San Diego school district buys 26K iPads for students
The district has bought $15 million worth of iPads for use in 340 classrooms this fall, according to San Diego`s 10 News. The money has come from a voter-approved funding program known as "Proposition S," which sets funds aside for up-to-date technology in the classroom.
The district has bought iPad 2 units that retail for $400, but a $30 education discount from Apple means the district will save hundreds of thousands of dollars on the purchase.
The district has not indicated exactly what software students will use, though a likely candidate would be Apple`s own iBooks software, which was enhanced for digital textbooks with the release of iBooks 2 early this year. The iPad 2 units will be utilized in 5th- and 8th-grade classrooms, as well as some high school classes.
San Diego`s investment in the iPad was first noted by Apple`s chief financial officer, Peter Oppenheimer, during his company`s quarterly earnings call in April. At the time, the district had purchased a total of 10,000 iPads, and was planning to secure 15,000 more â a purchase that has now become finalized.
Oppenheimer noted that Apple`s U.S. K-12 customers had purchased twice as many iPads as Macs during the March quarter, despite the fact that the company also set a record in Mac sales for the quarter.
"iPad continues to open doors for new customers with whom Apple previously had no relationship," he said. "As we enter the K-12 institution buying season, we`re hopeful that iPad will be a popular choice."