Apple iPad: Rejected from Universities and Accepted at Hospitals

Since the release of the Apple's revolutionary tablet - "The iPad", there's been a lot of talk about what the iPad is going to be used for.

One of the more talked about features of Apple tablet, was not so much a feature, as an entire industry that people believed the iPad would become a part of. And, sure enough, even before the iPad became officially available for consumers, Seton Hill University made it known that they were going to start providing iPads to their Fall, full-time students. As good as that is, apparently some other universities don’t see the iPad as such a great device for security purposes.

The iPad is definitely selling like the proverbial hotcakes. But it's interesting to see some of the unusual places welcoming the tablet and, conversely, some of the places that are somewhat rejecting its presence.

According to The Wall Street Journal, it seems that three separate universities: Cornell, George Washington, and Princeton University are all restricting access of the Apple iPad. Stating wireless Internet security reasons, Princeton has logged an astonishing 20% of blocked iPads from its network. According to engineers, they realized malfunctions could result in a total breakdown in the school’s computer system.

As for George Washington University, it seems that that school has permanently blocked the iPod Touch, iPhone, and the iPad from connecting to their wireless networks. This isn’t the first time WiFi security issues have popped up for the prodigal tablet, as Israel came into the news recently for the same issues. We’ll have to wait and see what Apple has to say about the whole situation, if anything at all.

On the contrary, the medical community is taking an interest in the iPad at a rate that may even surprise Apple. In addition to the countless doctors and private medical practices that now utilize the iPad's services, some hospitals are beginning to purchase the tablet computer in bulk. Kaweah Delta hospital in California, for example, just purchased one-hundred iPads for its treatment facility. Officials at the hospital say that the iPads will replace hospital laptops for every day use. Not only will iPads be used for routine administrative tasks, they will also be tapped for activities like reviewing X-ray and EKG results.

While the iPad still isn't cheap by any stretch of the imagination, in the medical field, however, the iPad isn't all that expensive either. Some touch-screen devices widely used in hospitals cost upwards of five times as much as the basic iPad. In this regard, putting the iPad to use in hospitals could result in substantial savings for the medical facilities that embrace the device.

Ultimately, it appears that the iPad will eventually find a prominent home in both hospitals and institutions of higher learning. For now, however, the medical community may very well have a leg up on its collegiate counterpart in putting the iPad to swift and efficient use.