You can buy it in India if you're a student, that is. According to Jamie Yap of ZDNet Asia, the Aakash tablet is priced at 2,200 rupees, or 45 U.S. dollars, while students pay a special subsidized price thanks to a government contract. 25,000 students have already requested one from the University of Mumbai, and more than 1.4 million people have ordered the tablet so far, with three new factories being set up to meet the demand.
What kind of tablet can you get for $23?
Not anything like what you'd expect of a tablet in stores in North America, not even the inexpensive Nook Color or Kindle Fire tablets. Set your expectations closer to "$99 Kmart special." According to David Ruddock of Android Police, it has a 366 MHz CPU and 256 MB of RAM. And if you aren't sure what that translates to in real-world terms, that makes it about half as powerful as the LG Optimus S, one of the most basic budget Android smartphones -- not tablets -- out there.
It runs Android 2.2 Froyo, a version released in 2010, which only ships on extremely low-end smartphones and tablets today. (Most Android phones now run Android 2.3 Gingerbread, and both smartphones and tablets are starting to feature Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.) And while its 7-inch screen is the size of the Nook Color or Kindle Fire's, and roughly half the size of the iPad, it has a blocky 800x480 resolution and a resistive touchscreen. That's the kind used on the Nintendo DS and the original Palm Pilot, which use pressure (like from your fingernail or a stylus) instead of contact with a fingertip.
Is it worth the price?
It might look underwhelming compared to even a $99 tablet, but Android Authority's Lucian Armasu insists that the Aakash "should not be dismissed so easily". He describes its lack of performance and features as "first world problems," which may not affect the people buying these tablets in a country where the average annual salary is around $1500.
The Aakash might not have a One Laptop Per Child style foundation backing it up, or a ruggedized design like the XO laptop's. But it will allow students and other buyers to browse the web, read e-books, and use certain apps, for much less than the cost of an iPad or even a PC netbook.
Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.
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