MIT Media Labs Cranks Up Computing With a Wind-Up Laptop

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Labs has made a place for itself on the cutting edge of new computer technologies and innovative designs. One of their latest creations has been in the works for several years and is expected to be available within a year. The initial thrust behind the design was to create a laptop computer for less than $100 so that children around the world will be able to afford computers. Making the design tough and foldable in different ways, with a hand crank for power, only adds to the usefulness of the computer in developing nations or depressed economies.

Nicholas Negroponte, chairman and founder of MIT Media Labs, is the brainchild behind this impressive endeavor. During a visit to a Cambodian village, Negroponte saw firsthand the benefits enjoyed by Cambodian children working with donated notebook PCs, so upon his return to the United States he set about planning the sub-$100 machines. He established a non-profit organization called One Laptop Per Child, which plans to have up to 15 million machines in production within a year. A prototype of the machine is planned to be ready for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Tunisia, held in November. At the Emerging Technologies conference at MIT, Professor Negroponte said that the first children to have access to the new cheap laptops will be children in Brazil, Egypt, Thailand, China, and South Africa. Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney plans to begin buying them the following year for all middle and high school students in his state, almost a half million children. Negroponte predicts that by the year 2007, there could be up to 150 million of the machines shipped every year.

The Linux-based machine will have a 500MHz processor, and will use flash memory rather than a hard drive, which has more complex and delicate moving parts. It will have four USB ports, and the dual-mode color or monochrome display will allow it to be used in varying light conditions. The unit will be able to share data easily by connecting to the Internet through wi-fi technology. The laptop will be encased in thick rubber to make it more durable and tough, and the AC adaptor will serve as a carrying strap. Because power is a primary consideration for developing nations, particularly when it comes to new technology, the hand crank fitted into the unit will come in handy when extra juice is needed. The MIT team also thinks it may be able to reduce power consumption even further by using innovative technologies such as electronic ink displays, which require very little power to work.

There are several other projects in the works to build and distribute cheap computers for distribution to developing nations, with the sole purpose of closing the digital divide around the world. But the MIT’s plan appears to be the most ambitious and promising, and as a result several big-name supporters, including Google, have come on board to help finance its development. Making laptop computers available cheaply will allow countries to buy them in bulk, although Negroponte postulates that even $100 may still be too expensive for some developing nations. But he is committed to the idea that every child in the world should be equipped with computing technology so that they can take advantage of the vast array of educational and communications benefits provided by the Internet.