Spectralink and Android poised to revolutionize communication in your hospital

The Spectralink Pivot is part of a complete WLAN solution for healthcare professionals, and it runs Android

Android has been noticeably absent from industry applications, like assembly factories, warehouse facilities and hospitals. The function is there, and the open-source Android code is a complete operating system and application framework that nobody has done much more than phones or tablets with. Spectralink is going to try and change that.

As part of their unified communications systems, the new Spectralink Pivot is a handheld Android device that does traditional voice calling, video and data transmission over WLAN, complete with a 1D/2D barcode scanning system built in. While this is a perfect application for many use cases, Spectralink is directly marketing it towards healthcare facilities.

This is exciting stuff, folks. We think about phones and tablets when we think about Android, but as a complete embedded platform Android is capable of running on all sorts of equipment. While the Spectralink Pivot may resemble a traditional handheld device, the addition of the scanner when paired with custom software makes for a great single communications device for the Nursing staff — who we all know does all the work at the hospital and needs every tool they can get to help do their job. The same goes for workers in a giant warehouse, or a production facility. Right now, most places using similar technology are using late-model iPods or iPads with extra equipment hanging off of them to do this. Switching to Android means they can run custom firmware, and install applications as needed without any interference from App stores or platform rules. That's a big plus for the IT guys who keep this sort of system running.

To be sure, products like this aren't designed or built — or priced — for the consumer. The $950 Spectralink Pivot 8753 is just a small part of a complete WLAN communications package, and is designed to replace existing systems that have outlived their usefulness. We're still pumped to see this sort of thing, though, because we know how powerful Android can be. It's great to see more of its potential being used like this.