Tablets for the Classroom?

[UnderOpenSky]

I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with this? I've had a client ask for a quote for 15 tablets, either Android or iOS. The apps they want to use are available on both platforms, although my preference would be Android as it's what all the staff here use and if we have to support them, it seems to make sense to stick with what we know. They want us to be able to manage them centrally to roll out apps, so I'm thinking using Endpoint. Not asked (yet) but I assume we will need to lock them down quite tightly.

I'm also looking for charging solutions that make charging 15 tablets at a time easy and tough cases to make them harder to break, but probably not with the USB port obscured, because of the charging thing.

 

[existentialist]

Schools like iPads better, because of the (perceived) security and "walled garden" of the iPad ecosystem.

I suspect that going Android would require a bit more care in the configuration and "locking down" of the tablet, and reassuring the end user that it was up to the job, but I am sure that is a road that has already been walked many times.

(which is not to say some similar level of care would be necessary with the Apple products, but there are fewer avenues for things like side-loading, should some techie smart type be up to that )

 

[souljacker]

I was in a school last week who used flight cases for iPads that would power whilst in storage. Something like the stuff on here: iPad Charging Station | Cases, trolleys and chargers

I'm not sure what is suitable in the Android sphere for this but the schools I've worked in use combinations of iPads, MDM (Jammf usually) and Apple TVs to cast to school screens. Apple used to give hefty education discounts too.

 

[Sasaferrato]

Is cost an issue, Apple kit is expensive? (That said our Lenovo tablets were about £300 a pop).

 

[skyscraper101]

Is cost an issue, Apple kit is expensive? (That said our Lenovo tablets were about £300 a pop).

I think I bought the latest ipad for around £320, so factoring in the ex-VAT and educational discount that can probably be reduced to around £220 at the most.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Thanks all. I've spent more time then I want over the last few days looking at tablets and Apple are surprisingly strong at the £300 price point. I can't get a direct price from Apple easily, but my reading suggests discount would probably only be about £20. There are a few Android options that could tick the box like the S6 lite. Had a chat in person with the person who will pull the trigger and he has a slight preference for Android, but will also accept advice.

I've looked at the JamF option, which I think has been used in the past. It's got a monthly fee per device which isn't the end of the world, but I think we're interested in Endpoint as we're going to be rolling it out for PCs to a lot of clients next year, so it would fit what we're doing. They get all the their MS365 subs free being a school, so it may be included with that. Selfishly it's also something I want to learn more about, so there is that.

Some of those cases look interesting, there's a lot of sites with interesting solutions, with eye watering prices or even more scary, no price at all. There's all things on Amazon that look like glorified magazine racks with cables, which could do a similar job.