The Cynic’s View of Inexpensive Notebook Movement
UMPC as a commercial venture failed. Somehow, the concept was indirectly revived by Nicholas Negroponte’s project to provide One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) in the world’s poorest countries. In classic fashion, the moment Negroponte’s venture gained traction and the first OLPC XO was shown in public an army of heretofore silent companies emerged to loudly boast how they could do it better – for about the same price. Of course they could do it, but they hadn’t because they were quite happy selling schools $1000 notebooks instead.
OLPC XO hit the market at $200 – over budget but understandably so. They built the whole thing from scratch to serve a specific market. Its most unique features are its zip-cord battery re-charge and ad hoc wireless networking. This allows XO to a fit a niche in the poorest of countries – where finding an available electrical socket is rare or expensive and networks are few and far between. It is going to take generations to bring the standards in the countries up to those of industrialized countries (assuming they even want to). So the XO was a great start when it came out last year.
Here we are in 2008 and these XO beating $100 notebooks from the big PC makers are starting to hit the market (EEE chief among them). Prices sure have appreciated quickly – not one of these computers is close to $100. The lowest ASUS EEE 2G is $299, and as I mentioned in my review of this model you need to overlook a lot of flaws and usability issues to really like it. Even its most ardent supporters refer to it as a toy.
XO is not designed for us in North America where our infrastructure makes many of the OLPC’s ideas less necessary. But I would argue that there is plenty of need right here in North America for inexpensive computers for kids. Rather than buying EEEs recycling corporate America’s last generation of ThinkPads and giving out big tax breaks in the form of donation receipts would be a better idea. Think about it.
Why should schools pay $299 for a device that does not prepare kids to use tools they will have when they enter the workforce? Do you work on a 7″ screen at your job? Is your keyboard the size of a DVD box? Such a device is almost useless. Selling computers and software to schools has become a big business – and the hard sell is on every year at budget season to sell schools things they don’t need. That money would be better spent on teachers.
Every three years (on average) corporations throughout the world renew technology tools for their workforce. These are not dumbed-down toys, these are ThinkPads, Latitudes and Tecras; solid workhorse computers designed to run demanding applications on legible screens. Many of these come complete with Windows 2000 or XP license – if a school wants to lock into that platform. These computers are only a little bit bigger than an Asus EEE, but so much more usable and powerful.
An IBM T4x or Latitude D6x0 is still a great tool and with a fresh Ubuntu install it will work great. Heck, there is even an education specific distribution of Ubuntu on the market for schools to standardize on. Open Office is free and allows file interchange. Web 2.0 apps will work fine and cloud computing reduces the risk posed by old HDDs.
Parts for these corporate machines are plentiful and cheap. Best of all, these are designed to be sturdy. Corporations are selling these to salvage companies that spend a few minutes cleaning the units up and then list them on eBay for 3-4x the price paid.
Is that small $50-100 salvage fee worth more to a corporation than the good will and tax receipt that comes from donating notebooks to a local school board? If you answered yes, fire your marketing department. Corporations are trying to buy their way into schools, this is a much more altruistic way.
So when I look at the waves of ‘inexpensive’ notebooks hitting the market, all that I see is a cynical attempt to cash in on a fad – the affordable companion PC. A noble idea started by the OLPC XO has been tainted and turned into a feel good marketing ploy. ‘Buy our neutered toys and by doing so you support our efforts to supply inexpensive computers to schools in developing countries.’
Schools are buying these pastel-colored toys. I don’t know what they are paying (post a comment if you know), but as the 8.9” models come out and people move to screens on which you can actually do real work the cost will only go up.
And it still won’t as good a 4 year old ThinkPad.
