CTL is back with another education-focused Chromebook, and this one leans heavily into connectivity. The new Chromebook PX112C Series comes with built-in 5G, 4G LTE, and even CBRS support, which means students can get online without relying on external hotspots. Open the lid, and you are connected. That is the pitch, anyway.
On the surface, it makes sense. Not every kid has reliable internet at home. Some live in rural areas where broadband is spotty. Others are in households where bandwidth is shared across too many devices. And then there are students dealing with unstable living situations. CTL is clearly trying to address those realities, and I cannot fault it for that.
But let’s be honest for a second. This also shifts a lot of responsibility onto the device itself. Instead of just handing out laptops, schools now have to think about cellular connectivity, data plans, and long-term costs. That adds complexity, even if CTL tries to position it as simpler than managing hotspots.
Speaking of hotspots, CTL really wants them gone. The company argues they get lost, abused, and can introduce security risks. With everything built into the Chromebook, IT teams can manage devices through the Google Admin console and skip the extra hardware. That sounds nice, but it also creates a single point of failure. If something goes wrong with the device, you are not just losing a laptop, you are losing connectivity too.
As for the hardware itself, this is very much a school Chromebook. You get an 11.6-inch display with a 1366 x 768 resolution, an Intel N150 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage. It is not exciting, but it does not need to be. It is built to survive daily abuse, with MIL-STD-810H testing, spill resistance, and a battery that should get students through the day.
Where things get more interesting is the network flexibility. The PX112C supports a wide range of LTE and 5G bands, plus CBRS for private wireless networks. Some districts are experimenting with their own infrastructure, and this device is clearly designed to fit into that kind of setup. It is also expected to support major carriers once certifications are finalized.
Still, I keep coming back to the same question. Are we solving the digital divide, or just packaging it differently? Giving every student a connected device sounds great, but it does not fix the underlying issue of affordable, reliable home internet. It just moves the burden somewhere else.
CTL has been early to this space before, and it is doubling down here. I get the idea, and in some cases, it will absolutely help. But it is not as clean of a solution as it sounds in a press release.
The CTL Chromebook PX112C Series is expected to arrive in the second quarter of 2026. Pricing has not been shared yet, which, honestly, is the part that matters most.
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