Well, the RAM is even lower than the XO, there's no built-in WiFi, and I'll bet you dollars-to-donuts (or fried-dough of your localised choice) that the battery-life/power-consumption is nowhere near as close.

The XO has a lot of things going for it.

But I have to admit, the price and keyboard look awfully nice...

Anyone interesting in a Sugar port?

Its about as powerful as a PDA of maybe five years ago.
I hope the MIPS device has help with some sort of display management

I am interesting, Walter ;)

I didnt see a screen resolution figure amongst all that information.
Lets hope it is at least 800x480. If its a 7 inch Analog screen its more likely to be a portable DVD player screen which I think are 480x234 (or 720x234 but it doesnt look like a widescreen 16:9).

Ok so it helps to read the liliputing article. Much more info there.

"The laptop is basically a rebranded Razorbook 400/Skytone Alpha 400. That means you get all the usual goodies (or not so goodies, as the case may be), including a 400MHz CPU, 7 inch 800 x 480 pixel display, 128MB of RAM, 1GB of flash memory, and a simple Linux-based OS that’s notoriously difficult to fiddle with."

I think schools would be mad to buy this instead of the XO, except just possible for older pupils. Why?

- It doesn't look childproof, in hardware or software*
- It probably doesn't have a set of inputs that can replace many parts of a science lab;
- No mesh network (indeed, no WiFi!)
- It doesn't have a screen that can let it be used as a library replacement
- Insufficient battery life to let kids finish their homework on it and still have some energy left for extracurricular learning/playing

*A Sugar port might solve the latter. But would it provide Bitfrost?

I think the biggest issue with this thing is the lack of wireless( and to tell you the truth, i didnt even notice that it wasnt put up there, you guys have some keen eyes!). battery life, ebook mode, durability, software...these are all without a doubt important things. But in a first world country like US of A, in the hands of kids that would take care of them...most of these issues aren't so big.

e book mode (we have libraries around here. while the e book function is important, kids do have at least some access to the books they want from their local libraries...or could download them through the net)

durability (they put it in their back packs and they take care of it, even the xo cant take the biggest beating in the world)

software (find better software, e.g. they install damn small linux or puppy linux, and find some light weight office software)

however without wireless they will have a small smaller access to the internet, and worst of all, would not be able to do any sort peer to peer mesh networking.

Installing sugar would be all but useless on this machine. i'm sorry but its true. you might speed it up a bit, and if perfected for that machine might give it a good and stable OS to run on it. But as i'm guessing most of you dont know (since it is virtually impossible to find someone else with an XO unless of course you go to some sort of organized meetup) sugar really only shines when there are many other XOs or computers to talk to it and to share activities with. One of the key philosophies behind sugar is networking and allowing people to connect with each other and do things together...but if networking is physically impossible...then you are installing software onto a machine which contradicts the software.

i guess it would be possible to get some sort of usb attachment to give it wireless? but even if that is around...how much does it cost? tack on another 20 bucks and you're not that far away from the cost of an XO which would provide the schools (i'm guessing it would be schools that would be the ones to mostly buy this) with a piece of hardware/software built specifically for their needs.

the only real positive about this machine is the price and the sales setup. honestly i have heard the issue with selling them in stores and i dont think they are acceptable answers. with the economy the way it is, stores are toughening up. Try for instance to return a playstation three video game. It's made by Sony and playstation is a huge brand...so they'll take it back right? nope. you can go in and trade the game in for another copy...but you cant get your money back. I am sure this applies to microsoft and nintendo as well.

hahah i hate to sound like I am getting off topic...i dont mean to, but my point is that all the issues with returning, customer support (who really does decent customer support now-a-days anyway!?) merchants needing to make a small bit of profit off of each one sold, and whatever other issues are out there...i think they can be dealt with pretty reasonably. And obviously if successful, leading to a price drop and a much wider user base.

you can get wifi optionally, plus it has usb connectos for any additional peripheral!

http://www.alibaba.com/product-tp/101509462/World_s_Cheapest_Laptop.html

1) 400 MHz MIPS CPU
2) 7" Analog Screen
3) 128 MB SDRAM
4) 1 GB Flash Memory
5) 80 Key English Keyboard & Touch Pad
6) Linux O.S.
7) Connectors: SD Card Slot, VGA Port, USB x 3, Mini USB, Microphone and Earphone Jack
8) AC Adaptor and Accessories
9) External USB LAN or 802.11g WiFi dongle (optional) ***********

I am overjoyed to see this. It may not have built-in wifi but it is awesome to see someone really lowering the cost of 4PC laptops. Esp. since the ASUS eee and HP mini-note seem to keep rising in price and targeting rich countries.

I am also happy to see that it doesn't have a hard drive. That tells me it will be reasonably durable.

I would love to see Sugar run on this thing. W/ the wifi dongle we are good shape

While the price's certainly tempting it's not clear whether it's a Yugo or a Volkswagon Beetle.

Also, the price is for 100 piece quantities FOB Shenzhen. So to that $13,000 you've got to add all shipping-related expenses and then a bit more for a profit margin. Of course the retailers are going to want to make some bucks....

With those costs, and others to which I haven't given any consideration, what's the per unit price? Not quite the mouth-watering $130 that's advertised.

Guess I, and the rest of the world, will just have to wait a little longer.

I discovered you can buy exactly the same machine from IMC in China in 5 piece lots for about $150 US each. It seems to indicate they come with built in ethernet ports. Wifi is optional (adds more to the price).

http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/207331078/laptop_7_screen_Super_clear_screen.html

These would make useful classroom computers for students. School assignments could be typed up. Textbooks could be provided in electronic forms. Laptops connect to Ethernet cables at desk level and web browser navigates to school webserver running Moodle. Seems do-able to me.

Guys,

you're not going to have too much fun with that 400 MHz MIPS processor. Even if the Linux distro running on this machine (did anyone see which one it is?) is heavily optimized the system is going to pretty damn slow compared to the Geode LX700 when it comes to overall system performance.

BTW, Bryan, did you see the news about HP working on a cheaper version of the Mini Note (http://www.umpcportal.com/2008/07/cheaper-hp-mininote/)?

This machine is AVAILABLE for buyers while the XO is practically NOT.

I believe this is a factor when you make a decision. If a school would like to implement a one-laptop-per-student program, they will be able to do it with this machine. They would probably need to buy the wifi-extension and place public chargers for the machines but the problems are not unsurmountable.

With the XO, you fail at the first step. You cannot get them in small quantities. Then you will have no spare parts, warranty is for weeks instead of years ...etc.

@sola:

You CAN get the XO in small quantities, as low as 100, just at a higher price point:
http://laptopfoundation.org/participate/givemany.shtml

Now, $310 per laptop might be considered a bit high, especially compared to the $130 per laptop price of this laptop, but it's an option.

sir
can i grt any Laptop less than 150$ in India. If yes then how would i get that.

today i have n=heared that 10$ laptop has been introduced In India.Can I plese know that how i would get that
if any one can help me then plese help ma out.

what is the hard disk capacity and what about the interal speaker and headphone

This laptop shouldn't be able to compete against the OLPC. Nevermind the hardware specs (people did plenty of interesting things with Spectrum ZX and programs that came on cassettes back in the day), the key point is the 'notorious difficulty' in fiddling with the OS.

No educational machine should be based on an operating system that's difficult to work with&develop for. That would defeat the purpose building an education oriented machine in the first place.

That said, this $140 machine's probably targeted at mass consumption market much like eeepc, something XO-laptop probably have no interest in.