A palm computer for online study of the Chinese language for students at Confucius Institutes around the world has been developed and will be available for purchase this year.

The palm computer, with the full name "Mobile Confucius Institute Study Terminal," is loaded with special software for online teaching, study, communications and entertainment.

Developed by Xiamen University, and several companies including Temobi (Xiamen) Science and Technology Development Co. Ltd., Huawei Technologies Company and Lenovo Group, the computer is a virtual college with libraries and classes, said Zheng Tongtao, director of the Overseas Education College at Xiamen University in Xiamen City in east China's Fujian Province,?Monday.

The terminal will be sold for about 2,000 yuan (about 294 U.S. dollars).

The first Confucius Institute opened on Nov. 21, 2004, in Seoul, capital of the Republic of Korea. As of July 2010, 316 Confucius Institutes and 337 Confucius Classrooms had been established in 94 countries and regions.