By Stevie Smith Jan 4, 2008, 13:20 GMT
Only a mere six months after signing on to assist in the development of the One Laptop Per Child project’s XO sub-notebook, which aims to introduce budget computer hardware into the lives of children in emerging nations, chipmaker Intel Corp. has decided to end its participation.
Intel suddenly pulls out of the OLPC project only six months after joining. Credit: OLPC.
Intel Corporation, which is the market’s leading chipmaker, revealed yesterday that it is quitting the project and resigning its position from the OLPC board after being pressed to halt support of its own Classmate PC, which is also designed to assist in the educational development of the world’s poorest children.
"We have long believed that there is no single solution to the needs of children in emerging markets," said Intel spokeswoman Agnes Kwan regarding the company’s decision. "We concluded that we cannot accommodate the request."
The One Laptop Per Child project (a.k.a. $100 Laptop) is the brainchild of MIT professor Nicholas Negroponte. The project’s rugged XO computer is presently selling through bulk orders to interested nations for $200 USD, with the price expected to fall closer to the initial $100 USD target as component and manufacturing prices decline over time.
The innovative XO is powered by the AMD Geode processor and comes equipped with a 7.5-inch swivel screen, rugged exterior, built-in video camera, Fedora-based Linux operating system, and 1GB of Flash memory.
Officials from the OLPC project have not offered any comment on Intel’s move.
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