manufacturing and procuring problems -- Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal had swung into action getting his ministry to finalise specifications for the next version of the tablet. He had mooted a proposal to the PMO to establish manufacturing hubs for the tablet in India and to route this through the Department of Science & Technology.

Announced with great fan fare, the low cost tablet has been mired in controversies from the start. While the project was first given to IIT Rajasthan, it was moved out of there amid differences between the IIT and Canadian manufacturer Datawind over the testing specifications and quality of the tablet delivered. The project was finally handed over to IIT Bombay.

174 - Industry Speak on the Aakash Tablet Project: Extentia is Featured in the DNA Newspaper

Industry Speak on the Aakash Tablet Project: Extentia is Featured in the DNA Newspaper

Extentia CEO Umeed Kothavala was recently featured in the DNA newspaper, expressing his thoughts on the Aakash tablet project. He emphasized that the project “suffered from lack of vision, commitment, and poor implementation.”
Read more
June 3, 2013

173 - Science for All - (Prof. Ashok JhunJhunwala)

NEWSFOCUS

31 MAY 2013 VOL 340 SCIENCE www.sciencemag.org Published by AAAS 
Science for All
With 400 million people earning less than $1.25 per day, India is home to a staggering one-third of the world’s poor. Can scientists do more to lift people out of poverty?

CHENNAI, INDIA—In March 2012, Ashok Jhunjhunwala invited 45 young hotshots in India’s electronics industry to this southern Indian city to brainstorm on a challenge: 

Could they design a tablet computer with Internet connectivity that would sell for 2500 Indian rupees—about $50—and still allow their companies to turn a profit on the device? 

To Jhunjhunwala, an electrical engineer here at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, it wasn’t merely the fortunes of India’s Silicon Valley that hung in the balance. India’s future was at stake.

India has made strides in extending education to all strata of society. According to the Ministry of Human Resources Development, in 2010, 50% of children attended school through grade 12—up from 37% just 8 years ago. Equality is taking root in higher educa-

tion as well. “The poorest children are getting into engineering colleges. That was inconceivable a decade back,” says Jhunjhunwala, who serves on a science advisory council to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. 

But India is failing, Jhunjhunwala says, in what it offers up to those young minds in the classroom. “We have made zero progress, even negative progress, in the quality of education,” he asserts. Steering away from rote instruction and raising the bar, he says, “is our biggest challenge.”

Jhunjhunwala didn’t expect a cure-all from the computer jocks he coaxed to Chennai. But he knew that an inexpensive tablet, purchased en masse by the government and distributed to students, would be a powerful teaching aid. Two previous attempts had not lived up to their promise, and half the companies represented in the room, Jhunjhunwala knew, “were dead opposed to the idea” of a cheap tablet. It was hard to erase memories of the first cut-rate handheld alternative to lap- tops developed in India: the Simputer, which flopped a decade ago. The industry needed a reboot. But after huddling with the group all day, Jhunjhunwala recalls, “we felt confident that we could do something.”

Unlike in past efforts, competition is the name of the game this time. As Science went to press, a dozen companies were racing to refine prototypes of a $50 tablet. These are undergoing dozens of performance tests here at IIT Madras’s research park. Based on the benchmarking outcome, the Indian government is considering making an initial purchase this fall of 5 million tablets from the five top-performing manufacturers; all of their machines will be marketed under the name “Aakash 4.” The price for each unit: Twenty-five hundred rupees, plus taxes. With educational applications that will initially enhance and someday possibly even supplant printed textbooks, the Aakash-4, Jhunjhunwala predicts, “will be an integral part” of India’s effort to raise education standards.

The Aakash 4 is at the vanguard of India’s drive to use science and technology to raise millions of people out of poverty. The aim is to bypass hidebound approaches and link talent and ideas in a push for rapid economic growth. 

S. Shankar Sastry, dean of engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and colleagues envision the emergence of a new academic discipline—development engineering— aimed to assemble a toolkit of methods to find sustainable solutions to poverty. India, where 833 million of the country’s 1.21 billion people live in villages sorely deficient in health care, sanitation, electricity, and educational opportunities, is a natural crucible for such experiments.

