As reported by the BBC and others, Amazon has announced it will begin selling OLPC’s XO unit this fall. The new unit will support dual boot to SugarOS or WindowsXP. OLPC’s first GiveOneGetOne (G1G1) program struggled late last year.
Many canceled their orders when shipping glitches and production delays hit the first XO laptop. This new unit is expected to begin in November. Pricing has not yet been announced.
Tags: OLPC, Sugar Labs, Amazon, XO, open source, globalization, trends
To say the last couple of weeks have been a PR nightmare for OLPC is an understatement. Some talented members of the initial team have departed while hints of a Windows solution is in the air. This past week they announced a new COO Charles Kane who oversaw the production of Sugar, the Linux based OS for the laptop.
To many the idea of OLPC embracing Windows is a step backward. What we will not know for some time is any “behind the scenes” negotiations between Nicholas Negroponte and Microsoft.