Matt Mock, Senior Director of Education Marketing at Medit, joined our podcast to discuss where the company is heading, and I have to say, the conversation left me excited about the future of intraoral scanning.
Let me be honest. When I first heard about iPad scanning, I was skeptical. My initial thought was: this is going to be laggy, this is going to suck, Medit is just trying to be fancy. Then I actually tried the i900 Mobility. It lags less than my Windows laptop. That was the moment I realized we might be looking at the next major market trend in digital dentistry.
More and more things are becoming app-based. Like TruAbutment T-Marker. Will this be the case for IOS? Listen below to the podcast to find out more.
Medit's Transformation: From Scanner Company to Software Solutions Provider
Before we dive into the i900 Mobility, it's worth noting how much Medit has changed over the past year. The company has shifted from positioning itself as a "scanner provider that just happened to have software attached" to viewing itself as a full-fledged software solutions company.
This shift is reflected in their new tagline, moving from "Scanner Reimagined" to "Infinite Possibilities."
Matt put it well when he explained the company's philosophy: "That initial purchase is really a very, very, very small part of your overall journey with that technology. When we think about how we become an even better provider to our customers, it really is more about how we continue to support you through the next three to five years."
It's the kind of behind-the-scenes work that doesn't make headlines but absolutely matters when you're committing to a digital ecosystem.
The Problem with "Wireless" Scanning
Here's something that crystallized during our conversation that I think every dentist should understand.
Wireless is not the same as mobile.
Think about your current wireless scanner setup. When everything is configured perfectly in one operatory, it works great. But what happens when you need to move to another room? You're still dealing with dongles, laptops, power cables, etc.
As Matt explained: "Wireless is a wireless experience, but it's not a mobile experience. You are in the space you set up the wireless scanner in."
The i900 Mobility approaches this problem differently. Instead of just cutting the cord between scanner and computer, Medit asked a more fundamental question: how do we make scanning truly portable?
Why iPad? The Technical Case
The answer was the iPad, and the reasoning is more sophisticated than just "Apple is cool."
First, there's no power cable requirement. The iPad runs on its own battery and can fully power the scanner app without lag, unlike a laptop. You pick up two devices (scanner and iPad), and you're ready to scan anywhere.
Second, the Apple M-series chips are genuinely impressive for this application. Matt mentioned that Medit's scanning technology uses chips that perform better than even the best Nvidia chips.
Third, and this is something you don't appreciate until you try it: the screen quality is exceptional. The resolution on modern iPads makes scan visualization noticeably sharper and crisper than typical laptop displays.
Finally, there's the instant-on factor. Apple devices don't have loading screens. Turn it on, and you're ready to scan.
How the Technology Actually Works
Let me clear up some confusion I've seen online about the i900 Mobility.
The scanner connects to the iPad via Wi-Fi, but, and this is crucial, the scanning happens locally on the iPad. This is not cloud-based scanning like Primescan 2.
The wireless connection is purely for data transfer between the scanner and the iPad; all processing and rendering happen on the iPad.
Now you do need a good WiFi connection to scan on the iPad with no lag. That is the main consideration. The technical requirements are: you need a Wi-Fi 6, 6E, or 7 router, which you can pick up for around $100-150. If you haven't upgraded your practice's networking recently, this is probably a worthwhile investment regardless of whether you buy this scanner.
One clever design decision: the Wi-Fi adapter is built directly into the scanner body. This is why no dongle is required — Medit has internalized that component. It does make the scanner chunkier than most competitors.
Matt also mentioned that the system works well with mobile hotspots. If you have a recent iPhone with 5G connectivity, you can potentially scan using your phone's hotspot.
The Software - Simplification Done Right
Here's what genuinely impressed me about Medit Link Express, the new iPad app.
Over the years, Medit added feature after feature to its scanning software. In many ways, they drove the entire industry to add more capabilities. But somewhere along the way, the interface got bloated. Buttons everywhere. Options most dentists never touch.
With the iPad app, they went back to square one and asked: if we were building scanner software from scratch today, what would it look like?
