Once billed as the "$100 laptop," the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Project’s XO laptop has spent the past few years inching closer and closer to a $200 pricepoint. For a while there, it seemed that the device had reached a stable price of $175 but lo-and-behold, here comes yet another price bump: the OLPC project has announced that the XO "would cost $188 if mass production, expected to begin this fall, were to start now." Project spokespeople cited "currency fluctuations and rising costs of such components as nickel and silicon" as the causes for the increase, though they pledged to keep the price below $190. Hopefully, the price will eventually drop, once the unit goes into production and the manufacturing process gets streamlined. Until then, that $199 Eee PC might be a little too close for comfort.

For more on the price increase:
– see this AP story