Annuar Musa Tweets Preview of Potential RM750 Student Tablet But Netizens Have Mixed Feelings About It

By Lara Kramer • 05 Apr 2022 in News

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Annuar Musa, our Minister of Communications and Multimedia, took to Twitter over the weekend to tease photos of a new student tablet, while announcing that the PerantiSiswa Keluarga Malaysia programme is expected to launch for registration on the 15th.

The programme is a Government initiative in collaboration with selected telecommunication companies to supply a tablet device to every B40 student in institutions of higher learning (IPT). Approximately 600,000 students stand to gain.

From the photos, the tablet resembles a small laptop, complete with a classic stylus. Although it looks promising, the minister was sure to note that the pictures featured were merely an example and unofficial.

According to a previous report, the government has budgeted approximately RM750 per unit. Other details of the deal include that the tablet must have a display that is at least 10.1″ across, 4GB of RAM, and come with a keyboard and stylus.

While some netizens were pleased that the product’s appearance matched the government’s specifications based on their announcement in back in March, others have shot down the gesture altogether, even comparing to other generous government donations such as Syed Saddiq’s aid for Muar.

Another Twitter page also directly commented below the politician’s tweet, saying that the standard of the gadget was comparable to products readily available online for a cheaper price, and therefore a rip-off if it’s priced at RM750.

Besides that, Twitter user @SyedAkramin pointed out that,

“With a budget of RM450 million, you should be able to buy 292,397 units of a proper laptop like the Acer Aspire 3 which costs RM1539. Much better to do the job than a brand-less tablet with questionable durability.”

Annuar Musa has since responded to the matter, revisiting the illustrative nature of the photos and ensuring concerned citizens that the open tender procurement process for the Student Device Program is still ongoing and KKMM is committed to providing quality devices and from brands that consumers trust.