Microsoft launches new educational products, where Google claims success

The battle for the classroom is still raging for a while. Today, Microsoft unveiled new products specifically for the education market. At the same time, Google claims that its Chromebooks are more popular than ever, partly because of the classrooms that Microsoft also focuses on.

Microsoft has traditionally worked with various hardware manufacturers to work together to unveil new products. This time it includes a new and cheaper Surface Go Pen, new educational software, and a number of Windows laptops and two-in-one third-party devices.

New Microsoft products

Perhaps the most important new product from Microsoft is the Microsoft Classroom Pen. It is designed for students and schools and optimized to work with Surface Go. This is a relatively cheap laptop that Microsoft showed to the world in July last year. The pen is designed for students who use their tools a lot. The pen is not expensive: it costs 39.99 dollars in the United States and is also available in a package of twenty for 799.80 dollars. This is an immediate response to Microsoft’s concerns that the pen was too expensive – a previous generation cost 99 dollars.

In addition to the cheaper Microsoft Classroom Pen, Microsoft has unveiled seven new devices from various manufacturers. These are all developed for the education market and therefore relatively cheap. The devices start with a suggested retail price of $189, and have been manufactured by Acer, Dell, Lenovo and others. This includes a striking two-in-one, the Lenovo 300e, which has a stylus that, if lost, also gives students the option of drawing on the screen with a simple No.2 pencil.

When it comes to software, Microsoft mainly had new tools for teachers. For example, Grade Sync integration with SIS systems has been announced and new mobile grading support for Android and iOS devices has been announced. Turnitin is also supported in Microsoft’s software, making plagiarism easier to find.

Google lurking around the corner

Microsoft will have to pay attention. In a blog post, Google celebrates its attempts to conquer the education market. According to the company, 80 million teachers and students use the G Suite for Education. And 40 million teachers and students use Google Classroom to work organized. 30 million more use Chromebooks.

This gives Chromebooks a share of more than fifty percent of the American education market. Google is also doing very well with its Chromebooks in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the European Union as a whole.