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Dell's New 13" Chromebook: Bring Google Apps for Education into your Classroom

10/12/2015

11 Comments

 
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The folks over at Dell were kind enough to send me one of their new, 13” Chromebooks for review from the education/classroom perspective.  If you’re not familiar with a Chromebook, imagine a laptop that runs on a web-based Google operating system, instead of the traditional Windows or Mac operating system.  In many ways, it’s a lot like an Android OS, if you’re familiar with what that looks like.  ​

Many schools are switching to Chromebooks for education because they offer a cheaper (and at times more effective) possibility for 1:1 classroom devices.  With a Chromebook, you wouldn’t use traditional software like the Microsoft Office Suite or the Adobe Suite, but you would have Google App alternatives, such as Google Docs.  You can find out more about all the different apps for education that Google offers here (Google Apps For Education = GAFE)
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Also, depending on your school and classrooms needs, Chromebooks can be a great fit, especially considering their price range (generally from $100 - $500).


Just to get started, and before we dig into the Dell review, here’s a short video about Chromebooks in education from Google.
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Two of my favorite features of the Chromebook come up in this video, the speed, and the battery life. The 13” Dell I reviewed for this piece was even faster than the 8 second mark; clocking in at 4 seconds (from being completely shut off) for the three times I measured it.  And while I didn’t leave it on until the battery died, it lasted for over two weeks of use and sleep time without dropping below 90% of charge.


To get into a little more specifics on this particular device, here is a video from the Dell team:
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​And for those interested in the hardware specs, Dell offers an option with 2gb and 4gb of RAM (for $399 and $429 respectively) as well as a touchscreen model and an 8gb RAM model for just over $600.  As far as hard drive space, they have a 16gb and 32 gb option (both of which are solid-state drives - which is what allows for the incredibly fast boot-up time) and all come standard with WiFi cards, 1 USB 3.0 and 1 USB 2.0 port, a micro-SD slot, and an HDMI port.


So, if you do decide you’re looking for Chromebooks for your school, I would absolutely recommend checking the new Dell 13” out.  It’s a solid machine, with an incredibly fast start-up time, that even offers a spill-resistant build which is wonderful for classrooms.  While it doesn’t have a ton of hard drive space, you don’t really need it, since one of the goals of the Chromebooks is to have everything stored in the cloud, so that students can use whatever device is available.  
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​On the other hand, if you do decide that Chromebooks are a good fit for your school, but you’re having trouble deciding on the model, I’d recommend checking out Google’s Chromebook Guide, which lets you filter your search by your school or district’s needs.


With all that in mind, the new Dell 13” is a solid and sleek machine, that offers the perfect amount of screen real estate (in my mind at least - 11” is never enough, and 15” is never fun to transport), at a great price, and has solid hardware.  It’s definitely worth considering for your classroom, school, or district.
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The opinions expressed in this review are my own.
I was not compensated for writing this review. 
11 Comments
Susan
10/13/2015 08:57:30 am

Hi, Thank you for covering this. I have recently given virtual classroom instruction using the Click Meeting program - which allows students on Chromebooks to attend live class. Most of our classes are taught via Blackboard Collaborate, which does not (at least not yet) work with Chromebooks. More and more of our online students are using Chromebooks. While the Click Meeting has its limitations, it does allow for student teacher interaction well. A big downside is that our lessons have slides for students to grab tools and interact, and while students can draw on a plain whiteboard, they cannot interact with their tools on a prepared powerpoint. That would be a great improvement.

Reply
Mike
10/13/2015 10:01:21 am

Thanks for reading Susan, and that would definitely be a great improvement, I agree. Glad to hear Click Meeting at least solves some of your issues though!

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Jo
12/22/2015 04:54:26 am

The Dell CB 13 has a decent built, but the lid on ours warped after just 2 months and wouldn't close all the way. We had purchased an onsite service warranty, and the technician made the problem 100 times worse (now the lid stays open over half an inch) and scratched and gouged our previously pristine machine. We spent hours and hours with Dell "customer care" (a joke of a name) both on the phone (after 3 hours, a supervisor hung up on my husband) and in chat (another 2 hours). Dell won't provide a refund, and after our horrid experience I want to warn everyone that Dell doesn't stand behind their products or service. Right now, the Dell CB 13 is only available from Dell, so buyer beware. Other Chromebooks would be a far better bet (as would any computer by any other manufacturer). Despite positive reviews of the Dell CB 13, you're taking a huge risk buying one.

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Mike
12/23/2015 06:55:22 am

Hi Jo,

I'm very sorry to hear about your experience, and thanks so much for sharing here. Good to know about the difficulty implementation side of things as well. Thanks for much for reading and for taking the time to leave your feedback and experience as well.

Mike

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Lisa
9/18/2016 02:48:22 am

I totally agree. Terrible customer service. They really don't. I had a horrible experience with the desktop. June 2016

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Lee Teyler
1/29/2016 07:27:31 pm

Need options of selecting the peripherals for operating, i.e. selectable RAM, SSD, Display etc.

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Ted
2/11/2016 08:48:55 am

If you run a website called "Ed Tech Roundup," you should really familiarize yourself with the difference between RAM and "processor." As in: "...Dell offers a 2gb and 4gb processor (for $399 and $429 respectively) as well as a touchscreen model and an 8gb processor model..." You're using the word "processor" incorrectly, and you're not using the word RAM. It makes you seem like you don't have a passing familiarity with computer hardware, and shouldn't even be shopping for yourself, let alone a classroom of kids.

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Mike
2/11/2016 09:45:28 am

Thanks for reading Ted and I appreciate the feedback. Occasionally these mistakes do slip through, and it's been corrected. Thanks!

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Bob link
2/12/2016 11:48:03 am

I really would like to try one of these. However, my last experience with Dell tech support and warranty service was TOTAL HELL. I finally did get a monitor replaced under warranty, but the amount of time I spent on the phone during the six week period to make that happen I probably was making a only a few dollars an hour with the refurb replacement. CAVEAT EMPTOR. They hope you give up, but they earn a lot of non-returning customers after the hell they put them through.

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Mike
2/12/2016 02:31:22 pm

Hi Bob,

Thanks for reading and thanks for your feedback as well. Unfortunately, I've heard similar stories about schools dealing with Dell customer support. It seems like there are a good number of people who have had experiences much like yours, so I definitely would recommend checking out other Chromebook providers as well. Hope you have a great weekend!

Mike

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brandon link
1/13/2022 01:00:04 am

Thank you so much for sharing all this wonderful info about printers!!! It is so appreciated!!! If you are facing any issues on hard drive, then follow the simple steps given in https://hard-drives.co/recover-data-from-dead-seagate-external-hard-drive

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