1. IT leasing keeps you up to date

Leasing computer equipment ensures your staff and students are always working with the latest equipment because you can upgrade without having to repurchase. This in turn improves efficiency and increases your productivity.

2. Technology investment without debt or equity

Leasing your Apple technology enables you to acquire new IT equipment without having to use debt or equity capital at the time of the investment. All you pay is the agreed monthly amount, spreading the cost of your investment over time.

3. More flexibility

Leasing your IT equipment from Albion gives you the flexibility to adjust your IT infrastructure at any time, irrespective of whether you require hardware, software or IT services, to suit your changing needs.

4. Independent status

We operate independently from manufacturers and banks so we can act as an additional impartial partner and adviser, giving you unbiased advice on the best equipment for your school or college, regardless of brand.

5. Costs are more predictable and transparent

Costs are fixed right from the outset and don’t change even if capital market rates rise because we capture a single user fee at the beginning. This prevents any nasty surprises and provides you with a reliable basis on which to budget. And, if you like, we can calculate the price per seat of your IT infrastructure.

6. Improves your balance sheet and frees up liquidity

Leased IT equipment doesn’t appear on your balance sheet and therefore helps improve your capital ratio, which can have a positive impact on your rating and reduce your borrowing costs. It also frees up liquidity in your organisation, giving you more funds to invest in your school. At the same time you can significantly reduce the risk of your IT resources becoming obsolete.

7. Support and Software is included

Leasing can cover support and software too if you choose our Learn365 programme.  Manage all your technology costs easily and under one roof.

8. Long-term Support

As one of the fastest growing, financially stable Apple resellers in the UK, you can have peace of mind that we won’t disappear throughout your lease.  We’ll be here to support you and your students for years to come, just as we have for the past 20 years.

Secure, monitor, manage & support the multiple mobile devices (such as iPads and smartphones) in your school or college with Albion’s iOS Device Management Portal.

Features include:

• Over-the-Air Enrolment
• Quick and secure activation of iOS 4devices, with user authentication and complete MDM enrolment over the air
• Asset Management
• Real-time device capture with network information, including UDID, serial number, carrier, applications installed and more
• Over-the-Air Configuration
• The ability to create and deploy signed, encrypted and locked configuration profiles containing device settings and passcode policies
• Accounts and Services Integration
• Configuration of Microsoft Exchange Active Sync, Email, Wi-Fi, VPN settings to keep iOS 4 users connected to enterprise accounts and services
• Policy Enforcement
• The ability to enforce the highest standards of enterprise security with strong passcode policies, device lock settings and remote clear passcodes.
• Restrictions Enforcement
• Restricted use of Safari, YouTube, camera, iTunes and more to ensure devices are compliant and users are productive
• Device and Data Security
• Established device security policies to ensure corporate data is protected and encrypted, and if necessary remotely lock or wipe a compromised device
• Enterprise App Store
• Distribution of internal applications wirelessly across your enterprise and manage secure user access.

Contact our iPad experts to find out more on iPad in education.

Wifi for Schools and Colleges

As computers and mobile devices such as iPads increase in schools and colleges, so does the need for high-speed, super-secure, consistently reliable, WiFi.

Further education colleges also need Wi-Fi to reach places where no Ethernet cabling has gone before, such as common areas, temporary classrooms, on-campus housing, and every corner of the campus. But for most educational institutions, tighter budgets and time constraints make the transition near impossible.

That is until now.
Ruckus (Albion’s top-dog partner) Smart Wi-Fi is the first technology that gives education a cost-effective wireless infrastructure with robust, complete coverage, at an affordable price.

With this special WiFi, you’ll benefit from:

• Consistent, reliable connectivity untouched by all other Wi-Fi systems
• Up to 4x the WiFi coverage, using fewer APs
• Low packet loss and high performance
• A safer environment with less interference, through “eco-friendly” adaptive signal technology
• System self-healing capabilities
• The lowest cost of ownership
• Support for standard 802.1x, WPA (PsK) and WPA-2 (AEs) security, plus automatic wireless setting and encryption key security

And, because our engineers at Albion have been highly trained by Ruckus, we can deliver the Ruckus WiFi solution for you expertly, and provide comprehensive heatmaps of your school or college to show you detailed coverage and density of wireless signals across your campus.

Take a look at these wireless surveys to see just how detailed our reports are, or contact us to find out more about Apple in education.

iPad for Education

Whether you need help with purchasing, financing, training or using iPads in the classroom, we can help.

The benefits of the iPad in education are plenty. Hailed as the new textbook, notebook, course book, library, blackboard, whiteboard, dictionary, and endless research engine, the iPad could be the most important tool at a student’s disposal.

That in itself creates a big advantage. No more heavy, tatty books to carry round or recycle year after year. You may not realise it, but the iPad can bring the educational sector real, long-term cost benefits too.

The learning benefits are just as impressive. In early pilot studies, the iPad is already demonstrating its ability to help students increase their Maths scores by up to 30% whilst having a significant impact on student engagement in learning.

Supported by a team of dedicated certified engineers and repair professionals, Albion can add to those benefits with award-winning customer service, tailored cost savings on Apple iPads, iPad training and workshops, support and advice on iPad apps.

Read more on why the education sector is turning to the iPad or contact us to find out more about iPad in education.

Supporting Education

Albion know Apple. We know education too.

