Much has been, and will be, written about the Aakash tablet.
[With apologies for the situational monsoonal imagery …] As I awash myself in Aakash, I am particularly taken by:
- The order of magnitude reduction in price point. With a stated cost of about $50, marked-up prices are still close to an order of magnitude more affordable than the incumbent offerings (e.g., the iPad, Android-based tablets, etc.). Even Amazon’s Kindle Fire is 2-3 times more expensive.
- The adoption of Android as the innovation platform. I take this as yet another data point (YADP) in firmly establishing Android as the leading future proofed platform for innovation in the mobile-computing space. As Aakash solidly demonstrates, it’s about the all-inclusive collaboration that can occur when organizational boundaries are made redundant through use of an open platform for innovation. These dynamics just aren’t the same as those that would be achieved by embracing proprietary platforms (e.g., Apple’s iOS, RIM QNX-based O/S, etc.).
- The Indian origin. It took MIT Being Digital, in the meatspace personage of Nicholas Negroponte, to hatch the One Laptop Per Child initiative. In the case of Aakash, this is grass-roots innovation that has Grameen Bank like possibilities.
While some get distracted comparing/contrasting tech specs, the significant impact of Aakash is that it is a disruptive innovation in the truest sense:
“An innovation that is disruptive allows a whole new population of consumers access to a product or service that was historically only accessible to consumers with a lot of money or a lot of skill. Characteristics of disruptive businesses, at least in their initial stages, can include: lower gross margins, smaller target markets, and simpler products and services that may not appear as attractive as existing solutions when compared against traditional performance metrics.”
I am certainly looking forward to seeing this evolve!
Disclaimers:
- Like Aakash, I am of Indian origin. My Indian origin, however, is somewhat diluted by some English origin – making me an Anglo-Indian. Regardless, my own origin may play some role in my gushing exuberance for Aakash – and hence the need for this disclaimer.
- I am the owner of a Motorola Xoom, but not an iPad. This may mean I am somewhat predisposed towards the Android platform.
Feel free to chime in with your thoughts on Aakash by commenting on this post.
Ian Lumb's Blog 
Ah, as Steve Jobs heads for the heavens, as all geniuses should, here comes – like a bolt from the sky (which is what Aakash means) – a true challenger to the iPad. OK, it’s not perfect yet. A journalist who tried to write a story on it had the piece erased instead of saved. But imagine this little wonder down the road a few years, selling at $26 or so as its makers say and free of bugs. And, by the way, let’s not forget that Canadian connection: a Montreal company’s Indian plant produces Aaakash. I was just about to buy an iPad 2, but after Ian’s comment about the Android platform I’m holding off to test other waters. Lionel Lumb.
Not entirely unrelated … A $25 computer that fits in your wallet – Raspberry Pi.
For a well-written update on Aakash: How a Montreal company won the race to build the world’s cheapest tablet.