The $188 "$100 laptop"

It seems that $100 laptop seems far and far away since OLPC organization announced that the laptop now is planned to cost $188. Earlier, it was announced to be $176 and the $100 seems like a long term goal.

The price increase is blamed on a variety of factors such as currency fluctuations, rising cost of components, etc. Now seems that the short term goal is to keep the product under $190 which is almost twice the initial price.

While less than 200 dollars (£99) for an innovative, wireless-enabled, hand-powered laptop is a relative bargain, a price nearly twice the project's memorable nickname promised could make it harder for One Laptop Per Child to sign up international governments as customers.

Those governments are expected to give the computers to children for them to keep and tinker with, which the project's founders believe will cause critical thinking and creativity to blossom.

One Laptop Per Child says it has commitments for at least three million of its rugged "XO" computers, though it will not disclose which countries are first in line. Among the nations that have shown interest are Brazil, Libya, Thailand and Uruguay.

The "XO" machines feature an open-source interface designed to be intuitive for children, a sunlight-readable display, very low power consumption, built-in wireless networking, and a pull cord for recharging by hand. The laptops are being made by Taiwan's Quanta Computer, the world's leading manufacturer of portable computers.