Ultra Low Cost Tablet Makes Big Splash-gctid5872 | Other Android Devices | Forum | Android Does

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I ** you don't have permission to see this link ** some months back about the ultra low cost Aakash tablet being developed for the Indian market. Released as the DataWind UbiSlate7, it is not much when compared to some of the tablets that have been released of late. With only seven inches of screen real estate and that being an antiquated resistive touch screen. It has 2 GB of storage, 256 MB of RAM, Wifi (with optional 3G connectivity via modem), and a whole 180 minutes of battery life. It was targeted for sale at $35 dollars though it ended up being closer to $60 when first released.

Despite all this it has hit big, with 1.4 million being sold within the first two weeks of launch. This is stunning considering that only around 250,000 tablets had been sold in India in all of 2010 and even the UbiSlate7 had only had 400,000 pre-orders.

The Indian government has big plans for this small tablet, hoping to put up to 10 million of them into the hands of secondary school students, allowing them to get their hands on evolving technology. That said, with it's huge success, DataWind is already planning the UbiSlate7+ which will feature a 700 mHz processor, up from 600 mHz, built in 3G connectivity, a bigger battery, and an upgrade to Gingerbread.

While the big phones and tablets tend to steal all the headlines, it is stories like this that truly show the potential of Android. With an open and freely available OS, manufacturers are able to custom tailor their devices to the needs of their home markets, whether it is a quad-core behemoth or a humble educational tool.

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