"We are ready with the prototype of the machine. However, we need around Rs 30-40 lakh more of investments before we can commercially launch the product," I2IT dean (Academics and International Relations) Sunil Patil said on Tuesday.
NiceTop is currently priced at Rs 10,000 per unit, with keyboards and data in Indian languages and I2IT is planning to roll out the product in the villages of the country, he said.
The institute is scouting for finances and partnerships so that the price could further be reduced to around Rs 7,000-8,000, he said, adding, if I2IT gets proper support the product would be rolled out at below Rs 5,000.
NiceTop has a 32 bit processor, 64 MB RAM, hi-color monitor and is embedded with Linux OS. The costly CPU, which would have cost about Rs 25,000, has been done away with, enabling it to reach the farmers, he said.
It comes with an embedded client and a thin client, with many thin clients connected to a fat client (embedded client), Patil said.
The product would enable farmers to access weather bulletins, primary healthcare data, information on agriculture and prices of commodities in various markets, he added.
Thirty prototypes of the product are ready, however, "lot of work on content is yet to be completed," he said. The design of the prototype was developed at the I2IT, while components were custom made in Thailand, Patil said.
The institute intends to manufacture the machine in India, even though critical components would be sourced from global majors, who quote the lowest price, he said.
The product is in line with Simputer, a hand-held device which was slated to cost Rs 10,000 and was being rolled out in the country.
I2IT has to sell 8,000-10,000 units per month to make this project economically viable, and the institute intends to seek the help of its MBA students to help it meet this target, he said.
The institute is also seeking Internet connectivity "free-of-cost or on a subsidised mode" for the rollout of the product, which would help it provide it below Rs 5,000.
I2IT is in talks with various service providers for subsidized connectivity, he said.
