Bill Gates Ridicules MIT's $100 laptop project

By Niladri Sekhar Nath

TMCnet Contributing Editor

 

Microsoft Corp. Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates (News - Alert) scoffs at a $100 laptop computer project for developing countries. The laptops are being developed with the support of rival Google (News - Alert) Inc. at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

 

The $100 laptop project aims to provide inexpensive computers to people in developing countries. The computers do not include the many features found on a typical personal computer for example a hard disk and software.

 

"The last thing you want to do for a shared use computer is have it be something without a disk ... and with a tiny little screen," Reuters quoted Gates as saying at the Microsoft (News - Alert) Government Leaders Forum in suburban Washington.

 

Hardware is a small part of the cost of providing computing capabilities, according to Gates.  He says that network connectivity, applications and support require major investment.

 

Gates has also noted a new "ultra-mobile computer" which runs Microsoft Windows on a seven-inch (17.78-centimeter) touch screen. Those machines will be available between $599 and $999.

 

"If you are going to go have people share the computer, get a broadband connection and have somebody there who can help support the user, geez, get a decent computer where you can actually read the text and you're not sitting there cranking the thing while you're trying to type," Reuters quoted Gates as saying.

 

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Niladri Sekhar Nath is a contributing writer for TMCnet covering telecommunications, service providers and networking.