Dell unleashes new Latitude laptops, Chromebooks, and displays for the classroom

This week during the BETT 2017 convention in London, Dell introduced a new portfolio of laptops and monitors for the educational system. Overall, the company revealed three Windows 10 laptops and three Chromebooks for the K-12 student crowd across the globe, aimed at making the learning environment an easier, more fun experience. The two new monitors aim to do the same, offering huge screens and multi-touch input for better interactions between teachers and their students.

Dell Latitude 11 Education Series 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop

This model boasts a rubberized LCD and base trim to help absorb shock from bumps and devices drops. It also includes a fully sealed keyboard and clickpad just in case snack time turns into an accidental disaster. The convertible also promises all-day battery life thanks to the power-sipping Celeron and Pentium processors from Intel.

One thing to note is that the Windows 10 Latitude model supports input from Dell’s Productivity Active Pen peripheral. It also includes a rear-facing camera when the device is positioned into tablet mode. The screen is capable of rotating 360 degrees, offering Clamshell, Tablet, and Tent positions. The Windows 10 unit relies on 7th-generation Intel Celeron and Pentium processors whereas the Chromebook uses 6th-generation Celeron CPUs.

Dell Latitude 11 Education Series Laptop

With these units, Dell had mobility in mind as students move the laptops from desk to table for group assignments. They’re similar to the convertible models, only the screens are capable of opening a full 180 degrees so that they lay flat against the desktop surface for situations such as student collaborations around a single unit. They also promise all-day battery life due to the Intel processors combined with the 42-Watt-hour batteries.

Dell’s new Latitude 11 Education Series include features like a network activity light so that teachers know when students connect to the network (Chromebooks only), a full-size webcam, and a rubberized base trim to lessen shocks from accidental drops and bumps. As with the convertible models, the Windows 10 laptops rely on 7th-generation Intel processors while the Chromebooks use 6th-generation chips.

Dell Latitude 13 Education Series Laptop

Here we have a larger series of notebooks sporting a 13.3-inch screen. With the Dell Latitude 13 Education series, the company offers Windows 10 Home, Windows 10 Pro, Windows 7, Ubuntu, NeoKylin, and Chrome OS. The larger size enables more processor and connectivity options such as optional 4G LTE and an Ethernet port.

The Windows 10, Ubuntu, and NeoKylin units are based on 6th-generation and 7th-generation Intel processors whereas the Chromebooks only use 6th-generation chips. The non-touch units have an anti-glare component and the touch-capable models are protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass. These notebooks have a network light, too, for alerting teachers when students access the network.

Dell Interactive Touch Monitor C8618QT

Next, we move to Dell’s two interactive screens. For starters, we have the mammoth 86-inch model based on In-Plane Switching panel technology that’s known for its wide viewing angles and superb color depth. This interactive monitor has a huge brightness of 400 nits and an even larger resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 so that the students caught cutting up at the back of the class can’t blame it on their inability to see the lesson or presentation.

Dell Interactive Touch Monitor C5518QT

Finally, this interactive touch monitor is a smaller version of the 86-inch unit, sporting a 55-inch screen and a lower brightness of 350 nits. Outside the obvious physical aspect, the big difference with this unit is that it has one less HDMI port and smaller, 10-watt speakers. However, both have anti-glare and anti-smudge coatings to keep all those fingerprints from clouding up the lesson or presentation.