Greentech Start-up, elLoka, Gives Rural Kids Access To Computers

It’s small and it runs on solar power. It’s light, requires little maintenance and it runs on a license-free operating system, HomeOS. India-based greentech start-up elLoka, founded in 2009, demonstrated its GreCo device is at TechSparks, Bangalore, last week.

It is a 100 gram device that allows you to run simple PC tasks with applications like email, presentations, spreadsheets, and word processing, or use services like Facebook and YouTube. It’s not a shinny gadget that people in the city would want, but it’s enough to bring smiles to many kids living in rural areas.

The presentation by co-founder K.A Padmanabham wasn’t the flashiest thing I’ve ever seen. But he managed to inspire the crowd with two things:

1. His ambition to provide affordable PC access to developing nations
2. He is 75 years old, but hasn’t given up his entrepreneurial dreams.

I spoke to him briefly after the event and congratulated him for the inspiring presentation. He had a kind demeanor and thanked me profusely while he directed me to the elLoka booth. I look at the device and couldn’t find a single power connection — everything is indeed solar powered.

The representative at the booth explained that the device can normally operate for up to four hours, and can run 24/7 if under direct sunlight. Each device costs just Rs. 6,000 (USD $130), which is an affordable price that could can give an entire village sold access to a PC. To put that in perspective, the price of one MacBook is equivalent to 20 GreCo devices.

Here’s a simple demo to give you a better idea of how it works. Our compliments to elLoka on creating a device that could make such a big impact in rural areas.

GreCo Technical specs

• 4 USB ports
• 1 Ethernet Connector
• VGA & AV-Out
• Microphone and Headphone Connectors
• 2 LED signals (Power, Status)
• Power Supply via a 12V AC-DC Adapter
• 1GB Storage (expandable via SD cards, of course)
• 256 MB of DDR RAM