In this impoverished landscape, Singh, an academic at heart, is sowing the seeds of an intellectual revolution. Last week, speaking about his vision of inclusive growth, Singh said: “The glass was almost empty when we started. The important point to note is that it is being filled.” High on the agenda are plans to extend a $1.2 billion National Knowledge Network—a high-speed Internet backbone now linking 1000 agencies and research institutions—to every one of India’s 630,000 villages.

Another push is coming from the National Innovation Fund, established last year with a $50 million pot of money to bankroll promising technological solutions for societal woes. “The fund is built on the principle that innovative enterprise can engage citizens at the bottom of the economic pyramid,” says Sam Pitroda,

chair of India’s National Innovation Council, which
helps oversee the fund. For example, using a grant from the fund, villagers coping with periodic droughts spawned by deforestation in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand are teaming up with scientists from the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in Mumbai to identify where ground water is more readily recharged in the watershed. The nuclear scientists are mapping underground water flow using isotopes of oxygen and tritium, enabling villagers to pinpoint locations to build recharge ponds.

Other initiatives that promise to transform India include agricultural extension services that use cell phones to broadcast best prac- tices and prevailing market prices for crops to farmers and fishers; a national ID pro- gram that will extend the welfare safety net to the nation’s poorest corners; and vaccines against diseases whose toll is highest among the most deprived. All told, experts say, India in 2013 will spend about $6 billion on science-based efforts to raise living stan- dards: half of its total R&D budget.

In a nation known for its prowess in rockets and atomic bombs, poverty alleviation is not something that most researchers gravitate to, says nuclear scientist Rajagopala Chidambaram, principal scientific adviser to the Government of India. “Active scientists are not the best suited for grassroots inter- vention,” he argues. The lion’s share of work, he says, should be left to nongovernmental organizations led by scientists. Others feel differently. “We have a moral responsibility to help the poor,” Pitroda says. For years, Pitroda, who helped establish India’s mod- ern telecom industry in the 1990s, doubted whether significant inroads were feasible. “The problems of poverty weren’t drawing talented researchers,” he says, and the gov- ernment approach was at times piecemeal, at times negligent. However, India’s rapid eco- nomic development is rewriting the script. “I didn’t think it was possible to do much to help,” Pitroda says. “Until now.”

Read More

172 - Aakash 3 Ubislate - You Tube

171 - AMD keen to tap Indian mobile device market; to hold talks with HCL, Wipro - Economic Times

AMD keen to tap Indian mobile device market; to hold talks with HCL, Wipro

Gulveen Aulakh, ET Bureau Jun 6, 2013, 04.01AM IST

("We're very keen to explore…)

NEW DELHI: Computer processor maker AMD is planning to enter the mobile devices market in India and is keen on supplying to hybrid notebooks, local tablet manufacturers and makers of Aakash tablets that would supply to the government.

Roy Taylor, corporate vice-president and head of global channel sales for AMD, told ET that the company was holding talks with a few Indian tablet makers to use its accelerated processor units (APU) that improved battery life of the device and were 30-40% cheaper than other processors in the market.

170 - Aakash tablets to be ‘aadhar’ of cash transfer scheme - Hindustan Times

Aakash tablets to be ‘aadhar’ of cash transfer scheme

Saubhadra Chatterji , Hindustan Times  New Delhi, June 07, 2013

Like many other things, government’s ambitious Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) scheme too, may be a tablet PC away.

Combating outages and unreliable telephone links in many parts of the country, especially in the rural areas, the Centre is working towards introducing Aakash Tablet PCs as biometrics and smart card reader as the key component of the DBT roll-out.

An internal note prepared by the Group of Ministers (GoM) on the contentious Resident Identity Cards (RIC) says, “Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) is also experimenting with the use of low-cost tablets to which smart card and fingerprint readers can be attached.”

The local business correspondent who deals with a particular set of beneficiaries would have their biometrics in a pen-drive or as a software and all that he would require to do is to take the fingerprints on the touchscreen of the tablet to identify the beneficiaries.

“This will be like another application. This would also be very helpful in case of an emergency situation when, say, there is a terror attack and jammers are activated to prevent mobile signals,” C Chandramouli, census commissioner and Registrar General of India told HT.

The move is also a keen measure to save the R4,000 crore Resident Identity Card project that is facing opposition from within the UPA. After a stormy debate in a cabinet meeting a few months ago, where some ministers questioned the need of a RIC, the matter was referred to a GoM headed by defence minister AK Antony.

