Tech Shout!

Microsoft has officially announced that OLPC’s low-cost XO laptops will now feature the Windows OS.

The trials of the low-cost XO laptops with Windows OS are expected to start from June in key emerging markets. Microsoft and OLPC have agreed to work with governmental and nongovernmental organizations for making the pilot project a success.

“Transforming education is a fundamental goal of Microsoft Unlimited Potential, our ambitious effort to bring sustained social and economic opportunity to people who currently don’t enjoy the benefits of technology,” said Craig Mundie, chief research and strategy officer at Microsoft. “By supporting a wide variety of affordable computing solutions for education that includes OLPC’s XO laptop, we aim to make technology more relevant, accessible and affordable for students everywhere.”

“From the beginning, the goal of OLPC has been to use technology to transform education by bringing connectivity and constructionist learning to the poorest children throughout the world,” said Nicholas Negroponte, founder and chairman of OLPC. “Today’s announcement, coupled with future plans for a dual boot version of the XO laptop, enhances our ability to deliver on this vision. In addition, OLPC will work with third parties to port its user interface, called ‘Sugar,’ to Windows.”

Currently the XO laptop runs on the Linux OS. Moreover, the laptop features a built-in video camera and dual-mode 19.1 cm/7.5″ diagonal TFT LCD 1200×900. The rugged notebook further boasts various connectivity options such as 802.11b/g /s wireless LAN, 3 USB 2.0 ports and MMC/SD card slot.