Education is obviously important to Apple. The company took time out in January to devote an entire press conference to iBooks 2 and interactive textbooks. Since then, schools around the world have ditched books in favor of giving every student an iPad. The company may be putting the focus back on education again according to a recent report.
Bloomberg reports that Apple’s iPad Mini event set for tomorrow will focus on education. The iPad Mini is set to be a much cheaper device with some reports saying it will only cost $250 for the standard model. It would be much easier for schools to outfit their student body with tablets.
Apple’s iPad has already proven to be a leader in education, but it’s starting to face some stiff competition. Just last week, Amazon revealed Whispersync, a new software that allows schools to send out course materials to all Kindle owners across its network. A cheaper Kindle Fire and Whispersync could draw educators away from the iPad. The iPad Mini, with its rumored low price, could bring those educators back.
Consumer technology is still the battleground in which all three companies – Apple, Google and Amazon – will be fighting over this holiday season. Education doesn’t have the long term year-after-year success like the consumer market, but educators are big upfront buyers. Where else is Apple going to sell thousands of tablets to a single party?
Apple and Amazon will now be competing for educators’ dollars, but what about Google? Google’s main platform is the Web with hardware being just one mean to that end. I still wouldn’t be surprised, however, if Google were to announce some new education incentives of their own in the near future. That probably won’t happen at next Monday’s Android event, but there could be something early next year.
Besides education and the iPad Mini, Apple will probably show off a few more things of interest at its last big press event of the year. We’ll be bringing you all the news as it happens. Be sure to check out our extensive iPad Mini coverage to catch up on all the rumors and leaks.