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Maybe it was the pressure of wanting to release their product as early as possible, but the makers of the OLPC XO-1 laptop sure have a lot of explaining to do regarding the recent news about widespread keyboard failure on their computers. Apparently, a lot of users are finding that most of the keys on their keyboard have been acting a bit funny lately, with some having keys getting activated by presses on nearby keys, as well as a few that keep getting stuck after being hit one. Which is definitely bad news, especially for the intended target market of non-techies and first time computer users.

The foundation’s official statement regarding this issue is that they still have not assessed the root cause of this problem, however they are open to return products, as long as you go through the same rigorous process as the other that have come before you. There is no way to make sure just how far out this problem has already spread, but you can bet that it’s pretty far, taking into account the large number of people that are aware of the existence of the OLPC, and not to mention the many organizations that have been quick to deploy OLPC’s in their institutions. Add to that the fact that OLPC is still in the process of actively deploying units, and you’ve got yourself a problem that is running out of control faster than you can say ”Negroponte." OLPC, is it really worth it?

Via [Slashdot]

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