Low Cost Tablets Revolutionizing High Quality Education

For most western consumers, buying a tablet may seem like a trivial consumer gesture. After all, most households are already equipped with one or more PCs, smart phones have replaced cell phones and people are actually struggling to cut down on the time they spend in front of a screen. However, such is not the case everywhere else in the world. For students at many universities in India, not having access to a tablet can be a true drawback at a time when learning to master technology is a skill of paramount importance for a successful career.

This could be about to change, thanks to efforts by the Ministry of Human Resource Development and the support of the Indian Government. Back in October 2011, Minister Mr. Kapil Sibal announced the launch of a new low-cost tablet called Aakash targeting university students. London-based Datawind working with the Indian Institute of Technology Rajasthan developed the tablet. The killer feature is obviously its price. At $35, the tablet is actually cheaper than the accessories for other tablets. However, the low price necessarily involved limits; after the first 30,000 units were handed out, it became obvious that – albeit a beautiful idea – the device was a tad underpowered and did not deliver on its promises. But this wasn’t enough to stop the movement and in April 2012 a new version of the tablet was announced. The specs have been doubled and the product seems ready to flex its muscles. Students were quick to realize this; 25,000 tablets have been pre-booked by students from Mumbai University alone – highlighting students’ keen interest in technology. Actually, the official website was under assault for hours.

As a result, the government has allocated an exceptional 765 crore to fast track the project, while ensuring that production remains local. The beauty of it is that thousands of students will have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with an ecosystem based on Android, a Google operating system widely used around the world and take advantage of the richness of the web to further their education. This is a shining example of rapid innovation and iteration benefitting both education and the industries behind it.