Apple has started offering reduced-price iPad bundles for educational institutions. The bulk educational deal, which has been called "laughable" by some, will amount to $20 or 4% off the $499 price tag of the 16GB iPad.

Apple says they will be shipping the bundles in single boxes with just one set of literature, which will reduce paper and packaging waste, not to mention time, money, energy and labor to individually pack and ship each unit.

However, considering Apple's cost savings on packaging and shipping the iPad 10-packs, one might wonder if the move is designed to benefit educational institutions or for benefiting Apple's bottom line.

Sure, I suppose the two are not mutually exclusive. And any discount is better than none at all. But it seems as though Apple's educational discount could be offered with deeper price cuts, not just cleverly-disguised cost savings that are then passed on to the customer.