Intel releases ruggedized laptop for India

Newsfactor.com reports that Intel has launched a platform for ruggedized PCs in remote, equatorial environments. The Community PC is a key part of Intel's Jagruti project for rural India. Jagruti means "awakening" in Sanskrit.

[W]eather conditions -- heat, dust, and humidity -- and unreliable power sources can compromise typical PCs used in such environments.

Intel created the Community PC platform to operate within these constraints. The platform includes a ruggedized PC chassis that Intel claims can withstand large temperature fluctuations and high humidity. It also has a removable dust filter and integrated air fan to regulate the temperature of the motherboard.

 The idea is to have entrepreneurs set up kiosks with the PCs and provide access to local government forms and records.

The kiosks could help those living in rural areas avoid having to travel into large cities to complete necessary paperwork. They simply would visit a local kiosk and have a kiosk "operator" input their data online.

That's drastically different from Nicholas Negroponte's ambitious One Laptop Per Child project, which as the name says, advocates giving kids computers. But there's a need both for student support via OLPC and the kiosk model for citizens.

According to the Intel press release, the CPC boasts these features:

• Ruggedized chassis: The chassis has been designed to withstand dusty conditions, varying temperatures and high humidity. It has a removable dust filter and integrated air fan to regulate the temperature of the motherboard. The chassis is designed to keep the motherboard cool at temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius and the PC resistant to humidity levels of 70 to 85 RH (Relative Humidity).
• CPSU: The PC is equipped with a Customized Power Supply Unit which is comprised of an Integrated Power Supply and the UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) unit, which allow the PC to maintain continuous load power in the event of a power outage.
• Low power consumption: The total power consumption of all peripherals is less than 100 watts.
• Access Control:The platform comes installed with a certificate-based access, allowing banks to verify the validity of installment payments against the purchase of the PCs.