Apple iPad: Saving the Trees
What is £30,000 now when it will help ensure that we no longer waste paper and ink?
Critics of the Cambridge City Council include even some of its own councilors about the hazards of over spending existing budgets. The council has already allocated £250,000 as a climate change budget –funds for streamlining processes and equipment with more environmentally sound alternatives.
With the first step being the purchase of 42 iPads for each council member, many are calling the expenditure excessive.
The problem is that many do not realize that the iPad will indeed save people plenty of money. Some are saying that net books will do the same job and cost less, but when looking at the two devices, it is obvious where the difference lies.
The Apple iPad provides accessibility. Unlike net books which are practically mini desktop computers, the iPad is not a small computer. It is an instant access device that will encourage users to use it more –case and point, people with net books still use plenty of paper resources. The iPad on the other hand is just as accessible as paper. While you would loathe booting up your net book just to jot down a quick note, grabbing the iPad will be the same as pulling out a stationary and a pen.
Council members might also be forgetting the vast amount of paper and ink resources required for day to day operations. Some agendas have reportedly reached over 1,300 pages. The amount of resources that is spent in paper, ink and even fuel (people who measure carbon footprints would know why) will generate thousands in savings –regardless if a device will ultimately be surpassed.
Read more about the move to buy iPads for the Council at the Telegraph UK.