The GoM note also suggests that the price of smart card readers as pegged by ITI will come be Rs. 18,000 for a single machine. Aakash tabs come at a much cheaper price.

169 - Indian govt planning Aakash 4 Tablet - Techi News

Indian govt planning Aakash 4 Tablet

Posted by: Admin Techinews June 3, 2013 in Tablets Leave a comment

Govt is proposing to set up manufacturing plants for the tablet in India too.

The Government of India is now contemplating to bring a new version of Aakash tablet, which would probably named as Aakash 4, according to media reports.

According to Indian Express, the Department of Information Technology has written to the Department of Science & Technology asking whether the Aakash tablet project could be routed through them.

Reports also added that the Union HRD minister, Kapil Sibal has also written to the Prime Minister proposing a manufacturing unit for the new version of the Aakash tablet in view of the problems faced by the first Aakash tablet manufactured by Datawind.

“The draft of the specifications has been prepared, formally it has to be placed before a committee… We are waiting for a suitable date to do that,” Department of Electronics and IT (DEITy) Secretary J Satyanarayana was quoted as saying by PTI.

“We should not add so many features so that the cost will go beyond,” he further added.

 It is to be noted that the Datawind has so far launched three versions of Aakas tablet, meant for students. All the three tablets are being sold in the market under the brand name of UbiSlate (UbiSlate 7Ci, UbiSlate7C+ etc). However, all the tablets were hammered by the experts and users alike for poor quality. The problem was further compounded by issues of non-supply by Datawind. Moreover, many Indian and Chinese brands have recently launched their tablets in the market at around the same priced as the Aakash tablet but with better specification.

 Hence, the upcoming tablet is most likely to have some decent features but considering the fact that it is meant for students, the tablet would definitely have ordinary features as indicated by J Satyanarayana.

Source:themobileindian

168 - AMD looking to supply CPUs for Aakash, HCL tablets Gulveen Aulakh, ET Bureau

AMD looking to supply CPUs for Aakash, HCL tablets

Gulveen Aulakh, ET Bureau | Jun 6, 2013, 11.06 AM IST

NEW DELHI: Computer processor maker AMD is planning to enter the mobile devices market in India and is keen on supplying to hybrid notebooks, local tablet manufacturers and makers of Aakash tablets that would supply to the government. 

Roy Taylor, corporate vice-president and head of global channel sales for AMD, told ET that the company was holding talks with a few Indian tablet makers to use its accelerated processor units (APU) that improved battery life of the device and were 30-40% cheaper than other processors in the market.

The company, that competes with Intel, is almost a year late to kick-start its presence in India. Intel's first mobile device was launched with Lava mobile phone maker in April last year. However, Intel's success and penetration is yet to be seen.

Taylor specified that AMD did not have any immediate plans of making processors for mobile phones or smartphones, where Qualcomm and Mediatek have majority share, but may consider producing processors for mobile handsets in the future.

"We're very keen to explore Indian tablets makers and will be meeting with HCL, Wipro and all the others in the market, to decide on which Indian manufacturers to pursue. We also intend to speak to vendors for (supplying to) the government," he said.

Taylor added that hybrid notebooks work as computers and tablets will be its primary focus as these devices run on Windows platform, which is apt use of its processors.

The Indian tablet market has exploded over the last few quarters and is expected to grow exponentially in the next year. Tablet sales in India are 10 times more than what was sold in 2011. CyberMedia Research India (CMR) that reviews the tablet market said 1.1 million tablets were sold in the quarter ended September 2012, and that sales had doubled over the previous quarter.

CMR expects 6 million tablets to be sold in 2013 as demand from consumer, enterprise and government business rises and average price of 3G-enabled tablets drops.

More than 100-odd models of convertible or hybrid devices that blur the lines of differentiation between a tablet and a laptop are expected this year, from the likes of Asus, Acer, Lenovo and HP in India.

Taylor said that India is an important market as it offers a large value proposition, therefore, it was pertinent that AMD increased stakeholder awareness reach out to potential customers and partners to create a market for its product. "We are ready for significant financial investments in India to explore all possible avenues of good long term gains and holistic benefits to our clients and customers," he said.

