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Hailed as one of the ten technological innovations that could help the poor get rich, the low-cost Bangalore invention which should be in the markets soon could be the alternative to the PC in the developing world
Finally slated to hit the market in September 2002, the Simputer's USP is its price - it could be as low as Rs 10,500 apiece. Launched in Bangalore by the Simputer Trust, the Simple Computer or Simputer is a low-cost, hand-held, portable, easy-to-use computing device that can run on three AAA batteries or direct power supply using the Linux software. It's being heralded as the invention that will finally take information technology to the common man. Timemagazine has hailed it as one of the 10 technological innovations that could help the poor get rich. The New York Times comments: "This is computing as it would have looked if Gandhi had invented it, then used Steve Jobs for his ad campaign." In a country which is at the forefront of the global IT revolution even while an enormous percentage of the population has no access to computers the Trust claims that the Simputer can become a "platform for social change". While price has prevented greater computer penetration in India, illiteracy is the other big obstacle. The Simputer takes care of that through a browser for Information Markup Language (IML). IML uses a language based on iconic images that is capable of working on both small and large screens, on mobile phones and a range of other devices. What's more, people who are neither literate nor conversant with English can use it. IML has been created to provide a uniform experience to users and to allow rapid development of solutions on any platform. The machine's rich connectivity sets it apart from other devices. It sends and receives both voice mail and e-mail. However, even at the low-end cost of Rs 10,500 it's still beyond the reach of most people in India. That's where the Smart Card comes in. The Smart Card allows personal information management at the individual level for an unlimited number of users. This enables the device to be shared by the community. Local bodies such as the village panchayat, the village school, a local kiosk, or the village postman or shopkeeper could hire it out to individuals. The Simputer Trust comprises individuals from the Indian Institute of Science (Bangalore) and Encore Software Ltd (Bangalore). The project was conceived during Global Village, an international seminar on IT in Bangalore in October 1998. Its aim was to provide access to IT to every citizen regardless of gender, language, handicap, geographical location, class, caste or creed. "We wanted a technology that would help us take IT to the remotest village," says Vijay Deshpande, a member of the Trust. "It had to be rugged, shareable, relevant to education, communication, people's livelihoods, even entertainment." India currently has a personal computer penetration of 5 million. And a billion information-hungry people wait for this pocket PC to do its magic and bridge the gap! Picopeta Simputers Pvt Ltd, set up by four trustees of the Simputer Trust, VXL Instruments Pvt Ltd and Encore Software Pvt Ltd, will manufacture it. Contact: Vijay Chandru
Professor, Department of Computer Science and Automation
Department of Management Studies
Indian Institute of Science
224 CSA Building
Indian Institute of Science
Bangalore - 560012, India
Tel: 91-80-309 2648/91-80-309 2368
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