Columnists
Modern is expensive
Staying current with the ever-changing technology world is challenging most of our lives. That is why earlier this year, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark announced that some of Ontario’s small and rural municipalities would be receiving modernization money. A grant to address the limited capacity to plan, modernize and improve the way they provide services to their communities. The County received $725,000.
According to information released by the province, examples might include service delivery reviews, IT solutions, development of shared services agreements or capital investments. It will be up to each municipality to decide how to best target funding.
The County announced last week that part of the funding had been used to purchase iPad Pros for each member of council and the mayor, in a bid to “move green with paperless agendas.” The municipality estimates that it may save approximately 150,000 sheets of paper each year. According to the calculation, this will save 150 trees and further reduce the environmental impact by using less ink and toner. This is all fine, as is the time it will save staff preparing for council and committee meetings each month. But 150,000 sheets of paper equals about $2,000 a year.
This purchase isn’t peanuts. We’re talking just north of $25,000 for 14 folks to have new iPad Pros—equipped with Apple Smart Keyboards and Apple Pencils—or roughly $1,800 per councillor.
The big question is why the top of the line iPad Pro? Why an Apple Pencil? Why a smart keyboard? Surely, a regular iPad model, which is around half the cost, would have sufficed. And, if you didn’t know, an Apple Pencil is meant to be used as an art tool—to paint a watercolour, play with typography or design a building. None of which are useful in the role of a council member. Not to mention each member is equipped with ten of their own Apple Pencils, better known as fingers. Each iPad is equipped with a data plan, which is bound to run into the thousands of dollars per year.
It also begs the question of time—in technology years. At the end of a four-year council term, will the iPad model council is using still be current? To put things in context, since 2010, Apple has released 20 models of iPad. Of those, five aren’t supported at all anymore, 10 more are currently discontinued and are in the midst of being not supported, and only the newest models, from 2018 forward, are current and supported.
To be clear, moving to a digital agenda and reducing paperwork is a good thing. Saving a few trees and saving staff time in the process are worthwhile objectives. But more homework should have been done before spending $25,000 on 14 iPads that will be outdated by the end of this council term.
I for one do not have any issue with the purchase of this technology for council and the mayor. If in fact they use the equipment as intended and if in fact “150 trees” are saved that will be worthwhile. Council will have to stick to the paperless plan for this to be successful.
Regarding the choice of equipment, the Ipad Pro is the best choice among the Ipad products available. It offers the speed, storage and power that will be needed to be an effective tool. The keyboard is a necessity – typing onscreen is nowhere near as convenient. The Apple Pencil is not just an art tool. It can be used to edit text, make notes and other practical uses that that one’s finger cannot effectively undertake.
Of course the technology will be out of date in no time: however, it will still work! The cheaper standard Ipad that you suggest would have cost half as much will also be out of date at the same time. Actually the standard Ipad uses hardware that is already out of date in comparison to the Ipad Pro.
If one accepts the premise that the technology will be of benefit to Council, the County and the environment and accepts that Apple provides the best choice of hardware and software to accomplish the intended results, then the Ipad Pro and the chosen accessories are the correct choice.
Perhaps the real question, assuming there was a need to be fulfilled was why choose Apple over solutions available from Android and other platforms.
Wait for the next live streaming and watch the chaos. Without a doubt!