The government of Ghana under the Ministry of Education on September 3, 2021, handed over some 350,000 Teacher Mate1 laptops to the Ghana Education Service for onward distribution to Ghanaian teachers at a cost of 70% borne by the government and 30% by the teacher.
A number of teachers across Ghana have disclosed their fear over how the laptop would end like the previous Better Ghana Agenda Laptops but a thorough look at the specifications of this laptop may suggest otherwise.
Here is what the Ghana Education Service has to say about the choice of the brand;
All about the Teachers Mate 1(TM1) laptopEnjoy learning anytime, everywhere with unparalleled functional features, performance, and all-day battery life of TM1. Get access to learning applications and educational resources on the go. TM1 is every learner’s companion at an exceptional value.The TM1 is a world-class laptop built to inspire learning and superior performance. The TM1 is provisioned with a custom-built desktop application that delivers electronic learning and teaching contents presented in a user-friendly electronic format. This makes learning fun and enables equitable access to teaching resources needed by teachers in rural and urban areas. The ebook and learning application is designed to work offline and online to accommodate the local peculiarities and challenges.
Now let us take a closer look at the features and specifications of the new TM1 laptop;
Processor ~Intel Gemini lake-R Celeron N4020 11-2.8 Ghz
RAM ~4 GB
Hard Drive ~Solid State Drive 256GB
Display ~1366 x 768 pixels, 14 inches
Connectivity
I/O Ports
USB 3.0 x1 +2.0x 2 ports
1x Micro SD card (up to 128GB)
1x Mimi HDMI
1xRJ45 port
1xMicrophone/ 2x Stereo speakers 8R/TW
Bluetooth 4.0
Wifi ~802:1 b/g/h
Other Features
Front Camera
Power
Battery Pack ~Lithium-ion polymer Battery 5000 mAh
Max Voltage 7.4V
AC Power Adaptor Input 100-240 VAC 50-60 Hz
Output Voltage 12.0 V 2.0A
With these features, the laptop looks good on paper. Now let us wait to hear the testimonies and comments in the future.