HP announces four new classroom-ready Chromebooks

The BETT show is underway in London — an education-focused technology conference — and while CES 2020 may have showed us a new generation of luxury Chromebooks, BETT is where more practically-minded Chrome fans can come for shiny new laptops that actually justify their price tags. HP is here to unveil a whole slew of laptops for educators, including not one but four new Chromebooks, and they have this girl quite excited for the future.

Best of all, we don't have to wait for summer to roll around in order to buy them.

Source: HP

First up, we have two new versions of the HP Chromebook 11: the Intel Celeron-powered HP Chromebook 11 G8 and the AMD A4/A6-powered HP Chromebook 11A G8. Apart from the processor, both models are almost identical: there are touchscreen and non-touch models and there are 8GB memory options for both. The 11A has lower storage options — stay away from that 16GB option, please — and the USB-A ports are 2.0 instead of 3.1, but otherwise just about everything matches.

HP is claiming the HP Chromebook 11 and 11A G8 are the " world's thinnest 11" rugged Chromebooks for education" at 18.8mm thick, but they still fit a 47.36 Wh battery inside, a battery that HP also claims can be 90% recharged in 90 minutes with the 45W USB-C charger it comes with. I'm more excited to see these Chromebooks offered with 8GB of storage and in a snazzy new "Sage Green" that is giving this UNT alum some school spirit.

Moving from the clamshell to my favorite 2-in-1 form factor, we have the HP Chromebook 11 x360 G3 EE. This shares a lot in common with the 11 G8 — the processors, the size, the memory and port options — but the touchscreen is standard and there's a option with a Digitizer for using with a WACOM stylus. That Gorilla Glass 3 touchscreen is also scratch-resistant and while the whole exterior has been given a more durable, grippable shell.

This is the model I most want to play with, especially in that luscious Dusk Blue color with 8GB/64GB. We've gotten some pretty pink Chromebooks in the last year, but blue and green have been hard colors to find, and I'm happy to see HP giving us those options for its most durable machines. All of the Chromebooks HP is showing off at BETT this year have gone through even more extensive testing that should allow them to survive taller drops, harder yanks, and fidgeting children that apparently like to pluck the keys out of their laptops.

If you prefer your rugged laptops a bit bigger, we have the HP Chromebook 14 G6. This generation shares the same processors and memory options as the 11 G8 and 11 x360 EE G3. It has non-touch and touchscreen options, but I beg of you to get the 1080p model; 1366 x 768 is bearable for 11.6-inch screen but it's far from ideal when stretched to 14 inches.

In addition to the more robust durability standards for this generation, HP included the option for a Privacy Camera with a physical cover for those who are security-conscious. Another tweak that teachers should like is that this model eschews a second USB-C port in order to have an HDMI port, so if you're constantly hooking up to the projector to show your slides to the class, you won't need to go digging for a dongle!

Most of these Chromebooks are available now — and I'm hoping to get some in for review as soon as possible — but the HP Chromebook 11A G8 will be out next month.

• Read more: Best Chromebooks for Students