167 - Aakash 4 tablet on plans

Aakash 4 tablet on plans 03 Jun, 2013 9:09p.m. The government is reportedly going ahead with the plans to launch the Aakash 4 tablet. Aakash project was an initiative meant to make technology affordable for students. THe Aakash one and two were made available to the students across the country. However, the project can be called a failure as the tablets were given negative ratings by the experts and users alike for poor quality. The manufacturer was also not able to supply the orders. Also many Indian and Chinese brands have recently launched their tablets in the market at around the same priced as the Aakash tablet but with better specification. "The draft of the specifications has been prepared, formally it has to be placed before a committee... We are waiting for a suitable date to do that," Department of Electronics and IT (DEITy) Secretary J Satyanarayana told. According to the official, the specs of the tablet will be designed on the basis of contemporary technological developments as well as in keeping the price tag of the tablet affordable.The specifications of the upcoming tablet to be finalized soon.

166 - HCL announces another sub-standard Android tablet for INR 8,499

HCL announces another sub-standard Android tablet for INR 8,499

Every once in a while HCL comes out with a new Android tablet and almost every one of them packs some really disappointing specifications. The latest one – ME Connect 2G 2.0 – is no exception.

We are in year 2013 when WVGA has become norm for even the budget smartphones and tablets have started coming with display resolutions higher than full HD but HCL continues to launch tablets with just WVGA resolution.  For a 7-inch tablet these days, WVGA display is a crime. Unless the HCL tablet was priced at INR 3,000 to compete with Aakash tablet, there is no justification for 800x480p display.

In reality, HCL ME Connect 2G 2.0 has got a price-tag of INR 8,499, which is the same price at which Samsung Galaxy Tab 311 can be purchased from some retailers and comes with better specifications.

Talking about ME Connect 2G 2.0 features, it packs 1GHz Cortex A9 processor, 2MP rear camera, VGA front camera, 1GB of RAM,  and 3800 mAh battery. It runs on Android 4.1, which is good, and comes with 2G support with voice-calling.

Like every other HCL tablet, this one too does not come with Google Play support, so by any chance if you bought this tablet, you will stuck with their 1 Mobile Store to download applications.

If you really want to know more about the tablet, you can read the full press release below:

PS: HCL is calling it a phablet.

HCL Infosystems introduces the latest phablet – ME Connect 2G 2.0

HCL Infosystems Ltd. India’s premier services and ICT Systems Integration, Distribution and Hardware company launched its latest phablet – HCL ME Tablet Connect 2G 2.0. The 7-inch phablet is an extremely stylish device, powered by a 1GHz ARM Cortex A9 processor with 1GB DDR3 RAM and 4GB internal memory expandable to 32GB running on the latest Android Jelly Bean 4.1. The tablet specifically creates a connect with the diverse population of India as it features reading and writing in 11 local Indian languages, face recognition to lock & unlock your device, with apps ranging across Games, Business, Communication, Lifestyle, Entertainment, Education, Health, etc. HCL ME Connect 2G 2.0 phablet offers enhanced 2G voice-calling, long-battery life, and is priced at Rs. 8499.

HCL ME Connect 2G 2.0 comes with freebies worth more than Rs. 2000 and pre-loaded with applications such as BigFlix, Hungama, Readwhere, Paytm, Facebook, Twitter etc., which allows one to watch unlimited movies, download Bollywood and Hollywood songs, video chat or click pictures with the aid of a dual-camera (Front 0.3 MP & Rear 2.0 MP). The voice receiver, integrated with a vibrator function transforms this tablet in to a Smartphone. Watching movies is a delight on HCL ME Connect 2.0 2G as the multi-touch capacitive screen with an 800*480 pixel resolution integrated with mini-HDMI port that helps connect the tablet to external display devices. The devices gives a superior 2D/3D gaming performance is capable of HD audio and video playback, which are complimented by a long lasting 3800 mAH Li – polymer battery. Other features include 3G connectivity through a USB Data Card (WCDMA/EVDO), Bluetooth and Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n). It also comes with  an integrated Wi-Fi Router function which helps you create a wireless Hot-Spot so as to share your device  internet connection with other devices.

