One Education, an Australian non-profit partner of One Laptop per Child (OLPC), aims to breathe new life into the project. It revealed a prototype of a new version of the educational computer that takes some pages out of Google’s modular smartphone project Ara.
The XO-infinity is a modular laptop, meaning the main components like WiFi antenna, battery, screen, camera and core are easily interchangeable through a Lego-like system. This makes the laptop easily repairable or upgradeable by simply switching out the desired components.
Through the system One Education hopes to reduce electronic waste as older or broken components can be changed separately instead of replacing the entire laptop. One Education aims for a lifespan of ten years instead of two for most laptops and tablets.
The XO-infinity can be used as stand-alone tablet or as a laptop and there are different processor units which enable it to run on Android, Linux or Windows.
The first working model of the XO-infinity is expected to be shipped in August with a public launch in early 2016.
Further Reading
- To infinity and beyond: A computer designed to outlast a childhood | Medium
- OLPC Australia to Launch a Modular, Hybrid Laptop/Tablet Called the XO Infinity | The Digital Reader
- Meet Rangan Srikhanta, the former refugee who wants to change the world one laptop at a time | Sydney Morning Herald