Intel hopes to join school tablet project

Intel, the world's largest processor maker, is teaming up with computer makers to develop a tablet priced below US$100.

Students of Wat Rachatiwas School show mock-up tablets. Intel will give 45 tablets to the school as part of its Future Classroom project to demonstrate the use of tablets and IT systems supporting the 1:1 eLearning model.

The move opens up a chance for the firm to be eligible to bid for the state's One Tablet Per Child project next year.
The government plans to spend 4.48 billion baht on 1.6 million tablets for Prathom 1 and Mathayom 1 students. It has set a unit price for the tablets at 2,720 baht and 2,820 baht respectively.
Thailand was selected among 20 countries for Intel's Future Classroom project to demonstrate the use of tablets and IT systems supporting the 1:1 eLearning model, according to John Davies, general manager of the World Ahead programme at Intel Corporation.
Intel has provided 10 tablets for the Office of the Basic Education Commission to use at Wat Rachatiwas School and Taweethapisek School this month and next month. It will evaluates the outcome in February.
The company recently started a project to use tablets as learning devices in classrooms in Lebanon and Turkey.
Intel has sold more than 10 million laptops in 80 countries as well as three million children's computers.
Mr Davies said the company was working with computer makers to make tablets priced below $100 to meet the government's medium price.
Intel will also offer teachers a laptop to create an electronic curriculum and a server appliance including a classroom management programme to support the One Tablet Per Child project.
Mr Davies said the global education market is growing 10-20% annually by 70 million units, which is higher than the global computer market.
"In the next few years, we will see lower-cost tablets and convertible computers used in the classroom," he said.

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