This really isn't a new idea. There are hundreds (maybe thousands now? who knows) of schools/districts across the country right now that already issue laptops to every student. Maine has given laptops to every kid (I think starting in 7th grade?) for over 10 years. Idaho is starting a program, I think New Hampshire does the same, etc. And lots of private schools too.
In my school (private middle school), kids have had MacBooks for about 7 years. I feel it's fair to say that the vast majority of teachers would not want to go back to a non-laptop environment. The work kids are able to produce is of higher quality, the access to information is much better, and kids are more motivated. Sure there are issues of damage but honestly, not as many as you would think - mot problems are really more the maintenance type concerns that any big company with employees using laptops would have. We have very strict rules about usage and the kids get in trouble if they leave the laptops unattended, put them on the ground, etc. The seems to cut down on a lot of problems.
As far as kids playing games when they're supposed to be working, of course this happens. And they get in a lot of trouble when they do this. But, our tech people can look at anyone's screen at any time to see what they are up to and knowing there are those random checks helps, and guess what.....the teacher has some control and responsibility here too! You learn how to monitor what they are doing, to make sure everyone's computer is shut unless they have a specific task to do, etc. And although I haven't used it, I know there is also software available so that the teacher can view every child's screen on their own laptop at the same time. People doing the wrong thing at the wrong time is hardly a kid only problem - frankly, I see more adults misbehaving in this way during meetings than kids during class.
As far as iPads go, these are the trendy new thing for schools to get. The funny thing is, I know of several schools that have adopted 1:1 iPad programs, and in all of them there has been disappointment among many of the teachers and students. The reason is that most would prefer the greater functionality of a laptop - the iPad is seen as more of a toy and a marketing ploy.
When will we be getting on the short list of countries to get the newest stuff first? I bet all goes via our main ports over water into the rest of Europe, so why not drop a couple of those iPad's and Apple TV's into the Amsterdam store? And fix that we have to pay to call Apple on a Premium-rate telephone number, that really sucks!
