Rumors about Datawind being dropped from the Aakash project turned out to be incorrect; Kapil Sibal has officially confirmed that Datawind can still participate in the bidding process for the new improved version of Aakash tablet.
As per the contract (reference to the first version of Aakash), Datawind will still need to supply 100,000 tablets. It is true that the first version of Aakash had many issues like slow speed, problems with battery and touchscreen issues.
Taking clue from the previous experiences the GOVT has come up with improved specifications that will make the Aakash 2 more viable, while maintaining the cost at under Rs. 3,000 per unit. Suneet Singh Tuli, CEO of Datawind said that Datawind continues to be a serious player for current and future Aakash projects and the GOVT statement has proven that they are still part of the project.
So officially the Aakash 2 an upgraded version of Aakash tablet never took off. The bidding process has started again and if you visit Datawind’s aakastablet.com website its says makers of Aakash and Ubislate tablets. Datawind is accepting pre-orders for Ubislate 7+ tablets, I believe these are not Aakash tablets. Interestingly they carry the Aakash price tag, which makes me wonder that Datawind has already come up with an upgraded version then why is the GOVT looking for another option? The GOVT version of Aakash 2 (as of now) does not exist.
What the GOVT now wants is a low cost tablet with processing power of 700 MHz or above and with a capacitive touchscreen while keeping the cost at under Rs. 3,000. We will have to wait and watch who will be the official Aakash 2 manufacturer.
Source: Economic Times