Mr. Gautam Advani, Global Head – Mobility Business Unit, HCL Infosystems Ltd. said, “The tablet market in India is rapidly evolving and tablets have become synonymous with the latest technology. Tablets not only help consume media better but also help you stay connected. Varying from a learning companion to a productivity enhancer, tablets continue to enrich user’s lives and a lot of people are now looking at buying a tablet that has inbuilt calling facility/function so as to get the best of both the worlds. Our latest offering further showcases our proud legacy of innovative products that address all kinds of consumer needs. The ME Connect 2G 2.0 phablet will cater to the young at heart who are always on a lookout for something new and exciting”

HCL ME Connect 2G 2.0 comes pre-loaded with 1 Mobile Store which has more than 3,00,000 apps to download, spanning across multiple categories. It also has ME PC Connect software which enables the user to sync (contacts, calendar etc) and take back-up from the device. The HCL ME Phablet is available across all major stores and online portals and will be supported by an integrated after sales service application – HCL Touch, a 24X7 one touch service facility.

165 - Datawind is India's biggest tablet maker, even without Aakash

Datawind is India's biggest tablet maker, even without Aakash

ET Bureau | Jun 5, 2013, 11.56 AM IST

Datawind emerged as the leader of India's tablet market during the first quarter of 2013.

BANGALORE: Britain-based hardware manufacturer Datawind, maker of the Indian government's Rs 2,500 Aakash tablet, emerged as the leader of India's tablet market during the first quarter of 2013, according to latest data from market research firm CyberMedia Research. 

During the January-March period, Datawind had about 15% market share in the tablet market, compared to homegrown firm Micromax that had about 12% share, according to the research firm. Datawind shipments do not include its sale of Aakash tablets to the government. 

Surprisingly, sales of tablet computers fell more than 17% in the first quarter of this year, even as consumers shift from desktop and laptops to touch-based devices. About 9,05,000 tablets were sold during the period compared to 1,097,902 units in the previous quarter. 

According to CyberMedia, nearly 10,000 tablets were shipped everyday during the January-March quarter and overall shipments recorded a 150% growth, compared to the same period last year. iPad maker Apple was in third place with a 12% market share. 

"The continued long-term growth in shipments of tablets in the India market further points to the fact that a large proportion of first time users of computers in emerging markets like India are getting to experience computing through this highly portable, converged form factor," said Faisal Kawoosa, analyst at CyberMedia. 

Kawoosa said the fall in tablet sales is "not substantial" and it could be attributed to seasonality. According to the report, only nine tablet vendors shipped in significant volumes of more than 20,000 units during the period.

164 - Tablet sales: Aakash beats Apple in India

Tablet sales: Aakash beats Apple in India

Last updated on: June 5, 2013 10:47 IST

Aakash tablet has topped the tablet market in India during the first quarter of 2013, according to market research firm Cyber Media Research. The Indian consumer has no bias against domestic brands, says CMR.

According to CMR's India quarterly tablet PC market review, during the first quarter (January-March) 2013, over 905,000 Tablets were sold (shipped) in the quarter by as many as 53 domestic and international vendors.

However, only nine vendors shipped in significant volumes of more than 20,000 units during the period.  The overall growth in shipments of tablets in the India market registered an 158.96% year-on-year (1Q CY 2013 over 1Q CY 2012) growth, but a marginal 17.57% quarter-on-quarter (1Q CY 2013 over 4Q CY 2012) dip due to seasonal factors.

163 - Datawind tops tablet market in Q1 - Hindu Business Line

Datawind tops tablet market in Q1

Aakash Tablet computer.(file photo)

NEW DELHI, JUNE 4:  

Indian tablet makers have shipped in over nine lakh tablet computers during the first quarter (January-March) this year. Datawind, maker of Aakash tablets, led the market with 15.3 per cent share.

Micromax and Apple had 12.3 per cent 11.7 per cent market share, respectively.

According to CyberMedia Research’s (CMR) India Quarterly Tablet PC Market Review, as many as 53 domestic and international vendors shipped in tablets during the period.

It said the overall growth in shipments of tablets registered 159 per cent year-on-year growth (as compared to first quarter of 2012), but declined by 17.57 per cent on quarter-on-quarter basis (as compared to fourth quarter of 2012) due to seasonal factors.

