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Companies Targeting Low-Cost ‘Netbooks’ Directly at Education

Computer companies are rolling out lower-priced laptops designed for education, claiming that the new “netbooks” are better tuned than past models to the needs of young learners—and to the constraints of school budgets.

The new models may help revive confidence in 1-to-1 laptop programs, which some school districts have backed away from in recent years because of the high cost of standard laptops, their unproven benefits to student achievement, and other problems.

The financial risks districts take in assigning laptops to all students and teachers can drop when the price is $500 or less, rather than the $1,000 apiece that school districts have typically...