In a couple of hours, the Indian HRD Ministry will launch Aakash, the world’s cheapest tablet, amidst unveiled pessimism from almost all quarters—except Indian CIOs.
Priced at $35 (about Rs 1,720), the device which runs on a Google android platform, has 256MB RAM, 2GB SD memory card, a 32GB expandable memory slot and two USB ports, apart from wi-fi connectivity for Internet access and cloud storage facility. The tablet has been designed by Datawind, a Canada-based wireless services company.
There are plenty already shooting down the very concept that it’s possible to manufacture a tablet at Rs 1,720. But, the wonder tablet is getting plenty of support from Indian CIOs.
“It’s a great breakthrough when it comes to spearheading the reach of IT, making tablet usage available to the masses,” says Manish Shah, GM-IT, Indus Fila.
“The most important question is that the technology should not be obsolete. Even if it has 50-60 percent of what new tablets possess, it will still be a great initiative,” says Sanjay Jhamb, head-IT India, Nokia.
Although it is not clear whether the Aakash tablet will be made available commercially (since it is subsidized by the government), CIOs are curious about the possible ramifications of such a low-cost device on enterprise IT.
"It will make a difference. A lot of work is done by a business’ feet-on-the-street, from sales representatives to bank executives in charge of verifications at a customer’s premises. In the world of tablets, paperwork will disappear and executives will find it easier to verify information. The productivity gains could be tremendous,” says K.L. Mukesh, CIO, IT &IS, Tata Sky.
It’s also stirring interest in vendors. “It’s a great initiative. Uniken is looking at developing applications for such tablets,” says Sanjay Deshpande, CEO and Chief Innovation Officer, Uniken. Adding that government applications such as passport services, licensing, etcetera should be made available on such a device. “It will increase the value of the device.”
An important question is: Can the Rs 1,720 Aakash tablet take on the commercial market or will it go the Simputer-way? Deshpande thinks it shouldn’t even be fighting in that space.
“We are not looking [Aakash] as a tablet and it should not compete with other tablets in the market. People buy tablets based on the perceptions created by a brand. The government should not compete on those lines. This is a micro appliance meant for large scale consumption, making computing affordable at a very large scale, with the intent of accessing certain services, health-care delivery, financial transactions (post offices), and lot of add-ons,” he says.
And some CIOs, have doubts whether the device will do the job it was meant to do. “I think there’s a huge cultural shift when it comes to trusting a child with a tablet PC, once the tablets are made available at middle school. The tablets not only need the right educational software but the teachers need to be trained on them,” says Mukesh.
Source: CIO.IN
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