The staff at OMPT has conducted extensive research to identify the most appropriate consumer electronics hardware for use by teachers in poor communities in the developing world. Our staff has tested dozens of products in an effort to identify products with desirable properties including reliability, long battery life, ease of use and low cost. Currently we have five configurations Canister, Mini Public Address System, Lifeline Adapter, Desiree and Boomer.
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Canister is a kit similar to Boomer. The Canister is smaller (about the size of a can of soup) yet it is almost as loud as the Boomer. It uses consumes less battery power than the Boomer.
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Mini Public Address System (MPA)
The MPA provides the highest level of acoustical volume. This system is very loud. The large
speaker and powerful battery enable the MPA to serve up to 100
listeners. It requires a larger solar panel and it is not practical to
recharge the batteries with a hand crank generator. The MPA is simply
an amplified speaker and does not have a portable media player built
in. The MPA can also be used with a microphone to amplify the voice of
the teacher.
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Lifeline Adapter (LLAD2)
The LLAD2 has a build-in FM transmitter
that sends the audio signal
from an MP3 file out to the speaker of the Lifeline radio. Compared to
other solutions this integrated package has significant benefits:
- The LLAD2 is based upon the Lifeline Radio platform which many NGOs, fieldworkers and end users are familiar with
- The LLAD2 facilitates the updating and repurposing if Lifeline radios that may have fallen into disuse because the users can’t receive radio signals during their leaning sessions
- Users do not need to connect the device to an external hand crank, battery or a solar panel because both are features of the Freeplay Lifeline radio
- Shipping costs are low because the LLAD2 kit is very small and lightweight; the Freeplay Lifeline radios are readily available in most countries.
- Users never need to remove batteries for recharging
- The cost is a small fraction of any other Portable Media Player pilot program
________________________________________________ These configurations below were used in our early trials. We found them to be cumbersome and less practical. Desiree is a kit comprised of a few discreet products from different manufacturers including a Portable Media Player (PMP) , solar panel, had cranked generator and battery holder In our first deployment, we chose the 1 GB Nextar PMP which retails for
$20 along with the Cyber Acoustics CA-MP301 battery powered speaker
which retails for $22 .
The PMP requires one AAA battery while the speaker requires four AA batteries.
On
sunny days the batteries are recharged with a tiny solar panel with an
integrated battery charger. However, the inclusion of this item might
add more complexity (too many products to manage for the end users).
On
cloudy days the batteries are recharged with a Lenmar Pro78 which can
be powered a small solar panel or powered by the Freecharge 12v hand
crank.
All
of the items combined in a single kit have been named Desiree because
it is comprised of several discrete products. In the coming months, we
hope to reduce the number of items and increase ease of operation.
Boomer is similar to Desiree, however the PMP and the amplified speaker are replaced by a "boom box". The Boomer is much louder than the Desiree, but also consumes battery power more quickly. It may require a larger solar panel and it may not be practical to recharge the batteries with a hand crank generator.
It is a classic BoomBox that also plays MP3 files from a USB drive or an SD card.
The JWIN requires 8 C batteries.