The winner so far has been Google, which can churn out cheap chrome books. It has been giving Apple a good kicking, mostly because Chrome books are slightly cheaper and have the words “Don’t Panic” on the home screen. We made the last bit up.

But the Chromebook's low price, starting at $149, and easy management makes it a no brainer for many schools.

In 2016, mobile devices running Google’s Chrome operating system accounted for 58 percent of the US market for primary and secondary schools.

Microsoft has its expensive Surface Books, but its cunning plan is to hit the school administrators with superior and more business-like software.Chrome books have software which is as intelligent as a smartphone, and Apple software is not the educational force it used to be.

Vole's announcement of a suite of new education products on Tuesday shows the company's determination to reverse a major shift that has taken place in US classrooms in recent years: for most educators and school districts, Google's Chromebook is now the computer of choice.

Microsoft's hardware partners are now selling hybrid tablet-laptop devices based on the Surface design starting at $189. Microsoft executives boasted that the operating system announced Tuesday boots up rapidly.

The company also introduced a new code-builder addition to its Minecraft education edition to help students learn coding skills through the popular game.
Apple has been forced to lower the price of the iPad to $299 for education customers and made it possible for students to share devices.