What Schools Should Consider When Buying Education Technology Hardware Through RM

Schools can buy pre-configured hardware from globally recognised manufacturers through the RM Technology Store, with education discounts and the option to spend school credit with RM. Before choosing a device, though, it helps to separate two decisions: what the school actually needs (computing, networking, security filtering), and how it will buy and deploy it. RM positions itself as an EdTech partner covering both — hardware supply alongside IT services for schools — so the buying decision is as much about matching needs to the right part of RM's offer as it is about the spec sheet.

Start with the need, not the product

RM's own framing splits its education work into two areas: RM Technology (dynamic, inclusive learning environments through IT and IT services, from school computing and networking to critical security filtering) and RM Assessment (digital assessment and marking, including the RM Ava platform). Hardware purchases sit within the technology side.

That split matters at the planning stage. A school that mainly needs classroom devices is solving a different problem from one that needs network capacity or content filtering. Writing down the requirement first — how many learners, which rooms, what the devices must run, what connectivity and filtering the school already has — prevents buying hardware that later needs extra services to work.

A simple requirement checklist

• Computing: how many devices, for which year groups or subjects, and whether they stay in a lab or move between classrooms.
• Networking: whether existing wireless and switching can carry the additional devices.
• Security filtering: what filtering the school is required to maintain, and whether it is already covered.
• Support: who configures, repairs and replaces devices, and over what period.

What the RM store actually offers

According to RM's site, the RM Technology Store provides "the essential IT products needed to equip schools and classrooms," with:

Two practical points follow. First, "pre-configured" is worth confirming in detail — ask what is included in the configuration (operating system, management software, warranty terms) so you can compare like for like against other suppliers. Second, the credit option is a purchasing mechanism, not a price promise; the site does not publish specific pricing, so discount levels and credit terms need to be confirmed directly with RM.

Match the purchase to the wider service

Because RM supplies both products and services, a school can buy devices and the surrounding IT support from one partner. That can simplify accountability — one point of contact for computing, networking and filtering — but it also means the quote should make clear which elements are products and which are services, and how each is priced and renewed.

A useful example: a school planning a one-to-one device programme needs devices, but also sufficient network capacity and filtering for every device to be used safely in lessons. RM has publicly partnered with the Digital Poverty Alliance on expanding equitable one-to-one device access for students, which reflects the kind of whole-programme thinking the purchase should follow — devices alone do not deliver the outcome.

Questions to put to RM before ordering

1. Configuration: what exactly is pre-installed, and what warranty applies?
2. Discount: how is the education discount calculated, and does it vary by manufacturer or volume?
3. Credit: how can school credit be applied, and what are the terms?
4. Services: if networking or filtering is needed, is that quoted separately, and how does it integrate with the hardware?
5. Support and lifecycle: what happens when devices fail or reach end of life?

Where RM fits — and where it may not

RM is a reasonable fit for schools that want a single education-focused supplier for hardware plus IT services, and that value pre-configured devices and education discounts. It is a less obvious fit for a school that only wants the lowest unit price on a single device model and will handle configuration and support entirely in-house — in that case, compare the RM quote against specialist hardware resellers on identical configurations.

Whichever route you take, the decision should be driven by the requirement checklist above, with the RM quote tested against the five questions. For assessment-specific needs, such as digital exams and marking, the relevant part of RM is RM Assessment and its Ava platform rather than the hardware store, so those requirements should be raised separately.