OLPC shifts focus to emerging tablet market with XO-3

by Stevie Smith - May 28 2010, 11:45

With the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) foundation’s original XO laptop somewhat overshadowed by the recent unstoppable rush of budget Netbooks, founder Nicholas Negroponte has this week said an OLPC tablet computer is now in development.

Based on Marvell’s Moby tablet design, a working prototype of the new XO-3 computer is reportedly on schedule for December of this year, and should be ready for an initial debut during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January of 2011.

The One Laptop Per Child’s driving initiative has always been to produce cheap, functional hardware designed specifically to aid in the education of poorer children, whether they reside in the west or in developing nations. The same would seemingly apply to the XO-3.

During an interview with IDG, Negroponte revealed that the XO-3 will cost less than $100 USD. He also indicated that the foundation is attempting to make its tablet computer an extremely robust device and that it hopes to include a dual-mode display capable of functioning both in and out of direct sunlight.

“The $75 mark. We’re going to hit it. That’s not a problem,” he trumpeted in regard to the XO-3’s projected cost pricing. “What is a problem is when will we get plastic? We really want this to be 100 percent plastic, unbreakable and almost extruded from a machine.”

Little is currently know regarding the XO-3’s full list of specifications, although current snippets of information point to an ARM processor, a 9-inch multitouch screen, and the inclusion of Google’s increasingly popular Android mobile operating system (perhaps shifting to Linux further down the line).

Other possible contributing aspects currently being banded about include one, or possibly even two, on-board cameras, Wi-Fi connectivity, and also compatibility with plug-in peripherals.

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