4 ms·

Hmm, at $250 a pop, OLPC is on the price range of a netbook. iPad is a few steps away as well. It's very much possible that the iPad could get to this price ran

Hmm, at $250 a pop, OLPC is on the price range of a netbook. iPad is a few steps away as well. It's very much possible that the iPad could get to this price range, if not even cheaper with the economies of scale for a project like OLPC. Yes, I realize OLPC needs a crank, etc. But, what's not to stop Apple from coming up with iCrank (I also believe Apple has created a new niche of developers iCranky using their iPhone OS 4.0 - but I digress). Before you point out about Apple's closed platform, do think about how easy the App store is and how much more depth of interactivity and detail the iPad could bring to learning.

thwarted 17y ago
Cranks are not esthetically pleasing. And if Apple did create iCrank, you'd have to go to the Apple store to have someone replace it when it broke off. But we both digress... But seriously, they said the same thing about computers in general, about their ability to bring more depth of interactivity and detail to learning. Somehow I doubt lack of specific kinds of technology are the major hindrance to learning today, at least in developed countries, er, ahem, the US.
- samratjp 17y ago
  iCranks jokes aside, the biggest point that's important is that great teachers with decent tech can make wonders but great tech can't necessarily fix broken teachers. Well, the education marketplace in the U.S. is not that organized and I can't think of that many great apps out there I would personally use in an academic setting. The reason why I think Apple has a whack at this because the iPad is very primal in the way you interact with the device; but the App store is what makes the iPxx successful.
  - thwarted 17y ago
    You think Apple has a whack at bringing technology into the classroom/education because the interaction is primal? Never mind that Apple has traditionally had a major share of the education market, I don't think specific technology or UX/UI is the major hindrance to continued/increased use of computers in the classroom, it has more to do with finances, politics, perception of what it means to be "computer-literate", the lack of applications that are truly educational (rather than mostly rote memorization and bookkeeping (the kind that exist now that we agree that we wouldn't use in an academic setting)).
SamAtt 17y ago
A couple things. First the OLPC is rugged while the iPad is decidedly not. Second those few steps you speak of are pretty big. $250 to $499 doesn't seem like that much until you consider the yearly income in these places... Uruguay: $4,500 Peru: $2,800 Rwanda: $1,600 In percentage of yearly salary an iPad costs as much as a small car would for an American. I could see the possibility of an Android based tablet that was built to be rugged but I don't see Apple ever breaking into this market.
- samratjp 17y ago
  Points taken. But, again, I am well aware of the developing world constraints (as I grew up in one :-) and this was a thought experiment. Yeah, iPad is not rugged, but could be made that way for all we know. What will be a solution won't be an iPad, but something between an iPad and a netbook that runs Android. Who knows, OLPC might iterate to accommodate...

thwarted 17y ago

Cranks are not esthetically pleasing. And if Apple did create iCrank, you'd have to go to the Apple store to have someone replace it when it broke off. But we both digress... But seriously, they said the same thing about computers in general, about their ability to bring more depth of interactivity and detail to learning. Somehow I doubt lack of specific kinds of technology are the major hindrance to learning today, at least in developed countries, er, ahem, the US.

samratjp 17y ago
iCranks jokes aside, the biggest point that's important is that great teachers with decent tech can make wonders but great tech can't necessarily fix broken teachers. Well, the education marketplace in the U.S. is not that organized and I can't think of that many great apps out there I would personally use in an academic setting. The reason why I think Apple has a whack at this because the iPad is very primal in the way you interact with the device; but the App store is what makes the iPxx successful.
- thwarted 17y ago
  You think Apple has a whack at bringing technology into the classroom/education because the interaction is primal? Never mind that Apple has traditionally had a major share of the education market, I don't think specific technology or UX/UI is the major hindrance to continued/increased use of computers in the classroom, it has more to do with finances, politics, perception of what it means to be "computer-literate", the lack of applications that are truly educational (rather than mostly rote memorization and bookkeeping (the kind that exist now that we agree that we wouldn't use in an academic setting)).

SamAtt 17y ago

A couple things. First the OLPC is rugged while the iPad is decidedly not. Second those few steps you speak of are pretty big. $250 to $499 doesn't seem like that much until you consider the yearly income in these places... Uruguay: $4,500 Peru: $2,800 Rwanda: $1,600 In percentage of yearly salary an iPad costs as much as a small car would for an American. I could see the possibility of an Android based tablet that was built to be rugged but I don't see Apple ever breaking into this market.

samratjp 17y ago
Points taken. But, again, I am well aware of the developing world constraints (as I grew up in one :-) and this was a thought experiment. Yeah, iPad is not rugged, but could be made that way for all we know. What will be a solution won't be an iPad, but something between an iPad and a netbook that runs Android. Who knows, OLPC might iterate to accommodate...