Upcoming scooters in India

India's gear-less scootersmarket is growing well after launch of the first gearless scooter Honda Activa that dominated the two-wheeler market till date. After seeing the overwhelming response from the market, other two-wheeler players including Bajaj Auto, TVS Motors, Yamaha Motors, Suzuki Motorcycle and Piaggio. are also planning to launch their automatic transmission scooters in India.

Bajaj Automobiles India Limited, one of the largest two-wheeler market leader, is going to introduce the new Bajaj Blade soon in India. It may be launched with a 125cc, 4 valve, DTS -i engine, which can generate impressive maximum power and torque. Before two-years backs, the company had already launched an gear-less scooter, Bajaj Kristal. It has been discontinued by Bajaj Auto owing to low demand in the Indian market. The company is now expecting that the new Blade will be more attracting scooter than the phased out model. The Bajaj Blade has also been equipped with latest technology and eye-catching graphic design.



Meanwhile, TVS Motors is enjoying excellent market share with its popular scooter TVS Scooty and Now it might get new version, TVS Streak Hybrid. The Chennai based two-wheeler manufacturer is also planning to launch new TVS Neo by the month of October this year with the price tag of around Rs 48,000. The new TVS Neo comes loaded with 110cc, Single Cylinder, SOHC, 4 Stroke engine which is believed to perform well. TVS Motors has already launched Neo in Indonesia.



India Yamaha Motors is also ready to introduce new premium scooters in the auto market, which will compete with Honda Activa, TVS Scooty, TVS Wego and Hero Honda Pleasure. The all new premium scooters will be known as Yamaha Nouvo and Yamaha Bws. According to some auto website reports the all new Yamaha Scooters will be available in the Indian auto market by the end of this year.



Suzuki Motorcycles, which is most popular for their superbikes, is also all set to release its new Suzuki Skydrive in the country which may be launched along with TVS Neo. Both thescooters are expected to be launched at the same time. The new Suzuki Skydrive seems quite same as TVS Neo. Both scooters designed on the same platform. Suzuki Skydrive might be introduced at an attractive price range of Rs 45,000 (ex-showroom).



Piaggio Vespa Lx 125 is also in headlines from few days for launching in the Indian auto market. Piaggio is one of the largest three-wheelers market leader, which is planning to launch its new Piaggio Vespa Lx 125 in the year 2012. A decent number of new gearless scooters are coming very soon in India with the new cutting-edge technology to the ahead generation who really wants to get new automatic geared scooter.

India's prototype touch-screen computer for $35

India unveils prototype for $35 touch-screen computer

The Indian government has unveiled the prototype of an iPad-like touch-screen laptop, with a price tag of $35 (£23), which it hopes to roll out next year.

Aimed at students, the tablet supports web browsing, video conferencing and word processing, say developers.

Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said a manufacturer was being sought for the gadget, which was developed by India's top IT colleges.

An earlier cheap laptop plan by the same ministry came to nothing.

The device unveiled on Thursday has no hard disk, using a memory card instead, like a mobile phone, and can run on solar power, according to reports.

'Manufacturer interest'

It would cost a fraction of the price of California-based technology giant Apple's hugely popular iPad, which retails from $499.

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Mr Sibal said the Indian tablet, said to run the Linux operating system, was expected to be introduced to higher education institutions next year.

The plan was to drop the price eventually to $20 and ultimately to $10, he added.

Unveiling the gadget, the human resource development minister told the Economic Times newspaper it was India's answer to the "$100 laptops" developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US.

"The solutions for tomorrow will emerge from India," Mr Sibal said, reports news agency AFP.

Last year, one of the ministry's officials announced it was about to unveil a $10 laptop, triggering worldwide media interest.

But there was disappointment after the "Sakshat" turned out to be a prototype of a handheld device, with an unspecified price tag, that never materialised.

To develop its latest gadget, the ministry said it had turned to the elite Indian Institute of Technology, and the Indian Institute of Science, after a lacklustre response from the private sector.

Mamta Varma, a ministry spokeswoman, said the device was feasible because of falling hardware costs.

Several global manufacturers, including at least one from Taiwan, had expressed interest in making the device, she said, although no deals had been agreed, and she declined to name any of the companies.

The project is part of a government initiative which also aims to extend broadband to all of India's 25,000 colleges and 500 universities.

In 2005, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) unveiled the prototype of a $100 laptop for children in the developing world, although it ended up costing about double that price.

In May, Nicholas Negroponte - of the MIT's Media Lab - announced plans to develop a basic tablet computer for $99 through his non-profit association, One Laptop per Child.