Akash tablet project nearly-dead because of corruption?

Desmond

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Something does not seem right. About this. The tablet was a fail, but meeting a demise owing to corruption, that s***s.

After Aakash’s blockbuster press conference, the pressure was on to get tablets out, as quickly as possible.

In the weeks that followed, DataWind and Quad Electronic continued to make them, while trying to resolve issues with I.I.T. Rajasthan. They even enlisted a former I.I.T. graduate to try to smooth things over, to no success, Suneet Singh Tuli, DataWind’s chief executive, said. Meanwhile, reports from the students who had the test tablets were filtering back to the Ministry of Human Resources Development: they wanted a longer battery life and a faster processor, among other things.

In November, hoping to get the project moving again, the Ministry called a meeting between all parties involved. During the meeting, it was agreed that DataWind would supply an upgraded tablet, with a longer-lasting 3200 milliamps hour battery, more sophisticated operations and a faster-acting 700 megahertz Cortex A8 processor instead of the 366 megahertz ARM 11 processor required in the initial specs. DataWind would be given up to March 31st to deliver the tablets, and I.I.T. Rajasthan would send specific testing criteria to DataWind.

After the meeting there was a sense that “finally things were back on track,” a government source told India Ink.

But the differences only seem to have mounted in the months that followed.

I.I.T. Rajasthan’s eagerly awaited testing criteria were not delivered until mid-January. When they arrived, DataWind executives were shocked.

The criteria included being able to withstand four inches of rain, enduring shock tests when “mounted in a vehicle,” and when subject to “sudden acceleration, braking, or turning while transporting the units.” These tests are commonly run on military-grade laptops designed to be used in battlegrounds that retail for thousands of dollars. In fact, some of the criteria appear to be lifted from those designed for Hewlett Packard’s rugged notebook launched in 2004.

“You can’t impose U.S. military standards on a Rs. 3,000 device,” Mr. Tuli said told Mint newspaper at the time. “Unless this issue is resolved, we won’t be able to provide more devices.” He registered a complaint with the ministry.

Also in January, DataWind’s subcontractor Quad Electronic, without DataWind’s knowledge, signed an agreement with I.I.T. Rajasthan to manufacture what Mr. Tuli said he believes is a rival low-cost tablet. DataWind executives were tipped off after they saw a senior Quad Electronic executive on the daily flight to Jodphur, and the Quad Electronic executive tried to hide his face with a newspaper, Mr. Tuli said.

Quad Electronic confirmed in April it had signed a memorandum of understanding with I.I.T. Rajasthan, but denied it would be producing a competing tablet. “We have signed an M.O.U., but without spelling out a particular product. We have an agreement for technical expertise for products, services and IP [intellectual property] creation,” said Raminder Soin, managing director of Quad Electronic in an interview with India Ink.

Mr. Soin said that his company was not working on low-cost computing devices like Aakash. Instead, it is developing “smart television boxes” and communication devices, he said.

In late February, a committee headed by R. Chandrashekhar, a senior bureaucrat in the government’s Information and technology department, met to discuss the project. In the weeks that followed, the government decided that the project should be transferred from I.I.T. Rajasthan to I.I.T. Bombay, with the consent of the director of I.I.T. Rajasthan, Mr. Kalra.

Aakash is now being led by Deepak B. Phatak, a professor at I.I.T. Bombay, who set up the Affordable Solutions Lab in 2003, which aims to develop low-cost technological solutions.

In a telephone interview, Mr. Phatak said the manufacturer and I.I.T. Rajasthan had “some intractable problems,” which prompted I.I.T. Rajasthan to request the ministry that the project be taken away from them.

He did not elaborate on what exactly these problems were, but did say that the tablet never reached the field trial stage.

I.I.T. Bombay is optimistic about the future of Aakash, he said. “It is a tiny step for India, we want to take it confidently and without falling,” Mr. Phatak said.

DataWind has now severed all ties with Quad Electronic, and is working with a new subcontractor. It is unclear whether DataWind will even be producing the Indian government’s tablet going forward, despite winning the tender last year.
On April 13, I.I.T. Bombay sent a single-party tender to DataWind for 100,000 tablets.

But last week, Mr. Phatat said I.I.T. Bombay hopes to finalize details about procurement and testing of 100,000 tablets within the next ten days, which would include drawing up a new contract. He added: “I.I.T. Bombay wants to start from scratch.”

Mr. Tuli would not estimate how much money the company has lost to date working on Aakash.

Source

Further reading:
The Tangled Tale of Aakash, the World's Cheapest Laptop - NYTimes.com
After Aakash delays, Datawind losing senior executives - Economic Times
 

montsa007

~Bulletproof Monk~
They are already under a lawsuit
New twist in Aakash tablet controversy - Corporate News - livemint.com
 

thetechfreak

Legend Never Ends
this tablet will always be stuck in the assembly line. One day someone gets contract then next day and so on..
All these numbers are just optimistic. We wont see it on the street in the near future IMHO.
 
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Desmond

Desmond

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I wonder what will happen to those who have already pre booked it. Will they get a refund if the project is scrapped?
 

kg11sgbg

Indian Railways - The Vibrant and Moving INDIA
^ GOD Knows!!!!
Me being one of the numerous fools who rushed and jumped into UB*IS*LA*E7+ bandwagon,without acknowledging the fact that D*at*w*nd is a f****** company,whose performance and reviews are nearly dismal.

