Sky is the limit for technology these days. So they named it Akash when Indian government decided to float tenders for manufacturing a cheap tablet for students. Though the original Akash project is haunted with controversies on the quality of the gadget and leg pulling attempts from major gadget makers, more takers are eyeing the tender for Akash 2.
Though the number of tablets and the timing of the tender are not yet revealed, many OEMs are gearing up to clinch the deal this time. IT product maker Wish Tel, who lost the tender last time to Datawind by whiskers, is a major one among them, while Public sector undertakings like Hindustan Computers Limited and Bharath Heavy Electricals Limited are also eyeing at the pie.
The original Akash which was launched last October has seen high demand from the student community in India, especially in the backdrop of the subsidized rate of Rs. 1500 offered by Ministry of Human Resource Development. Dubbed as the cheapest tablet in the world, it is obviously cheap in its specs too. Powered by a 700 MHz ARM A8 processor, the 7 inch Android 2.3 tab has a 256 MB of RAM.
Though it has a nominal 2 GB internal storage, the microSD card slot of the rig can support up to 32 GB sized microSD cards. However, problems are aplenty when you put the rig in use. Frequent system breakdowns and incompatibility with certain commonly used free software are major usability issues.
Due to the nominal price of Rs. 2276, Akash is not a luring product for the manufacturer, as far as profit per unit is considered. However, since the orders are pouring over, the net figure is huge. Within a one month period, the Datawind found more than 1.4 million orders, which was beyond their manufacturing capacity.
It makes Akash 2 is a pie lucrative enough for OEM manufacturers. Government is mulling over calling the tenders within two months.
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