XO and Others: Small, Cheap Laptops for Learning
Saturday, December 15, 2007 at 6:52PM 
The OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) Foundation's XO laptop was designed for learning and targeted at children in third-world countries. You might have heard of it by its original name: The $100 Laptop. Currently it costs about $188, but if the foundation can get more governments on board, the price per unit will go down.
The XO laptop has a 422 MHz processor and a 1 GB hard drive space. Its 7.5 inch screen is designed to be completely readable in direct sunlight. The laptop runs its own version of the Linux Operating System. XO is probably smaller than you might expect. Check out this size comparison photo.
Doug Johnson, an educational technologist, received his XO and wrote about it in his blog: OLPC - Follow-Up and Another OLPC Follow-Up Posting. He writes about the Operating System:
This is a VERY different operating system. Nothing is in
the same place you'd find it in a Linux, Windows or Mac OS. The learning curve may be longer for adults with computer experience than for kids with no tech experience at all.
BBC News has a piece about 9-year-old Rufus Cellan-Jones. Rufus has been using an XO and loves it. Check out the short video (via YouTube) with Rufus talking about his XO laptop.
A Child's View of the $100 Laptop (the article with Rufus) mentions EToys. Here's how OLPC describes it: "EToys is a media-rich authoring system aimed at helping children learn by doing. They can explore their ideas by creating models, simulations, and games complete with text, graphics, sound, and video." Sounds like a much more sophisticated version of Sketchy for handhelds. Besides EToys, there are many other free software programs for the XO. The applications are for exploring, expressing, and communicating. Some are Turtle Art, Web Browser, TamTam Jam, and Memorize. There are thousands of developers working on software for the XO, so many more applications will be on their way. I'm hoping these open source programs will run on other kinds of computers as well.
It is possible to emulate the OX's Operating System on a Windows, Mac, or Linux computer. However, installation seems to be too complicated for me.
U.S. consumers can purchase an XO laptop from OLPC through their Give One Get One program. For $400, you can purchase a laptop. The cost also pays for a second laptop to be given to a student in a third-world country. Give One Get One ends December 31, 2007.
Although it was originally meant to be in the hands of developed-world children, Birmingham City Schools has ordered 15,000 XO laptops from OLPC. They will be the first schools in the U.S. to put the XO to use.
The XO laptop is not the only small, low-cost laptop around. Intel's Classmate PC runs Windows XP or Linux and is developed for students in "emerging markets."
Furthermore, there's the $300 ASUS Eee PC. The Eee PC is not designed exclusively for education--it is a commercial product and not specifically aimed at the third-world. In fact, Fresno Unified School District in California recently purchased 1,000 Eee PCs for $464 each. The total includes Windows XP and other Microsoft software. The districts Chief Technology Officer said this about the Eee PC:
We wanted a laptop with a keyboard that was under $500 and was small enough to sit on a desk alongside the books or papers.
With quick boot times, flash memory, Wi-Fi, compelling software, and small size, ultra-portable laptops are becoming very inexpensive, nearing the cost and features of Palm handhelds and Pocket PCs.
Reader Comments (6)
So is the handheld i.e. Palm dead?
I don't think the handheld is dead. It's true: educators now have more choices in what they choose to use with students. There are plenty of classrooms using Palm handhelds and Pocket PCs and they will continue because teachers and students have had success using the devices for learning. There are many resources for using handhelds and they are still cheaper than these small laptops.
I would love to see more innovation in Palm handhelds--but they have not released a new non-phone handheld since 2005.
The laptops I mentioned in this post are not yet readily available to schools. The Eee PC has been sold out, and the XO and Classmate aren't really meant for U.S,/Canadian students (though I think they will eventually find their way into many non-third-world classrooms). Handheld are available today for any classroom. There's plenty of software for learning too--much of it free.
I think of the Palm project I'm currently leading in the U.S. Virgin Islands. I'm wondering if I could choose between the Palm handhelds we're using now or an education laptop, I think I'd still choose the Palms. The schools are small, have many levels, no elevators, and don't have equipment for each student to take the computer home. I'd hate to have to lug cases of laptop up those stairs for each lesson. Storage and tech support are issues too.
But if I was dealing with a one-to-one situation and had proper tech support, I just might prefer the laptops...
Tony,
The Asus eeePC that is best for schools (with the 4MB flash hard drive and the Webcam and mic is $400, not $300.
FYI...I love mine and just upgraded the RAM to 1GB. The thing does everything, except Second Life, which I had never assumed it could do without some fancy hacking! The Linux OS that comes with it is fast and full-featured.
Kathy
Hi Tony. I also got an ASUS Eee PC. Really cool and I'm loving it. :) Right now I'm looking for the "perfect" case for it and will soon upgrade the RAM to 2GB.
The 4G/701 (512MB) model is a great candidate for a one-to-one laptop program. The ASUS-customized Xandros Linux OS is simple to understand and use.
And yet another contender in the small, cheap laptops areana: http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/everexs-cloudbook-coming-to-wal-mart-by-months-end/" REL="nofollow">The Everex Cloudbook.
If you are in the corner and have no cash to move out from that point, you will need to receive the personal loans. Just because it would aid you for sure. I take short term loan every year and feel good just because of it.