Would you buy a tablet just because it is made in India?

The African country of Congo has got its own tablet to be proud of. A company called VMK is bringing the first-ever tablet for Congo which is due to be released this September. When a computing product is launched in Africa or Asia, the product is expected to be economical for greater adoption. This VMK tablet isn’t particularly cheap. It costs $400, runs Google Android’s latest Gingerbread operating system, features a 7-inch touch screen, 1.2 GHz processor, 512 MB RAM and 4GB memory with WiFi connectivity.

In the tablet world, this VMK tablet is an OK tablet. Its price isn’t economical and the features are just what we expect from a tablet. The buzz surrounding the VMK tablet is about its country of origin. Where exactly is it made? Now everyone knows that all tablets are made in China. That’s an universal truth every kid should be learning right now in school. Even iPad is made in China by Han Hoi (Foxconn). So where the VMK tablet being made isn’t a question worth asking.

When peeled further, it was revealed that the tablet has been ideated by VMK’s CEO Verone Mankou, the design is further helped by Mr Mankou’s friends in Canada and Asia, and the tablet is assembled in China. That’s typically how tablets, smartphones or other gadgets take shape in today’s world. India has its fair share of tablets.

From the $35 tablet of the HRD Ministry to the recent Reliance 3G tablet and Beetel Magiq, all tablets are made in China. The ideas might be coming out of India but the manufacturing is happening in China. There are a few exceptions though. India’s Notion Ink has a full design team which conceptualized the Adam tablet which was manufactured in China. India’s Bharat Electricals Limited have made a tablet completely in India in its Bangalore manufacturing facility.

Now where the tablet is made, which part comes from where, is all good fodder for academics, industry analysts and innovation trackers. For the consumers or potential consumers, does it really matter?

A tablet from Congo or a tablet from Nigeria, after all the tablet maker is selling something for which they are seeking your money. When it comes to spending your hard earned money, it really doesn’t matter where the tablet parts came from. What really matters is, is the tablet worth it?

Made in Congo or made in China, the consumers real question should be :  Is it made for me?