India plans to sell tablet computers, made popular by Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s iPad, to schools for as low as 1,100 rupees ($22) as Asia’s third-biggest economy aims to boost computer literacy.
The government will initially buy 100,000 tablets for 2,250 rupees each from DataWind Ltd., a U.K.-based company, and sell it to schools at the subsidized price, Kapil Sibal, India’s telecommunications minister, said at a news conference in New Delhi yesterday. India subsequently plans to purchase 10 million tablets over the next five years, he said.
The 7-inch tablet that can run videos and games and browse the Internet will be used by educational institutions to teach students, Sibal said. The world’s second-most populous nation had 4.2 computers for every 100 people at the end of last year, according to CyberMedia Research, based near New Delhi, compared with 63.2 mobile phones per 100 people.
“It’s going to increase the desirability of computing devices for people who wanted them but couldn’t afford the price tag,” said Vishal Tripathi, an analyst at Gartner Inc. (IT) in Mumbai. “People who are using this device are not going to get the seamless experience of an iPad or a Samsung. There’s no comparison.”
The DataWind tablet runs on Google Inc. (GOOG)’s Android operating system like Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy Tab. The iPad 2 range starts at 29,500 rupees in India.
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