Never before has a laptop been more designed with a student in mind. The new Dell Latitude 2100 is a netbook that is designed specifically for the education market, especially students from kindergarten to eighth grade. The Latitude’s durable design and kid-centered features make this laptop ideal for the rapidly developing minds of children.

The fundamental components of the Latitude are very comparable to those of most other netbooks. It features Intel Atom CPU, Windows XP, and 1 GB of RAM, but the major difference with the Latitude is its covering. The outside is rubberized, thicker, and heavier than most typical netbooks. This casing protects the laptop from the rough patches it is sure to go through in the hands of a child. Another interesting child-friendly note is the anti-microbial keyboard that is offered when purchasing the Latitude. This feature helps prevent the spread of germs between laptop users.

This laptop has many other aspects to consider. One which is definitely worth noting is the network activity light that is centered on the back of the lid. This light glows when the Latitude is connected to the internet. Dell designed this feature to alert teachers when a student is drifting away from their school work and instead surfing the Web. Dell also says that educational software designers will be able to incorporate this light into their programs to allow for teachers to see when a student has completed their assigned tasks in class.

The Latitude is larger and heavier than most 10-inch netbooks. It weighs 2.9 pounds with its three-cell battery and measures 10.4 x 7.3 x 5.7 inches. To solve any problems with the weight, Dell has designed a custom computer carrying cart that can be used in classrooms to store up to 24 netbooks. The Latitude comes in five fun colors: School Bus Gold, Chalkboard Black, Ball Field Green, Blue Ribbon, and School House Red, and its starting price is $369.

I think that Dell has done a fantastic job developing this idea of a student netbook. A kid-friendly laptop with a durable design, an anti-microbial keyboard, and a light that indicates Web surfing is something that schools have been waiting for. Laptops are necessary within schools for projects, activities, research, and a variety of other instances, so having a laptop that can take a few scratches and bruises will save them from expensive computer repairs. The network activity light will aid teachers in keeping students on track and eventually allow for notice of a students completion of an activity. All these features, plus the reasonable starting price, make the Dell Latitude 2100 a wonderful new technological development for many schools and students.