The Simputer “has not yet reached the rural market in a big way,” says Simputer co-inventor Swami Manohar, according to an Associated Press report. Simputer-maker PicoPeta, which began shipping the Simputer one year ago, has sold fewer than 2,000 units, well below its 50,000 unit first-year plan, the AP says. An additional 2,000 have reportedly been sold by Encore software, the other company making Simputers.

Meanwhile, India-based Techtree reports that Bharat Electronics, which manufacturers the Simputer for PicoPeta, is embarking on a cost-reduced redesign, in order to make the Simputer more affordable and competitive with other devices available in India.

PicoPeta launched the first retail versions of the Simputer last April, describing it as a Linux-based “platform for social change” that could inexpensively bring easy-to-use computers to rural Indian villages. Three models were introduced, priced from $240 to $480.

PicoPeta's Amida Simputer
(read more details here)
The “Simputer” was initially described in a concept paper presented at the first Bangalore IT.com conference in 1998. Wholesale Simputer models have been offered by Encore, the other Simputer-maker, since July 2002, but have been criticized for failing to meet the original $200 target price point.

Read the full AP story here, the Techtree story here, and our previous Simputer coverage here.

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