India's $35 Android 7-inch Tablet to Hit in January

By Jane McEntegart
published

We've been hearing about India's plans for a $35 computer for a few months now, and for a while we thought it might be all talk. However, it seems India is pushing ahead with plans for the educational tablet.

Engadget reports that India has just awarded the manufacturing contract to HCL Technologies. The first shipment will supposedly only contain the 7-inch model and is set to arrive on January 10. It's unclear if the $35 price has stuck or whether India's been successful in plans to eventually drive the price down to $10 with the help of large orders and government subsidies.

Unveiled by the Human Resources Minister of the Union of India, Shri Kapil Sibal, in July, the device has generated significant interest among colleges and schools. The tablet device will have web browsing, including the ability to access YouTube. Official specs have yet to be confirmed, but it's said to have WiFi, come in a variety of sizes, and pack 2GB of storage. Though the press release is hard to decipher, it would seem the Indian government also has plans to launch a wesbite containing quality educational content for the devices.

Read the full release here.

Source: Engadget

Jane McEntegart
50 Comments Comment from the forums
  • hellwig
    If I can get one shipped to the U.S., $35 wouldn't be a bad price even just to try the thing out. Maybe even do what the OLPC people did, and double the price and donate a second one to some impoverished nation. I want a cheap tablet (however unfunctional) just to see if it serves a purpose before I dump a few hundred into a full-fledged Android tablet that I end up never using.
    Reply
  • Tmanishere
    $35 is cool, but tablet is not a substitute for computers.
    Reply
  • AMW1011
    This is just awesome. If they do the OLPC thing, I will buy a couple for sure.
    Reply
  • sliem
    I'd buy two.
    Reply
  • Holy crap 35 dollars,china is officialy out of bussines


    ------------------------
    Reply
  • misry
    It doesn't have to substitute for a computer, just run text books that have been exported to HTML and save homework to an SD card till it can be uploaded to the classroom. This could be the PADD every other person on a starship is walking around with.
    Reply
  • nforce4max
    ShamzamHoly crap 35 dollars,china is officialy out of bussines------------------------Media Tablet
    Finally
    Reply
  • joytech22
    that thing looks awesome! i'd buy one.
    Reply
  • madeux
    My inner geek desperately wants a tablet, and this thing would be perfect for trying out the concept to see if I'd actually use it. Even as an e-reader this thing would be great!
    Reply
  • utengineer
    But can it play Pac Man?
    Reply