“Although the first quarter tablet shipment numbers are marginally lower as compared to fourth quarter of 2012, the country continued to witness tablet shipments of more than 10,000 units a day during the quarter, which is a reason to cheer,” Faisal Kawoosa, Lead Analyst - Telecoms Practice, CMR, said.

He said the performance of the India tablets market is in line with global trends, where shipments of traditional computing devices such as desktop PCs and notebook PCs are seeing a relative deceleration, whereas tablet shipments witness a surge, driven by consumer demand.

The continued long-term growth in shipments of tablets in the Indian market further points to the fact that a large proportion of first time users of computers in emerging markets such as India are getting to experience computing through this portable, converged form factor, he added.

“Datawind and Micromax have figured amongst the top 3 India tablet vendors since fourth quarter 2012, while Apple was No. 2 in calendar 2012. These players continued to maintain their leadership ranks during first quarter of 2013,” Tarun Pathak, Analyst - Telecoms Practice at CMR, said.

This trend points to a sort of polarisation of India tablet user segments – one set looks primarily for performance and best-in-class build quality, and typically opts for the high-end Apple iPad and the other segment looks for a wide range of features at an affordable price point and opts for brands such as Datawind and Micromax, he said.

ronendrasingh.s@thehindu.co.in

162 - Users let down by new Aakash - Deccan Chronicle

Users let down by new Aakash

DC | Amrita Didyala | 05th Jun 2013

Hyderabad: Aakash tablet manufacturer Datawind, which had left customers in the lurch 18 months ago, is back with an upgraded version of the Ubislate 7Ci and Ubislate 7C+ that it has failed to deliver, and which it is now offering for Rs 4,000 and Rs 5,000.

In the interim, private manufacturers have captured the market and many customers who had pre-booked the Ubislate, and had no communication from Datawind about their order, have bought other tablets.

At the time it was launched, there was a huge demand for Ubislate, which is the commercial version of the Rs 1,500 high-end Aakash tablet, as it had the latest features and a low price. But tab-lets with similar features have been brought out by leading mobile phone manufacturers since then.

It may be too late for Aakash relaunch

Soon after launching Aakash, Datawind announced the commercial version of the tablet, Ubislate. Aakash is being manufactured only for the Government of India’s programme to provide each student with a tablet.

While the idea of the low-cost, high-performance tablet was conceived in India, UK-based Data-wind designed and developed the tablet in Canada and parts were secured from across the globe.

The tablet was assembled and programmed in India. The latest version, the Ubislate 7C1, is being manufactured in India. In fact, Hyderabad-based Centre for Defence Research and Development Organisation contributed to the technology for the Aakash.

So now, when the company has come back with the latest version for Rs 5,000 and promising immediate delivery, it may be too late since there are many players in the market now with similar products.

“I had pre-booked the initial version of the tablet about one-and-a-half years back. In the meantime, I have already gone for a costlier tablet due to the delay. There was no way to get in touch with the company apart from an email address which never replied,” said Pratyusha Panda, a bank employee. 

161 - Aakash maker Datawind tops India's tablet market - Economic Times

Aakash maker Datawind tops India's tablet market; 

ET Bureau Jun 4, 2013, 08.40PM IST

BANGALORE: Britain-based hardware manufacturer Datawind, maker of the Indian government's Rs 2,500 Aakash tablet, emerged as a market leader in India's tablet market during the first quarter of 2013, according to latest data from market research firm Cyber Media Research.

During the January-March period, Datawind had about 15% market share in the tablet market, compared to homegrown firm Micromax that had about 12% share, according to the research firm. Datawind shipments do not include its sale of Aakash tablets to the government.

Surprisingly, sales of tablet computers fell more than 17% in the first quarter of this year, even as consumers shift from desktop and laptops to touch-based devices. About 905,000 tablets were sold during the period compared to 1,097902 units in the previous quarter.

According to Cyber Media, nearly 10,000 tablets were shipped everyday during the January-March quarter and overall shipments recorded a 150% growth, compared to the same period last year. iPad maker Apple was in third place with a 12% market share.

"The continued long-term growth in shipments of tablets in the India market further points to the fact that a large proportion of first time users of computers in emerging markets like India are getting to experience computing through this highly portable, converged form factor," said Faisal Kawoosa, analyst at Cyber Media.

Kawoosa said the fall in tablet sales is "not substantial" and it could be attributed to seasonality. According to the report, only nine tablet vendors shipped in significant volumes of more than 20,000 units during the period.

