A promotion in which a customer buying a $188 computer in the U.S. and Canada automatically donates a second one to a child in a developing country was extended until year's end, organizers said Thursday.
The Give One, Get One program will now run through Dec. 31, instead of ending on Nov. 26, according to the One Laptop Per Child program, a nonprofit spinoff from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The program said customers in the U.S. and Canada will pay $399 for two laptops, with one going to the buyer and the other to a child in such countries as Rwanda, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Haiti and Mongolia.
"In the past 10 days, we've experienced an outpouring of support from the public that is truly gratifying and encouraging," said Nicholas Negroponte, the program's founder.
Negroponte said they decided to extend the program because "so many people have asked for more time to participate either individually or in order to organize local and national groups to which they belong."
"We want as many people as possible to have the opportunity to act upon the giving spirit of the holiday season," he said.
The laptop has a homegrown user interface designed for children, boasts built-in wireless networking, uses very little power and can be recharged by hand with a pulley or a crank. Its display has separate indoor and outdoor settings so it can be read in full sunlight.
Mass production was delayed until early this month because of reluctance from some potential wholesale buyers.
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