ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD – MISSION POSSIBLE

The OLPC which was considered and criticized as mission impossible has triumphed and now stands proud by delivering about 600,000 ultra-cheap XO computers to children in the developing countries. The XO is a small but tough netbook sized laptop that has been exclusively designed to educate children. Every component of the XO is custom made to bring children technology as means to knowledge and freedom. It has its own Linux based operating system called Sugar and more than 30 applications which enables to carry out tasks form word processing to making music. The green and white XO may look like a toy but is packed with cutting edge technology that is built to function in remote environments.

The XO has a built in wireless and a display screen that is readable in direct sunlight for students who take classes outdoors. The 7.5-inch screen has dual display mode, one for indoor use and the other reflective mode for outdoors and the switch can be made between the two with just a touch of a button. The display has a toggle that can flip the orientation of the screen and it can also be twisted around on a hinge and folded down onto the keyboard. The display screen also includes 640x480 pixel webcam, microphone, speakers, power button and buttons that can switch to gamming mode. The keyboard is specially designed to fit a child’s fingers and is available in more than eight languages. It can be solar powered and is built with mesh networking capabilities for connectivity in remote locations. These are just a few of its amazing features and it is extremely durable, brilliant and a fun way to bring technology into a child’s world. Following the success of the XO we can soon look forward to a new and improved version of this potent learning tool in XO2. The image on the right shows pictures of the new XO2.

17% DROP IN PROFIT SPELLS A POSSIBLE SHUTDOWN IN 18MONTHS

Dell, in a management filing this week, powerfully recommended that it intended to minimize its network of factories as part of the computer company’s force to condense costs. At the conclusion of previous month, Dell dissatisfied investors by reporting a surprising 17 percent plunge in quarterly revenue, even though its sales augmented 11 percent. Dell held responsible the profit drop chiefly on being too antagonistic in price cutting to increase market share in a few regions of the world.

But Dell, based in Round Rock, Tex., has also sustained more of its personal factories for closing hardware assembly and software installations than rivals like Hewlett-Packard, who bestow on contract manufacturers. Dell’s industrialized modus operandi was for customers to position orders on the Web or by phone for a made-to-order appliance. It worked finest for desktop computers sold to business customers, who required business PCs fine-tuned to their requirements. But with the augmentation in the PC market progressively more coming from the consumer market and laptop PCs, Dell’s wide-reaching array of factories look like a cost burden. The Wall Street Journal accounted on Friday, quoting unidentified sources, that Dell had advanced contract workstation producers with a plan “to sell the majority — and probably all — its factories” within the next 18 months.

NANOTECHNOLOGY PEAKING UP FINALLY WITH 500,000GB OF STORAGE LOOKING POSSIBLE

Imagine holding a 500,000GB of capacity holder of an mp3/video player unit. With this newest kid of a technology just spiking out to life, that just may topic of reality. As unfeasible as it sounds currently, but the scientists at the University of Glasgow have generated a concept of new definition using the all practiced nanotechnology breakthrough that can enhance the storage capability of a player by not jus by 3 X or even not just by 50 X but to whooping 150,000 X. Hypothetically, 500,000GB could be compressed onto a 1" square chip.

“What we have captured at present is find a way to amicably spike up the data storage possibilities in a radical and a classical way. We have been able to put together a functional unit that’s with nano-cluster components that incorporates 2 electron donating groups, and locate them elegantly 0.32 nm spaced out so that they can form a all together new type of molecular switching device. The key improvement of the iota sized switch is information or transistor concentration in conventional semi-conductors. Fragment sized switches would escort to escalating data storage to say to high levels as high as 4 Peta-bits per square inch. This burst through shows abstractly that this is surely possible (showing the bulk effect) but we are nevertheless to get to the bottom of the cock-and-bull story and addressing to the issues that develop. The fact is that these switches labor on carbon means that they could be easily embedded in plastic chips so silicon is not required and the system turns out to be much more flexible both in the flesh and technologically.”

