Computers (almost) everyone can afford

Frederick Noronha

If Ravi Pradhan had his way, hardware vendors would find it rather difficult to load unwary buyers with the maximum amount of computing power they could sell—power that Pradhan says users simply don’t need.

RAVI PRADHAN is confident that price-sensitive India could gain from avoiding the herd-mentality of using the fastest and latest computer processor even for simple tasks like running an office computer

Pradhan, a returned Silicon Valley Indian-expat who spent 23 years with leading IT companies there, is helping set up ‘affordable computing solutions labs’, the first of which was inaugurated at IIT-Bombay in mid-April. This is only one of many steps towards his goal, says he.

“Today a lot of work has gone into R&D for computer software. But little has been done on optimisation. We need to know what exact hardware could be optimally used for a particular solution,” says Pradhan, who is India country manager for Via Technologies.

One of the goals of the lab is the setting up of some 60-plus computers of various capacities, at IIT-Bombay, which can be used by anyone wanting to test their software functionality and hardware requirements, says Pradhan.

These PCs are being “permanently given, not sold” by Via Technologies to IIT-Bombay. Via, over the recent years, has grown into a billion-dollar hardware manufacturing company, operating mainly out of Taiwan.

Pradhan’s next goal is to build links and similar centres with other IITs.

“We want to take India to the next level (in hardware). In the world of software, people here have already done a phenomenal job,” says this mechanical engineer and former senior engineer at IBM, one of the expat Indians to strike it big in the hardware world in Silicon Valley before opting to return home to India.

If his plans materialise, Pradhan sees some 30 such labs across India. “We would like the IITs to give a third-party, honest opinion.” This plan, says he, could cost “one or two million dollars” and take up to two years to implement.

“If there are times when my solution (Via processors) do not work, I’m fine with that,” says he. But Pradhan is confident that price-sensitive India could gain from avoiding the herd-mentality of using the fastest and latest computer processor even for simple tasks like running an office computer.

“People say lowering the cost of computers (to Rs 15,000) is doable in the next two years. Actually that’s not true. It’s here today!” he proudly proclaims.

Recently, Pradhan linked up with Rajesh Jain, who heads Netcore Solutions, a company focusing on hardware-software solutions to lower the cost of computing in India.

“Jain has some great ideas. By providing hardware solutions, we can (really move ahead together),” says Pradhan.
Via claims that the low-cost computers that it is bringing in to India to expand the computing base of the country have been doing well. “In March 2003 we sold 12,000-14,000 computers. That’s a decent number,” claims Pradhan.

Each computer—with an 800 MHz processor, 128 MB RAM, a CD-ROM drive, floppy drive, 20 GB hard disk, internal modem, keyboard, mouse and monitor—costs Rs 15,000 plus taxes. Lower-end ‘thin-clients’, which can be used on networks, cost as little as Rs 11,000. Service charges could be extra.

“For me, expanding the computing base in India is a mission...even if I have to put in hundred-hour weeks,” says Pradhan.