As Apple Solution Experts for Education, Albion has been supplying Apple products to schools, colleges and universities for over 20 years. That means we understand your day-to-day technological needs, operations and culture, inside out.

We know that you and your students need your I.T to really work for you. It needs to inspire your students, encouraging them to learn and be creative, whilst preparing them for their future employment. It needs to be good value for money, and it needs to be durable and built to last without going out of date.

If you need the latest Apple computers, iPads or Mac software, at the very best price, we can pass on our premium reseller buying power straight to you and deliver direct from our well-stocked warehouse. We can even help you lease or finance your investment.

And, as an Apple Service award winner, we’ll give you, your school, college or university an exceptional level of training, service and support. With us by your side, you won’t need to worry about IT errors, security issues, Internet connection problems or storage restrictions. We’ll keep you up-to-date, maintained, trained and updated with clear, everyday language.

Contact us to find out more about Apple in education or arrange a visit from one of our friendly Mac experts.

A school approached Albion computers looking to purchase 200 iPads.  When we showed them how much they could save if they chose our Learn 365 leasing programme, they were pleasantly surprised.

In fact, the school ended up saving £5724.00 by leasing instead of buying their Apple iPads, and had the flexibility of returning their equipment, or upgrading, at the end of their two-year term.

•    Repayment Lease to keep iPads at end of the lease – £25.13 per month
•    Operational Lease returning the iPads at the end of the lease – £19.26 per month (cost to buy outright £98,215, lease cost £92,430.96)

Sample for a 200 iPad deployment including full iCare support pack:

•    Quarterly lease £9,013.59
•    Yearly cost £36,054.36
•    Cost per iPad per year £180.28
•    Cost per iPad per day (based on 365 days) £0.50

If you would like a quote on leasing iPads for your school or college, or further advice on iPads in education, please contact us.

Planner Signal Coverage Report
The image below displays the signal coverage (in dBm) at each point in the map layout. Refer to the legend below the map for the dBm values corresponding to each colour region. As a general rule, regions with signal strengths below -67 dBm provide insufficient coverage for standard use (this value may vary depending on user requirements, service level agreements, applications used, number of users serviced, etc.).
APs are displayed in their planned locations and reflect the specified power and antenna properties. Note that an active WiFi area can incorporate a variety of environmental factors that can vary throughout the day and may adversely affect projected RF coverage.

Channel Interference
The image below displays the interference level (in percentage) at each point in the map layout. Refer to the legend below the map for the percent values corresponding to each colour region.  APs are displayed in their planned locations and reflect the specified power and antenna properties. Note that the interference levels present in the environment can vary depending on several factors, such as the number of APs on a single channel, number of devices present, non-802.11 interferers, etc.

PHY Data Rate Coverage
The image below displays the Predictive PHY Data Rate (in dBm) at each point in the map layout. Refer to the legend below the map for the dBm value of the signal corresponding to each colour region. Although a higher speed is invariably better for any deployment, implementations designed for VoFi operations should pay particular attention to ensuring a favourable data rate, as low rates can have a far greater affect in terms of jitter, voice delay, and call quality than they would for a standard data deployment.

Throughput
The image below displays the expected Throughput (in Mbps) calculated based on the site’s layout. Refer to the legend below the map for the value in Mbps that corresponds to each colour region. Although a higher throughput level is invariably better for any deployment, implementations designed for VoFi operations should pay particular attention to ensuring a favourable throughput level, as lower levels can have a far greater affect in terms of jitter , voice delay, and call quality than they would for a standard data deployment.

Our salary sacrifice scheme is a great way to reward teachers employed by your school or college, and a wonderful way to encourage new technology in the classroom.

Teachers and lecturers can access the latest Apple technology, Mac computers, iPads and software, simply by paying manageable monthly payments straight out of their wages.

And, because Albion offer special education pricing and finance rates, teachers can take advantage of lower pricing than if they went elsewhere.

As the employer, you also benefit from NIC savings.

It’s a win-win all round – for you, your teachers and your students.

We also offer a flexible lease option on the salary sacrifice scheme.  Take a look at Learn 365 for more information or contact Albion to find out more about Apple in education.

As Mac has become more accessible to everyone, it has retained its creative edge in the world of media.

With in-built tools, Mac enables students to express themselves through music, video and photography, giving them the programmes they need to create projects and present their work uniquely.

And, with easy-to-use applications, teachers can easily integrate the software into their lectures for more engaging lessons.

Find out more about making music and editing videos on Mac in the classroom or contact us for advice on Apple in education.

iOS Device Management

Times have changed. It is no longer a distant point in the future. Devices such as iPads, netbooks and smartphones have already eclipsed the number of PCs in schools, colleges, businesses and homes.

And it will only increase. Many schools and universities are already replacing their PCs to provide access to smartphones and school-owned iPads in learning environments, such as libraries and labs. Many are phasing out printed textbooks altogether by delivering lecture notes, audio files, background documentation, and textbooks through custom applications on the iPad.

With so many devices being used, so much of the time, in so many places, it can be difficult to manage security and control use – especially in schools.

Consequently, more than 80% of IT decision-makers within the education industry have already implemented, or are planning to implement, mobile device management solutions that can scale across all devices, regardless of who actually owns the hardware.

Albion computers can help. Read more on our iOS Device Management Portal or contact us to find out more about Apple in education.