POSSIBLE TOP 5 LAPTOPS

1. Hp Pavilion dv3660se:
Designer notebook backed with excellent battery life. It definitely appeals to both multimedia fans and frequent travelers. It is loaded with 1.5-GHz Core 2 Duo T5250 and a 14.1 wide screen. It comes with Total HD Size of 250GB, and a competitive pricing of $900.

2. ACER Aspire 5920-6954:
It is a moderately powerful laptop with a graphics dedicated nVidia graphics. High definition output through HDMI output, and an HD DVD reader adds icing on the cake. It comes with1.66-GHz Core 2 Duo T5450, A 15.1 Widescreen and 250 GB of memory. It is a bit pricey at $999.

3. Dell Inspiron 1525:
A 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7250 processor, Backed with 150 GB memory. This is a quite an inspiron from the Dell house of Notebooks. The customization options of this nippy $999 laptop will please choosy shoppers, and it's quite a good sprinter too.

4. Fujitsu Lifebook S7211:
Its Thin and light notebook with so-called speed could still please budget-minded business warriors. Governed by 1.6-GHz Pentium Dual-Core T2330, This $899 Notebook offers 14.1 Widescreen with 120 GB memory.

5. Toshiba satellite pro A210-Ez2201:
Bargain priced notebook has sweet built-in speakers, but its turtle paced for demanding users. The 1.8-GHz Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor TK-55, just manages to help this be perched at the 5th position.
How long? Priced at $699, guess for quite some time to come.

FIVE POSSIBLE WORST LAPTOPS

La Vie G Hello Kitty Laptop

This notebook themes Japan’s most beloved feline Hello Kitty. And it seems that this cat has been taking seminars from Mr. T, judging by the fact that the notebook is literally dripping in bling, swanking a jaw dropping and bank account depleting 299 Swarovski crystals. The crystals on the notebook, developed by Sanrio Co., are used in abundant quantities to create four hearts, the cat’s head sporting a pink bow, and to top it all off a crown. Sadly these are not even the least of features one would expect from any sort of Notebook

24-Karat gold plated Mac Book Pro

Steve Jobs would board up at the very thought of this golden behemoth. The substances of the machine are the same; however the glitterier outside will set you back a pretty penny in the form of an cooping additional $1200 - $1500, depending on gold price vacillations. Adding this 24 Karat gold plated block to your Apple will take from 2 to 4 weeks. In addition, if the gold plating doesn’t complete your ravenous hunger for all things shiny, you can choose a diamond studded logo to replace the well known apple on the back of every Mac Book. Karat can never replace APPLE.

Acer Aspire 5920

The Aspire 5920 might make one think that the only paint existing to them was gray, and they used enough of it to make even an elephant desirous. Poor color choice aside, this dingy piece of computing possesses some undoubtedly appalling design touches. The unit was supposedly crafted with support from the folks at BMW Design Works, but it looks like a child single-handedly designed this laptop using only a gray crayon. All in all the Aspire 5920 is hideous, and the opening system styled after a door handle does not add magnificence in any form to the unsightly exterior.

Alienware Aurora m9700

The Alienware Aurora m9700 is a gaming laptop to the extreme and fashion’s worst nightmarish. Processing power on this monster drives the $1800 price tag, but what it is deficient in on the outside isn’t quite made up by the power on the inside. First off this notebook is massive, weighing in at roughly 11 pounds, so carrying around this masterpiece of ugly is not an easy task. The black keyboard and beige interior clearly leave something to be desired as well.

NEC TYPE-N01

This notebook clearly reveals the reason why laptops should not be modeled after mock missile command stations. Not only does it possess jagged hot keys, but also has a monster red button that would surely make lugging around this obnoxious excuse for a computer nearly impossible. Spec-wise the innards aren’t much more appealing. It has a 1.6GHz AMD mobile Sempron 3200+ processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 80 - 100GB hard drive, dual-layer DVD burner, 802.11 a/b/g and a FeliCa port.