The answer is remarkably clean. When you launch the app, you can immediately start scanning with "Express Scan" — no menu navigation required. If you want to specify your workflow, the options are simple: Restorative, Ortho, Implants.
Gone are the dropdown menus for inlay, onlay, crown, bridge, and every other indication. Gone is the requirement to specify materials. It is just a much simpler software workflow.
For a full breakdown - read my i900 Mobility review here.
The Patient Communication Advantage
One benefit of iPad scanning is hard to appreciate until you experience it in practice.
Think about how patient communication typically works with a laptop-based scanner. You scan, then either awkwardly turn the laptop toward the patient, or you ask them to get up and stand next to you to view the screen. Neither option is ideal.
With an iPad, you hand the patient the device. Everyone knows how to hold an iPad. They can view their scan while seated on the dental chair, rotate it, zoom in, and engage with their own dental anatomy in a way that feels natural and intuitive.
This isn't just about convenience. It's about patient education and case acceptance. When patients can literally hold their scan in their hands, the conversation changes in my experience.
What About the Apps?
One limitation of the current iPad platform is that Medit's ecosystem of apps isn't available yet. You can't access Medit Smile, Clinic CAD, or the other applications directly from the iPad.
Matt acknowledged this is a common question and confirmed that apps are on the roadmap. Interestingly, he hinted that Medit has "a better solution" in mind rather than simply porting the existing apps to iPad.
What exactly that means remains to be seen, but it suggests the company is thinking holistically about the mobile platform rather than just replicating the desktop experience.
The Ortho Suite: A Sleeper Hit
While the i900 Mobility dominated our conversation, I want to highlight another initiative Medit is pursuing that deserves attention: the Ortho Suite.
This isn't just an orthodontic simulator for patient consultations. It's a legitimate orthodontic planning platform with Lat. Ceph tracing, treatment objective visualization, and AI-powered staging.
Here's what makes it interesting: you can overlay a 3D scan on a lateral cephalometric radiograph and immediately visualize different treatment options. Want to see what the extraction of the upper fours would look like? Select it from a dropdown, and the AI simulates the result in seconds. Want to compare distalization versus extraction? Same thing.
For orthodontists who currently wait days or weeks going back and forth with technicians on treatment plans, this is transformative. The software even supports hybrid therapy planning, starting with brackets and wires, then finishing with aligners.
Matt mentioned that they demoed the Ortho Suite to over 100 orthodontists over two days at AAO, and the response was overwhelming. They now have over 2,000 practitioners globally in the beta program, waiting for full release in their countries.
The pricing model follows Medit's new approach to apps: simulations are free, and fees apply only when you export files for production.
What's Coming in 2026
Based on our conversation, here's what to expect from Medit in the coming year:
Diagnostic innovations: Medit is developing methods to integrate scan data with X-rays, intraoral photos, and practice management information to support more comprehensive patient diagnosis. Matt was characteristically tight-lipped on details, but emphasized that this is a major focus area.
Ortho Suite expansion: The development roadmap for orthodontic features sounds aggressive. If you're interested in this space, keep watching.
Medit Link Express evolution: Additional features will roll out to the iPad platform over time. The company is soliciting feedback from early adopters to prioritize what to add, without sacrificing the clean interface they've achieved.
Potential hardware announcements: Matt wouldn't confirm anything specific but hinted that there "may be some interesting things" beyond software in the pipeline.
The Bottom Line
Make no mistake: iPad scanning represents a genuine shift in how we think about intraoral scanners.
I've been doing this long enough to recognize when something is a gimmick versus when something is a legitimate advancement. The i900 Mobility falls firmly in the latter category, in my opinion. I really think we will see more and more iPad-based dental apps.
Is it perfect? No. The scanner is heavier than alternatives, and the app ecosystem isn't fully built out yet. But the core experience — the true "mobility", the simplified interface, the patient communication benefits, these are real improvements that matter in daily practice.
If you're in the market for a new scanner, the i900 Mobility deserves consideration. And if you're not, it's still worth trying at your next opportunity, just to see where the industry is heading.
The Digital Dentistry Decoded podcast is produced by the Institute of Digital Dentistry. New episodes drop regularly — subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
