14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft is investing a fortune in the education sector, and the discounts that it offers every once in a while are living proof, but at the same time, the company is also working to encourage school districts across the world to adopt its products.
Today, it has revealed that the El Paso Independent School District in El Paso, Texas, decided to purchase a total of 20,500 HP Stream laptops running Windows 8.1 so that every student and teacher in the district would receive one not only to get access to technology but also to make teaching and learning more effective.
Microsoft brags about this new agreement because the school district actually refused to choose Google Chromebook devices and picked Windows laptops as its next purchase.
“Chromebooks are difficult to manage, the non-native Office applications require an Internet connection, and the management console cost makes Chromebooks more expensive than a Windows-based system. HP offered Windows 8.1 devices that would meet all of El Paso's needs for a lower cost than Chromebooks,” Microsoft says in a statement.
Office 365 access also offered
As part of the new effort, Microsoft says that the school district was already using Office apps, such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, but local IT administrators are now considering the rollout of Office 365 Pro Plus that would provide access to five devices at the same time.
Microsoft is clearly playing the winning card here because the company is investing a lot in the education sector, not only with such agreements but also by rolling out solutions that are specifically tailored for this industry.
For example, the Surface 3 tablet comes with a hefty discount for schools, while the company is believed to be preparing special Windows 10 SKUs that would be addressed to teachers and students and would obviously be available at a more affordable price.
The company hasn’t yet shared information on this new Windows 10 SKU, but leaked documents show that such a version is indeed in the works.