Microsoft redesigned the Surface Pen for students. But only schools can buy it.
In 2018, Microsoft began an aggressive push into the computer-based education market. Google was among the first tech companies to really make a foray into this market, and now, the Chromebook is used in schools predominantly in the US and throughout the world. Microsoft is not content with this, of course. So, at the annual Bett conference, which focuses on technology in education, it refreshed its assault on Google.
Microsoft introduced a range of Windows 10 devices for education, starting at $189. There are seven devices altogether, including two new 2-in-1 devices from Acer and Lenovo, as well as affordable 13- and 15-inch laptops from Lenovo, Acer, and Dell in the $300 range. But one of the biggest announcements from the event was the debut of a new stylus for students. It's called Microsoft Classroom Pen.
It is designed specifically for kindergarten through eighth-grade classrooms, and it's aimed squarely at schools using the Surface Go. The Surface Go is Microsoft's low-cost Windows 10 tablet. You can get it for $399. But, if you add on the keyboard cover ($130) and a Surface Pen ($100), the price quickly adds up. The new Classroom Pen, however, which looks like Surface Pen, is much more affordable at just $40.
It's also more hard wearing, with a shorter and fatter build than the Surface Pen. It features two buttons for quick erasing or right-click functionality, and it has a replaceable pen tip design to keep the device useful for an extended period of time. (Each Classroom Pen will ship with a replacement pen tip.) It also has a slot at the end, so teachers can tether it to devices, preventing it from going missing.
Unfortunately, the pen will only be available to educational institutions and schools. It is slated to begin shipping out in February 2019 to all Microsoft Surface markets and will be sold in packs of 20 pens for $799.80.