I repent very much for paying in advance to this f****** company ,not waiting and keeping up the patience for the Marvellous "Funbook" by MICROMAX.
I feel greatly remorsed and depressed for my idiotic attitude about the buying of this UB*IS**TE7+ Tablet.:pullhair:

Personally, I feel the cheater company will just show excuses and will digest our money without any refund whatsoever.In fact,with great level of mischief and slyness ,the company might wind up its operations in India.
We will be left to bite the dust...@$%^&*&*:)oops::deadbored::banghead::
 
Last edited:

Tech&ME

Banned
^ GOD Knows!!!!
Me being one of the numerous fools who rushed and jumped into UBISLATE7+ bandwagon,without acknowledging the fact that Datawind is a f****** company,whose performance and reviews are nearly dismal.

I repent very much for paying in advance to this f****** company ,not waiting and keeping up the patience for the Marvellous "Funbook" by MICROMAX.
I feel greatly remorsed and depressed for my idiotic attitude about the buying of this UBISLATE7+ Tablet.:pullhair:

Personally, I feel the cheater company will just show excuses and will digest our money without any refund whatsoever.In fact,with great level of mischief and slyness ,the company might wind up its operations in India.
We will be left to bite the dust...@$%^&*&*:)oops::deadbored::banghead::

cool down mate...

the MD of Datawind, appeared on Gadget Guru on NDTV last saturday. He appologied for the delay and assured that the production capacity has now been increased.

You will get your ordered product soon.
 

kg11sgbg

Indian Railways - The Vibrant and Moving INDIA
^Thanks mate for your positive support.
But when????The soon word is so relative,that I might have to wait a year or more!!!
I booked the Tablet on Jan'12 for the March 2012 booking slot. Send them the cheque,which was encashed by their end on March 9 th,2012.
They assured that I shall receive the Tablet latest by the last week of April or the First week of May.

Till today,no such acknowledgement from them...no contacts,whatsoever.
 

ritvij

rated R
^ GOD Knows!!!!
Me being one of the numerous fools who rushed and jumped into UBISLATE7+ bandwagon,without acknowledging the fact that Datawind is a f****** company,whose performance and reviews are nearly dismal.

I repent very much for paying in advance to this f****** company ,not waiting and keeping up the patience for the Marvellous "Funbook" by MICROMAX.
I feel greatly remorsed and depressed for my idiotic attitude about the buying of this UBISLATE7+ Tablet.:pullhair:

Personally, I feel the cheater company will just show excuses and will digest our money without any refund whatsoever.In fact,with great level of mischief and slyness ,the company might wind up its operations in India.
We will be left to bite the dust...@$%^&*&*:)oops::deadbored::banghead::

you paid them already?????????
i got a mail too in january that they will ship it next week if i paid them via dd immediately... they offered me free shipping saying it was only for me..i said fcuk off! did not get it delivered till date....:p
 
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Desmond

Desmond

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DataWind lost a lot of money because of delays from the government and mismanagement of IIT Rajasthan. On top of it, a lawsuit against Quad Electronic would prove to be a huge obstacle, delaying them further until a decision is reached. I think even if it comes, it will take some time. Only question is how much time.
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kg11sgbg

Indian Railways - The Vibrant and Moving INDIA
...
...
Only question is how much time.

Again the answer : "GOD knows!!!"

Till I and other aspirants(UBISLATE7+ customers) does not receive the Tablet( FULL WORKING/FUNCTIONAL CONDITION) in our hands, we never believe about anything from Datawind.
 
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Desmond

Desmond

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Again, I don't think its DataWind's fault, they got the test specs late, they were asked to perform military grade tests for a Rs. 3k tablet, also, they were funded late. Plus, they are now in a lawsuit with Quad Electronics, their partner, for making a deal to release their own tablet.

Feel sorry for these guys (DataWind), they have been screwed over pretty bad. If such a trend continues, we will never see Akash or another affordable tab in India.
 

V.VAIDYA

Broken In
Good that i waited for a capacitive version and now watching the involved persons quarelling among each other, putting blame and suing instead of collaborating.
At last the project wil be abandoned and public players will take over.
 

manohar387

Broken In
Its crazy u know. Such a hyped device and with such an ambitious reason to be the worlds cheapest tablet creator. This damn govt is incapable of resolving important stuff like this ,instead they concentrated more on who has watched cricket or who is attending a movie release.

The Aakash is trash now and even if it does eventually come out , a lot more worthy products are coming out quickly. So I wouldn't expect much of an after sales support for this . I ain't gonna buy this piece of crap

For those who pre ordered it , bad luck guys just go and find something that works
 
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Desmond

Desmond

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I have learnt an important lesson. Never trust anything that the government plans/schemes. It will always go to the dogs in the end.
Posted via Mobile Device
 

CommanderShawnzer

Steam High Templar
I have learnt an important lesson. Never trust anything that the government plans/schemes. It will always go to the dogs in the end.
Posted via Mobile Device

you realized that now?
because most indians know when our govt. starts a scheme/plan/whatever it ultimately serves the purpose of filling the pockets of those officials/politicos concerned
 
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