CTL’s 2go Classmate PC E10 is a small netbook with a long name

School children these days are learning computer dependency pretty early on in their lives, about K8 early. While the use of computers in classroom environments is filtering down to the younger students, we are witnessing an influx of netbooks made especially for students of varying age. These netbooks are specially made with ruggedized exteriors, tough chassis and other such measures to ensure the longevity of the device. After all, students are not exactly going to use these devices in corporate boardroom conditions.

CTL’s Classmate series of netbooks are made along these lines and are more ruggedized than your usual student netbooks because these are meant to be used by K8 students. While the netbooks won’t win any design awards, they sure are tough enough to withstand the absolutely war zone like situations that K8 classrooms can come to mimic. With a spill-resistant design, tough hinges, and ruggedized exteriors, these netbooks are all set to take on the onslaught of K8-ers.

The company just updated Classmate the line with newer models called the 2go Classmate PC E10. The earlier versions had a tiny 8.9inch screen and a 80GB HDD storage. The new ones have a 10.1inch LCD screen and a 160GB HDD storage.

The new versions will be available in either Windows XP or Ubuntu Linux. However, there is an offer for upgrading to Windows 7 when it is finally released later this year.

Other than the larger LCD screen, the new version also has a 90% full sized keyboard (meaning 90% the standard size of a full-sized keyboard) and a 1.3MP camera on top of the screen. There is a 6-cell battery in place too, promising about 5.5 hours of battery life on a full charge. 1GB RAM is standard and it can be upgraded to 2GB RAM. It runs on a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor and retails at $449 (starting).