Bring-your-own (BYO) Learning Devices at Aitken College

Starting in 2026, the College will begin transitioning from iPads to laptops as students enter secondary school. Students in Years 8 and 9 who current have iPads will move to a laptop device when they commence Year 10 in 2028.

Any new students commencing Year 8 or Year 9 in 2026 or 2027 who do not have a current iPad to bring to school, and therefore need to purchase a device, will have the option to purchase a laptop.

Please see below for the specifications required:

The minimum spec required is: M2 or greater, 8GB of RAM, 256 SSD on MacOS. We do not support Chrome OS (Chromebooks) or Android at all.

In general, good IT advice is to buy the most powerful model that you can afford, as devices with faster processing speeds and larger capacity are likely to be usable for longer. Prices for Apple products are very tightly controlled by Apple, and it is difficult to find anything other than the standard price. The College has a partnership with JB HIFI Education which offers a small discount and aims to simplify the purchasing process. Details can be found in the attached BYOD JB Hifi information flyer.

It is possible for students to use a laptop which uses a Windows operating system (that is, a laptop which is not a Macbook), but the College is only able to provide very limited IT support for these devices, due to the many, many brands and configurations available. In these cases, the College will endeavour to get the device connected to WiFi but cannot offer any other technical support.

Please see below attachments to help with purchasing an appropriate device for your child.

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