Submission + - Widespread Hardware Failures on OLPC's XO-1
otakuj462 writes: Many participants in OLPC's "Give 1 Get 1" program that occurred last November, are now encountering what has come to be known as the "stuck key" problem, in which one or more of the keys on their XO-1 laptop's built-in keyboard become stuck in an activated position, or are activated when adjacent keys are pressed. As of January 30th, the official word from OLPC is that the root cause of this problem is unknown due to the fact that "[t]here are several manufacturers of the keyboards":
So far we don't know of any _reliable_ method of fixing the keyboard or the exact root cause.
It is unknown just how widespread this problem currently is, as the 30-day manufactuer's warrantee has already expired for most G1G1 participants. However, the OLPC forums are full of reports. OLPC is currently deploying the XO-1 to children in Mongolia and Peru, as well as other developing nations. If OLPC is actively deploying units with known, critical hardware bugs, without a dedicated support infrastructure in place, to children who have never seen a computer before, should they still be considered to be a responsible organization? Did OLPC deploy their hardware too soon?
