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Credit: Christoph Derndorfer

One of the defining characteristics of the OLPC XO Laptop is the little computer’s distinctive green plastic design, which extends to the keyboard which has a membrane-style keyboard that’s resistant to spills and dust. But if you’ve ever actually tried using an XO Laptop, you may find the keyboard take s a little getting used to. More importantly, the silicone membrane keyboards have been known to tear after a while, while a more traditional plastic keyboard tends to be a bit more sturdy.

As expected, the folks at OLPC are starting to offer XO Laptop models with more traditional looking keyboards. The new model is called the XO-1.5 HS and it’s aimed at high school students, while the original XO models were designed for younger children.

OLPC News has posted some photos and a video of the new model in action.

Aside from the fact that the new keyboard is constructed from different material and laid out in a different way, there’s one other major change: It’s easier to replace the new keyboard. In fact, it’s suppose to take just 2 minutes to swap out a bad keyboard for a new one.

You can check out a hands-on video courtesy of OLPC News after the break.