I'm not a fan of voice recognition, have any of you tried using Siri of the iPhone 4S and 5? It's heading in the right direction but its still no use to anyone. I can't offer much input with the practicality of using an iPhone or iPad while working at a hive as I've not got mine up and running yet but apple use very tough screens and they are quite difficult to break, I've dropped mine on Tarmac, concrete and wood and only have minor scratches and a tiny chip on the screen. If you really did want to use it in conditions that were harsh you could use an otter box if you google it its a very tough case that you can throw, hit with a bat, drive over and drop into a pond and the iPhone or iPad stays safe and is usable wile in the otter box then unclip the case and there's no mess on the iPhone or iPad.