The Hindu Business Line : HCL’s two low-cost laptops to be available from Jan 26

New Delhi, Jan. 16 The hackneyed phrase ‘small is beautiful’ assumed a new meaning when HCL unveiled two new products to signpost the ‘future of computing’.

The Chief Executive, Mr Ajai Chowdhury, emphasised the theme of shrinking computing by producing both machines out of a small briefcase at the launch event here on Tuesday.

Available nationwide from January 26 will be 2 ultra portable PC platforms: The MiLeap X Series is a People’s PC — albeit with full functionality — with a 7-inch LCD screen, 2 GB of solid state internal storage, 512 MB of memory, fuelled by an Intel Celeron mobile chip. To ruggedize it for Indian conditions and also make it ‘child proof’, the X Series has additional cushioning around the display and keyboard.

The operating system is an Ubuntu flavour of Linux, though users are free to port a Windows version if they choose, adding an external hard drive through the USB port. Slots take standard wireless data cards that telecom providers such as Reliance Telecom and Tata Indicom have been offering in India, but a CD/DVD drive has been dispensed with to achieve the low selling price of Rs 13,999.

The MiLeap Y Series uses a faster Intel processor, doubles the memory and adds an 80 GB hard drive — the type sported by hand-held devices like iPods.

This allows the makers to preload Windows Vista Home Premium edition and throw in a Web cam. The 7-inch screen is touch sensitive — which allows the machine to be used like a tablet PC.

The weight is kept to 960 gm — almost half a kg lighter than the Series X — and HCL’s roadmap for this ultra compact targets a Super DVD drive some time next year.

The cheaper model is seemingly aimed at the widest spectrum of consumers — from schools, to travelling professionals to first-time home users — and HCL seems to have hopes beyond the educational sector targeted by Intel when their Indian engineers designed the Classmate PC, which is clearly an inspiration for this offering. Its sub-Rs 14,000 pricing makes it an aggressive offering in this category.

The Y Series is priced at Rs 29,999 and HCL’s claim that this was almost half the price of similar international offerings, might be tested sooner rather than later.

Similar PCs

A number of ultra compact PCs with similar form factor are entering the market — Asus’ EeePC is just one early entrant — and competition can be trusted to drive down prices systematically in 2008.

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