Recently, the One Laptop Per Child Foundation unveiled a working prototype of a laptop with a sticker price of about $100.00. The goal being to get these devices to impoverished countries around the world and introduce today’s children everywhere to tomorrow’s technology.
Earlier this week, Bill Gates demonstrated Microsoft’s apparent answer to OLPC – a new concept phone called FonePlus. Read on to see what this little device has in store for the world. Bill Gates is world renown, and appropriately so, for the wonderful charity work that he and Melida have done through their foundation. Pictures of Gates walking with his arm around poverty stricken kids has been the cover story of many a magazine article of late.
It makes sense that anything he introduces with aim of bringing technology to impoverished kids will be widely received.
Gates’ approach is to take a CE-based smartphone and add a TV out and an external keyboard connection. FonePlus realizes the reality that phones and televisions are pervasive even in some of the world’s poorest countries. The FonePlus also will have Internet access out of the box which is something that OLPC won’t offer.
The Marketing strategy seems to be summed up in a line taken from Chief Research and Strategy Officer Craig Mundie: ”Could this be your first computer? And if it was, what could you do with it?’
We’ll keep you informed as we learn more.
Written by Gary