The first official order for the “$100 laptop” has been placed by the government of Uruguay.
Prototype of the $100 laptop
The South American country has bought 100,000 of the machines for schoolchildren aged six to 12. A further 300,000 may be purchased to provide a machine for every child in the country by 2009.
The order will be a boost for the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) organisation behind the project which has admitted difficulties getting concrete orders.
The XO laptop, as the machine is known, has been developed to be used primarily by children in the developing world.
It is durable, waterproof and can be powered by solar, foot-pump or pull-string powered chargers. It includes a sunlight readable display so that it can be used outside and has no moving parts.
OLPC aims to sell the laptop for US$100 or less. However, over the last year, the machine’s price has steadily increased and now costs $188. [BBC]