Here’s something we never expected to see: the Aakash tablet (AKA the Ubislate) will be getting a software upgrade to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, according to Suneet Singh Tuli, the CEO of Canadian electronics manufacturer Datawind. Tuli says that after the slightly upgraded Aakash 2 launches in two to three weeks, users will get an Ice Cream Sandwich software upgrade six to eight weeks later. Tuli didn’t say if it would be delivered over-the-air or as a separate PC download, the latter of which would be difficult for many Indian students at which the device is aimed.

The original Aakash made headlines when the Indian government announced plans to purchase the low-powered Android tablets en masse, and subsidize their prices down to the equivalent of $35 for students and teachers. The Aakash 2 (Ubislate 7+) is a significant update, though hardware-wise it still compares with lower end Android smartphones. It’s equipped with a single-core 800mhz processor, though it keeps the 256MB of memory and 2GB of storage space. Plans continue for a dual-core version later this year, and there are already talks of trial programs in American schools in Philadelphia.

Datawind’s promise seems enthusiastic to say the least. The Aakash 2 doesn’t meet the recommended specifications for the much more strenuous Ice Cream Sandwich – not by a long shot. 256MB of RAM has been known to make Android 2.2 Froyo chug along, and even Google wouldn’t upgrade its Nexus One developer phone (1Ghz processor, 512MB of RAM) to the latest version of Android. Datawind can compile and distribute the update based on Android’s open-source code, but if they manage to actually install it on the low-end tablet, it’s hard to imagine that it would run well. We’ll be keeping an eye on this one.

[via PC World]

15 COMMENTS

  1.  AJITH KUMAR COCHIN KERALA Don’t send any money to datawind for akash tablet.otherwise you lost your money..I have been send DD for rs 2999 for akash 2 on march 26 /2012.till I didint get my tab they are cheting me.
    my booking ID is PMDEAFC2C176.

  2. i have booked the ubislate in early march 2012, my booking id is PMCB713. i have an advance payment of 2999 through cheque no. 330702(punjab national bank ).
    till know i didn’t get a single reply from datawind….. i think i have made a big mistake by paying in advance ………help mr

  3. Mind you they do say that ICS is a bit faster than Honeycomb so maybe there is hope. And of course Datawind can alter the code I suppose so they may have a chance of cleaning it up a bit.

  4. i got ubislate7 before 3days it wont to power on after many try finally it starts. then what i see it have very hard touch screen then performance is slow very very slow & in every 15 minutes it s going to hang then we have to reset & it again start with slow perforamnce. when i call for issue nobody ready to service very bad after sales service
    baba aadam ke zamane ka tablet lagta hai
    i advice to all customers don’t waste money on aakash tab go for mtnl penta tab price is 3699 only 699 rupees more & get best tab in this range

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