OLPC's XO gets previewed in its "final" form

We've anticipating final production runs of the OLPC XO for who knows how long, but the $188 laptop is finally in production and soon to be landing in the laps of school children the world over. The folks and Laptop Magazine got their hands on what is ostensibly the final production version and put it through its paces. Everything seemed to work as advertised: a dual-mode display providing readability in any light, a solid build that survives drops from four feet and keyboard spills, solar and pull-string charging options for unlimited battery life, and a hefty quantity of quality software for kids, but there were still some slow-down problems in the software, especially when switching between applications or browser tabs. We've still yet to see if the XO is going to enjoy widespread adoption in education, and still a bit bummed that the price has ratcheted up to nearly $200, but otherwise the computer does seem to fulfill a surprising quantity of what was originally promised.