Faculty and Staff Laptops

July 1, 2017

Paul Gargiulo, JT Singh, and Deke Kassabian

IS&T is excited to announce an enhanced line of supported Windows and Apple products that will serve as the improved standard models: Lenovo M900 Desktop, Lenovo P40 Yoga, Apple MacBook Air.

The change focuses on performance, mobility, and personal choice, backed with the confidence of university support. The cost of these models will be covered by IS&T PC Replacement Funding when selected as a primary device, with no charge back to the department (accessories excluded).

IS&T has prided itself in delivering best of breed back-end systems as a foundation to support the tasks and goals of the campus community. For instance, applications that were once limited to Windows operating systems are now available virtually through RamCloud, classrooms are now equipped with wireless presentation via RamCast, and cloud storage via OneDrive is on the horizon for 2018.

This alignment has led to a mobility-first, platform agnostic approach to equipment standardization for faculty and staff. The timing is right to also increase the standard specifications with faster processors, more memory and improved graphics capability to allow for a better overall performance.

The Equipment

IS&T is encouraging faculty to consider a laptop rather than a desktop computer as their primary device, as this will better equip them for wireless presentation classrooms, and Active Learning Spaces. The Lenovo P40 Yoga operates on Windows 10, comes standard with a 14" touch display, biometric security feature, and converts into a tablet for increased mobility. The 13" MacBook Air is lightweight, and runs on OSX Sierra; it is the most commonly requested MacBook at WCU. The Lenovo M900 Desktop is a robust workstation intended for office clerical work, and includes a 24" monitor.

Note: All Systems are configured by IS&T technicians to include: Microsoft Office 2016, Sophos Anti-virus, Malware protection, Adobe Creative Cloud, Firefox & Google Chrome.

Replacement Cycle

The typical life cycle of a computer is approximately 4 years. IS&T developed the Equipment Replacement Program to ensure that faculty and staff are equipped with computers that are compatible with supported technology on campus. Employees with end-of-life equipment may be eligible for upgrade to recommended models, funded through the IS&T PC Replacement Program.