Low-cost computers haven’t been cheap enough for billions of people in developing countries. But Hector Ruiz, CEO of AMD, wants to equip 50% of the world’s population with computers by 2015. That’s why AMD launched its PIC (Personal Internet Communicator), a complete, stripped-down computer built around AMD’s recently acquired Geode microprocessor. The Geode runs at about 366MHz and will cost $185 without a monitor. So far, the PIC has been picked up by a telephone company in India and cable TV companies in Mexico and the Caribbean. Those companies are giving away the PIC for free in exchange for monthly service plans. The system includes a cheap version of Microsoft’s Windows CE OS, and it enables Internet browsing via broadband or narrowband modems. Ruiz recently noted that AMD has a successor to its current Geode in the works to further its PIC ambitions.
