Thanks to 50x15, Children at Diepsloot Are Learning Online for the First Time

Working with partners across the globe, AMD is bringing technology to the people who need it the most with the 50x15 initiative. In South Africa, the benefits of the ambitious and wide-reaching effort conceived by AMD CEO Hector Ruiz can be seen on the campus of the Diepsloot Combined School.

UCOMS, AMD's African distributor for the company's Personal Internet Communicator (PIC), recently installed 38 PICs at Diepsloot, a school in a suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa. The PIC is a new category of affordable consumer devices designed to provide managed Internet access for people in global, high-growth markets to enhance communications, entertainment and education opportunities. The devices were installed on July 11th, replacing obsolete non-internet enabled PCs.

The installation effort illustrated the efficiency and versatility of AMD's modular PIC devices. Total install time was a little over one hour with five installers, only two of whom had any technical experience. UCOMS installed the PICs while children were on break — they returned to school on July 20th — demonstrating the ease with which AMD's new technology can be introduced within a new environment.

For AMD, the Diepsloot experience is a significant example of the effectiveness of the 50x15 initiative. AMD has created a video documentation record of the total installation process, and will be monitoring usage of the PICs at the school on an ongoing basis. AMD plans to leverage this learning with its involvement with both the NEPAD e-schools initiative, as well as with other school programs worldwide.