Stop me if you’ve heard this one before — rugged computer, durable laptop, fun colors, nifty little carrying handle! Ok, I’m going to guess by the confused look on your face that you’re not quite sure what I’m talking about. Well, I could be talking about my very first Apple laptop (the Apple G3 iBook, aka The Clamshell) or I could be talking about Intel’s new convertible Classmate PC.
As skeptical as I was at first about the Classmate PC and it’s resemblance to Apple’s Clamshell, I’m actually very intrigued by it now! Especially since it is Netbook!!!
Photo courtesy of ClassmatePC.com
The Classmate PC is designed with kids in mind! The Classmate PC is built to be more durable than the standard netbook and includes a built-in case with a handle for easy portability. This netbook, unlike other kid targeted netbooks, is not designed around a specific cartoon character or kids show, but it still has a kid-friendly design. The Classmate PC is targeted toward K-8 students and is rumored to include educational software.
While the Classmate PC has been around for a few years now, the new Convertible Classmate PC has a fun, fresh little twist! And I mean twist in the most literal sense! The screen on the convertible Classmate PC can be twisted so that the netbook transforms from from a netbook to a slate! That’s pretty cool!!!
The convertible Classmate has not yet been released and pricing is not available, but I’ll be very interested to see how it performs. The idea is absolutely fabulous and I think it would be perfect for my preschooler! The extra durability factor boosts this netbook up pretty high on my list of ‘must haves’!
