IDF is where most things are happening right now, and there have been more than a few announcements over the last couple of days. The last one to reach us is about Intel’s second-generation Classmate PC. The new Classmate PC falls into the category “netbooks”, and, much like the old model, has been designed to withstand a lot more rugged handling than regular laptops. The difference between the Classmate PC and regular netbooks is that it’s intended for developing countries and their school systems.
“Only 5 percent of the world’s children today have access to a PC or to the Internet,”, said Andrew Chien, Intel vice president, Corporate Technology Group and director of Intel Research. “Education is one of the best examples of how technology improves our lives. We have seen how technology helps teachers create fun learning experiences more efficiently. We have also been touched by children’s excitement when they are inspired by technology. The Intel-powered classmate PC is one of the ways we support the IT industry in spreading the benefits of technology in education for children around the world.”
Generation two of the Classmate PC is based on Intel Celeron M processor, sport 9″ screen, 512MB RAM, 30GB harddrive and webcam for communication. The main communication will be through the 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and mesh network capabilities. The 6-cell battery should hold up long enough, but it doesn’t say for how long in the press release.
It supports both Linux and Windows XP, and comes with an option of pre-installed educational software.
Chien also added that future Classmate PCs will be based on the Atom platform.
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