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The Lenovo Chromebook Duet looks like the first Chromebook I actually want


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Posted

Lenovo are releasing a new Chromebook that looks like the surface pro laptops but comes with all accessories including keyboard for just $279, not sure how much it will be in the UK.

 

It has been getting some really good reviews

 

I am thinking it might be good in a primary school or if you need something portable but really cheap.

 

BTW it comes with 8 years of OS updates, which is amazing for a Chromebook.

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Posted
I am thinking it might be good in a primary school or if you need something portable but really cheap.

 

You're right - it does look like a nice, affordable device. Any experience with devies with detachable keyboards in a school setting? On the one hand, I can forsee the keyboards and screens getting separated. On the other hand, it potentially makes fixing broken keyboards / screens way easier, especially if they sell the keyboards as separate spares.

Posted
Any experience with devies with detachable keyboards in a school setting?

 

Only with some Android tablets that had a Bluetooth keyboard. The keyboards never got used, but this was more down to the device not really being suitable to be used with a keyboard.

 

I can see KS1 wanting only the tablet and KS2 wanting the keyboard attached. Its best of both and at a cost the school will not bork at.

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Posted

My experience with that type of detachable keyboard? They're a disaster in schools. Flimsy and easily broken.

 

The hard docking style ones are much better.

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Posted
MediaTek Helio P60T Octa-Core 4GB ram, 2 cameras, pogo pins for keyboard, ac wifi, bluetooth 4.2, usb-c for charging/connection
Posted
My experience with that type of detachable keyboard? They're a disaster in schools. Flimsy and easily broken.

Do you think that would be more of an issue for secondary aged pupils and above? I can see older kids being rough with them but in primary schools the pupils are always being supervised, it will probably be the teaching staff that get them from the charging trolley etc.

Posted
You're right - it does look like a nice, affordable device. Any experience with devies with detachable keyboards in a school setting? On the one hand, I can forsee the keyboards and screens getting separated. On the other hand, it potentially makes fixing broken keyboards / screens way easier, especially if they sell the keyboards as separate spares.

 

My experience with that type of detachable keyboard? They're a disaster in schools. Flimsy and easily broken.

 

The hard docking style ones are much better.

 

Do you think that would be more of an issue for secondary aged pupils and above? I can see older kids being rough with them but in primary schools the pupils are always being supervised, it will probably be the teaching staff that get them from the charging trolley etc.

 

My experience of that sort of device in a junior school: Teachers and kids will carry them around in the sort of dumb way that will see the screen detach under gravity. Broken screen.

 

"Supervision" doesn't happen, and the "teaching staff only" handling of trolleys will last about a week.

Posted
My experience of that sort of device in a junior school: Teachers and kids will carry them around in the sort of dumb way that will see the screen detach under gravity. Broken screen.

 

"Supervision" doesn't happen, and the "teaching staff only" handling of trolleys will last about a week.

 

I look after 4 primary schools that have had laptops and tablets for many many years, the staff always get them from the trolleys and return them. In the past 5 years i have had zero damaged tablets and one damaged laptop but that was just a a single key missing from the keyboard.

Posted
I look after 4 primary schools that have had laptops and tablets for many many years, the staff always get them from the trolleys and return them. In the past 5 years i have had zero damaged tablets and one damaged laptop but that was just a a single key missing from the keyboard.

 

Gizza job!

Posted
My rule is: here's your personally assigned laptop, you break it, you get one older than you are until you pay for it. Also applies to staff.
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Posted

Emergency! The laptops in the trolley or the trolley is faulty! They're getting hot and the charging socket has melted in two of them.

 

I don't think that using a Micro USB that has clearly been caught in the door is a warranty claim.

 

USB.jpg

 

What's more worrying is that the trolley was emptied, unplugged and pulled away from the wall so that I could remove the damaged chargers. I got called away and on return found that both damaged plugs had been used again, even though there were 20+ other plugs. Heaven knows, it's not as if they get stowed in the numbered slots!

Posted
To be fair the Duet is primarily aimed at consumers. The 10e is the Edu version, same internals but keyboard is missing the touchpad

 

I normally end up getting the consumer versions anyway. Example, Dell Latitude's are the business / school versions of the Vostro's, but the Latitudes are heavier, the bevels are much thicker, they cost more and also have ports we will not use. Both can come with the same warranty of 5 years and you can also get the battery switched out on the Vostro for a longer lasting one.

  • 4 weeks later...
Posted (edited)

Mine is due in the next couple of days. Pretty excited about it to be honest!

I've also managed to snag myself the HP Rechargable USI Pen to go with it. It's currently in stock on the HP Store, but as you probably all know, these things are currently as rare as rocking horse doo-doo!

 

https://store.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=8NN78AA&opt=ABB&sel=ACC

 

If I were putting this, or the 10e in school it would have to be in a one to one setting, separating parts has always been a bit of a hassle wherever I've worked!

Edited by paulkerton
Posted
just a note about the duet its not very good about outputting to a second screen (granted that may not matter to you but it might) https://chromeunboxed.com/lenovo-chromebook-duet-extended-display-broken-usb-c/

It's a fair point to make, but for me it's a secondary device to pick up and go with, rather than a daily driver machine. I'm not looking to connect it to a second screen, more so grabbing it to head to meetings so I can keep my Pixelbook on the desk and connected up to my second screen. Also as a personal device for casual browsing and home use, but the second screen experience isn't something that personally bothers me all too much.

Posted
It's a fair point to make, but for me it's a secondary device to pick up and go with, rather than a daily driver machine. I'm not looking to connect it to a second screen, more so grabbing it to head to meetings so I can keep my Pixelbook on the desk and connected up to my second screen. Also as a personal device for casual browsing and home use, but the second screen experience isn't something that personally bothers me all too much.

 

i agree its probably an edge case but id hate for someone to buy one to use "docked" say and it not do it well

Posted
i agree its probably an edge case but id hate for someone to buy one to use "docked" say and it not do it well

Oh absolutely, but I'd like to think that anyone here who is picking it up would know enough to see it is a Helio P60T with 4GB RAM and asking anything with that level of processing power to run 2 million pixels at 60fps would be a bit harsh on the poor thing! :biggrin1:

Posted
Just a note about the duet its not very good about outputting to a second screen

 

Just going to be my 'bung in bag' second device. I suspect we might see a few variations of this over the next few years with improved specs + cost.

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Posted
Oh absolutely, but I'd like to think that anyone here who is picking it up would know enough to see it is a Helio P60T with 4GB RAM and asking anything with that level of processing power to run 2 million pixels at 60fps would be a bit harsh on the poor thing! :biggrin1:

 

true but i can see people using it as a chuck in the bag then lob in a dock and carry on when back at a desk. if all you run are gsuite stuff its probably powerful enough

Posted
Oh absolutely, but I'd like to think that anyone here who is picking it up would know enough to see it is a Helio P60T with 4GB RAM and asking anything with that level of processing power to run 2 million pixels at 60fps would be a bit harsh on the poor thing! :biggrin1:

 

Any mobile phone can do that, not really that hard any more

Posted
Any mobile phone can do that, not really that hard any more

In a £350 package, including USB-C to HDMI output asking a mobile phone to output 262,656,000 a second at 60fps without any performance lag or hits?

Yeah, sure. Whatever you say. :rolleyes:

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