The computers may cost more than one hundred dollars to manufacture in the beginning. But Nicholas Negroponte says he wants to cut the price even more.
To save money, the computers are expected to use the free operating system Linux instead of a product like Microsoft Windows. Users without electric power will be able to turn a wind-up handle to recharge the battery. A special full-color display will have the ability to change to a black-and-white image. That way, users could see it even in bright sunlight.
The three-day meeting took place earlier this month in Tunisia. The United Nations organized the conference to discuss Internet growth in developing nations.
I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Development Report.
The project is led by Nicholas Negroponte, chief of the Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Mister Negroponte first announced the idea of a one hundred dollar laptop computer in January. He just presented an early version of the computer at the World Summit on the Information Society.
The machines will not be able to store huge amounts of information. But they will be made to survive rough conditions. Also, the lime-green color should make them more appealing to children -- and less appealing to robbers.
M.I.T. has set up a non-profit organization called One Laptop per Child to develop the computer. Five companies, including Google and News Corporation, have each given two million dollars to finance the group. The plan is to sell the computers to education ministries that order at least one million of them.
A two hundred dollar version may be sold to the public.