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Fuzzy Logic Dell brings touch-screen netbook for education to life
Fuzzy Logic Dell brings touch-screen netbook for education to life | Dell brings touch-screen netbook for education to life |
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| by Alex Zaharov-Reutt | |
| Tuesday, 19 May 2009 | |
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Page 2 of 3 Dell says the 2100 “has unique features for schools like bright primary colors and a more rugged, ‘rubberised’ design that is easier for children to carry and use safely. It also offers wireless connectivity that can be monitored by the teacher with a Network Activity Light on the netbook lid.” Featured Whitepaper
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Dell also notes that its “optional touchscreen is a first for an education netbook and makes the Latitude 2100 a perfect choice for enhanced student interaction, assessment, and for special education teaching.” Meanwhile, the 2100 also offers “administrators a range of services making it easier to deploy and manage,” including the ability to remotely update computers, or even apply a “poison pill” mechanism to shut computers down if they are reported as stolen. Dell launched its new netbooks at a Sydney school today, with some Year 7 students on hand to be the first to play with the new models and try out the touch-screen goodness. Sadly multi-touch screens are still far too expensive to be rolled out at this stage, but a Dell representative indicated that more touch-screen technology would find its way into Dell models, especially given Windows 7’s emphasis on a vastly improved touch interface, and that multi-touch screens were definitely being considered for future models, especially as prices decline. That said, the touch-screen technology works well with Windows Vista, XP or Ubuntu, depending on the OS chosen, and the Year 7 students loved being able to interact with their computers using a combination of fingertip, keyboard and trackpad mouse. When asked what the expected pricing would be for a Latitude 2100, we were told that a model with no touch screen, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, next day support and Ubuntu 9.04 would cost approximately AUD $700. Choosing a model with a touch screen would add approximately AUD $50 to the price, while choosing more memory, a solid state drive, a Windows OS, a webcam and other options would be priced accordingly, with specific details yet to follow. Dell has also cleverly included two Kensington lock sockets on either side of the netbook, allowing an approximately AUD $20 shoulder strap or $20 “quick connect” handle to be purchased and installed, thus making the 2100 ever more portable. Colour choices, more quotes and the actual specs are on page 3, please read on! |
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