The Best Chromebooks for Students

To find the best Chromebooks for students, it’s important to think about how technology and education are connected. Today all students need reliable, durable, and high-performing computing devices with seamless connectivity to achieve what the National Education Association has termed “digital equity,” defined as:

“Digital equity ensures that all school-aged children have equal access to the resources they need for remote learning. These resources include internet and computer access. It is important for all children to have these resources, regardless of their circumstances. This ensures that they can fully engage in remote learning from home.”

— National Education Association, “Digital Equity for Students and Education Report”

Schools have done a great job at providing Chromebooks to students and there is a lot to choose from. However, making the right Chromebook technology investment is essential. IT departments at school districts and private schools should consider Chromebooks based on three essential criteria: future-proof performance, flexibility, and sustainability.

Future-proofing for technology challenges with student Chromebooks

Many schools offered 1:1 devices to students during the pandemic. Today, because of the age of these devices and the increasing computing power needs for applications such as AI, it’s time for a technology upgrade. Consider devices that can withstand the constant demands of schoolwork, can connect from anywhere, and offer a long-term plan for updates to ensure school district investments enjoy an excellent return on investment (ROI).

Chromebooks provide all the latest technological advancements with the processing power that students need today. Consider 4G and 8G RAM, at least 64G flash memory, and the processing power of Intel’s N100 or N200 chipsets.

Additionally, consider your connectivity plan. Some schools are now extending their networks beyond the school walls with private LTE networks, as demonstrated in a recent implementation in Tukwila. School districts are looking to provide connectivity at home in addition to at school, regardless of student’s economic situation and availability of a home network. Ensure your Chromebooks for students offer LTE connectivity capability. Thinking ahead, also ask about 5G potential connectivity plans as 5G reduced capability networks will eventually replace LTE.

One advantage that Chromebooks deliver over traditional laptops in the future-proof category is what’s commonly called “AU,” or Automatic Updates. According to Google, “Chrome devices (e.g. Chromebook, Chromebox, Chromebase, Chromebit) receive automatic updates that enhance both the device and its software. Automatic updates deliver the latest features, maintain device security, and apply across the operating system, browser, and hardware. Chromebooks receive 10 years of AUE.” Longevity of use is built into Chromebooks, maximizing a school district’s technology investment.

 


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Maureen Cooney
Account Manager
571-386-9797

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Check out the current line of Chromebooks from CTL.

Chromebooks will get 10 years of automatic updates

When Chromebooks debuted in 2012, their affordable price tags helped make personal computing more accessible. That also made them a great fit for the education world, providing schools with secure, simple and manageable devices while helping them save on their budgets. In fact, Chromebooks are the number one device used in K-12 education globally, according to Futuresource. Plus, they’re a sustainable choice, with recycled materials that reduce their environmental impact and repair programs that help them last longer.

Today, we’re announcing new ways to keep your Chromebooks up and running even longer. All Chromebook platforms will get regular automatic updates for 10 years — more than any other operating system commits to today. We’re also working with partners to build Chromebooks with more post-consumer recycled materials (PCR), and rolling out new, power-efficient features and quicker processes to repair them. And at the end of their usefulness, we continue to help schools, businesses and everyday users find the right recycling option.

Let’s take a closer look at what’s coming, and how we consider the entire lifecycle of a Chromebook — from manufacturing all the way to recycling.

10 years of automatic updates

Security is our number one priority. Chromebooks get automatic updates every four weeks that make your laptop more secure and help it last longer. And starting next year, we’re extending those automatic updates so your Chromebook gets enhanced security, stability and features for 10 years after the platform was released.

A platform is a series of components that are designed to work together — something a manufacturer selects for any given Chromebook. To ensure compatibility with our updates, we work with all the component manufacturers within a platform (for things like the processor and Wi-Fi) to develop and test the software on every single Chromebook.

Starting in 2024, if you have Chromebooks that were released from 2021 onwards, you’ll automatically get 10 years of updates. For Chromebooks released before 2021 and already in use, users and IT admins will have the option to extend automatic updates to 10 years from the platform’s release (after they receive their last automatic update).1

Even if a Chromebook no longer receives automatic updates, it still comes with strong, built-in security features. With Verified Boot, for example, your Chromebook does a self-check every time it starts up. If it detects that the system has been tampered with or corrupted in any way, it will typically repair itself, reverting back to its original state.

You can find more information about the extended updates in our Help Center, Admin console or in Settings.