OLPC raises in price

Even though the price of the OLPC has risen to $175, it is still cheaper than alternative projects.

The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) group recently announced that its low-cost laptop would be raised from US$100 up to US$175, but the group is still confident that enough orders will be placed for the group to begin mass production before September. The goal behind the project is planning to offer inexpensive notebook computers to school children in developing nations.

Even with an increased price tag of US$175, the notebooks are still much cheaper than what the computer industry has traditionally offered. OLPC founder Nicholas Negroponte previously stated the price of the notebooks could drop almost 25 percent per year.

A number of factors have caused the increase in the laptop, including design costs and a raise in price of nickel.

“We are perhaps at the most critical stage of OLPC’s life,” said Negroponte.

Using a modified version of Red hat Linux, the Quanta Computer-built laptop offers users an interface that has pictographic icons instead of traditional windows and folders.

Source: DailyTech

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