Filipinos develop Rizal e-tablet, a tablet plus e-reader combo

Laguna province of Philippines has unveiled a tablet named after the country’s hero Jose Rizal, who was executed by the Spanish in 1896 for his struggles against colonialism. The tablet PC, which is developed to be distributed in schools in the province, has been named, Rizal e-tablet. The device was officially released by Laguna provisional governor Jeorge E.R. Ejercito Estregan in a ceremony to unveil the statue of Rizal in Calamba as part of 150 birth anniversary of the national hero.

Rizal e-tablet

Laguna-based semiconductor company Ionics has manufactured Rizal e-tablet, which will also serve as an e-book reader. Proponents of the device describe the device as an alternative to Apple iPad tablet and Amazon Kindle e-reader. The device will be distributed among school students with hundreds of pre-loaded electronic textbooks and reference stuffs.

The project to design a special tablet for schools students is certainly a revolutionary step in Philippines, a backward Asian country. Indeed, the method of learning using tablets and internet connectivity will open up new horizons in education sector of the country.

Following the tablet, the company will launch a microprocessor named after Jose Rizal. The U.S-based Filipino chipmaker BiTMICRO is going to manufacture the microprocessor, which is “the first commercial all-Filipino made processor that would run a multitude of devices,” according to the company’s chairman and CEO, Rye Bruce.

The first prototype of the Rizal microprocessor will come in a year. The development process will cost around $2 million and the fabrication will add another $2.5 million, BiTMICRO said. For the project, the Silicon Valley firm is working with several leading chip and technology companies like Texas Instruments, Synopsis and educational institutions such as University of the Philippines, De La Salle University, Ateneo de Manila University, Don Bosco Technical College, Mapua Institute of Technology and many others.

Via: NewsBytes