A public school system in Texas is ditching its aging fleet of laptops in favor of new hardware from Apple. Facing a massive surge in maintenance fees, the district recently approved a $12.9 million contract to bring iPads and the new MacBook Neo to its classrooms. Officials decided to make the switch after their old computers became too expensive and difficult to keep running.
Repair bills push the school board toward newer student devices
The district previously relied on Google powered Chromebooks for its classrooms. Over the last year alone, workers logged over 6,600 repair tickets. This resulted in almost $470,000 spent just on maintenance and support. District representative Harrah noted that replacement parts frequently cost over $100 per piece, making it hard to justify keeping the old fleet.
After looking at alternatives from Lenovo and Asus, the school board found that switching to Apple actually offered lower costs over a four year period. The new deal includes zero percent financing on laptops and very low financing for iPads. It also brings AppleCare plus coverage and the option to resell the devices later. Harrah also mentioned that students need experience on machines they will actually see in the real world, pointing out that few workplaces rely on Chromebooks.
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To pay for the hardware, the district will use its current cash reserves for the first payment. Future costs will be covered by existing replacement budgets. Once students have used the new MacBook Neo and iPads for four years, school officials will check their condition to see if they can last a little longer before needing another upgrade.
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