160 - Government expected to finalise specifications for Aakash 4 soon

Government expected to finalise specifications for Aakash 4 soon

03 Jun, 2013 | by Naveen Peter 

The government of India is expected to finalise the specifications for the fourth version of low-cost tablet PC Aakash in the coming days. J Satyanarayana, Secretary, Department of Electronics and IT (DEIT) said, "The draft of the specifications has been prepared; formally it has to be placed before a committee. We are waiting for a suitable date to do that." The Aakash project was initiated by Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal when he was the HRD Minister with an idea to provide low-cost computing device at subsidised rate to students so that they can access Internet for educational purposes. The DEIT has stated that the specifications for the new Aakash tablet have been designed keeping in mind the current technological developments and the cost. "We should not add so many features so that the cost will go beyond." said J Satyanarayana. Govt expected to finalise the specifications for the fourth version of the low-cost tablet PC In 2009, DataWind, a Canadian company, was entrusted with the responsibility of providing one lakh tablets. However, the project was delayed when IIT-Rajasthan, the institution responsible for the quality of the project, rejected the tablet for not meeting performance criteria. In October 2011, the first version of Aakash tablet was launched with a 7-inch screen of 800 x 480 pixels resolution backed by a 336Mhz ARM 11 processor and 256GB of RAM. The tablet came with an internal memory of 2GB, which could be extended to 32GB using a MicroSD card. The first edition of the low-cost computing device ran on an Android 2.2 Froyo OS. The latest version was launched last year and the tablet comes with a 7-inch screen running on 800 x 480 pixels resolution, single-core 1GHz Cortex A8 processor, 512 MB of RAM and runs on Android 4.0.4 ICS OS, which can be upgraded to 4.1 Jelly Bean. The device has a 4GB in-built memory with an option of expanding it up to 32GB using microSD card. Asked if some private players have shown interest in setting up manufacturing facility in the country for Aakash, he said, "Not yet. But once we notify the specifications probably more proposals will come."

159 - Aakash 4 tablet: Top 5 things we want to see

Aakash 4 tablet: Top 5 things we want to see

TOP 10S V.A Kulkarni 05:05, 4 Jun 2013

The Aakash 4 slate needs functionality and power if it is to take on the tablet competition

In a world full of inexpensive Android tablets, the Aakash 4 will need to come up with something truly amazing if it wants to carve a niche for itself. We at KYMI listed out the things we would like to see on the slate, so that it will make the competition sit up and take notice.

1. Processor, battery and storage: Though it might be too much to wish for the Aakash 4 to be powered by a quad-core processor, a powerful dual-core processor will also suit the slate fine - as long as it is able to handle all of Android's multi-tasking with ease.

Aakash has traditionally been designed for students across the board, and nothing is more frustrating for students than a device that takes ages to boot and lags in its functions. For the same reason, we wish the slate could be built with a long lasting battery, 1 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage, along with support for external memory expansion.

2. Operating System: We would like to see the Aakash 4 run on the latest build of the Android operating system. With technology changing speedily, a device that is up-to-date with the newest innovations is always preferred to one that is out dated and lags behind in updates. The Aakash 4 should ideally be given software updates as soon as possible too.

3. Cameras: A good primary camera like a 5-megapixel one will serve the new Aakash slate well. Students using the tablet can click pictures and videos on the go and use them in projects and field trips. Not only will that make learning easy, it will make it fun. Additionally, a decent front snapper, like a 1.2-megapixel one, will aid kids in holding video conferences which in turn will facilitate quick and efficient team work.

4. Screen: If Aakash 4 launches with a clear HD screen, it will be a coup like no other! At its price point, however, it is unreasonable to expect the tablet to pack in a 1080 pixel display. If not a 720 pixel screen, the slate should be equipped with a screen that lends it decent clarity and sharpness. Since students are expected to spend long hours reading on the slate, it should be designed in a way that doesn't strain the pupils' eyes.

5. Connectivity: If students are to take the Aakash 4 everywhere they go and use it for everything from reading and researching to compiling assignments and project work, the tablet should be able to connect to the internet anywhere and at anytime. Bluetooth, NFC, Wi-Fi, 3G and USB connectivity options are ideal for the device.