CNET’s News.comreports that MIT researchers are working on specifications and hardware for a $100 notebook PC that can be used by children in 3rd-world countries.
The proposed design of the machines calls for a 500MHz processor, 1GB of memory and an innovative dual-mode display that can be used in full-color mode, or in a black-and-white sunlight-readable mode. The display makes the laptop “both an electronic book and a laptop,” he said.
One display design being considered is a flat, flexible printed display developed at MIT’s Media Lab. Negroponte said the technology can be used to produce displays that cost roughly 10 cents per square inch. “The target is $12 for a 12-inch display with near-zero power consumption,” he said.
Sounds like technologies that would come in handy for the 1st world too!
Source: News.com