Wi-fi hotspots available for checkout at library

Devices that provide instant internet via built-in cellular Wi-Fi are available at the Canyon Lake Library for members to check out. These hotspots have been acquired by the Riverside County Library System thanks to funding from the Southern California Library Cooperative and the California State Library.

A total of 90 of the devices were obtained by the county library system and were distributed to the libraries in its system, including the Canyon Lake Library. Those without access to the internet can check out one of the devices for up to three weeks.

The portable Wi-Fi hotspot devices will work in any area covered by the Sprint or T-Mobile cellular network. These hotspots will enable all members of the community, with an active library card, to access the internet from home or on the move, opening up opportunities and increasing productivity.

“The new hotspots will really benefit those in our community who may not have regular access to the internet,” Jon Solomon, Director of the Riverside County Library System, said. “We are pleased that we can continue to offer this crucial service even after our doors have closed for the day.”

This new collection will help to bridge the digital divide in the community, bringing internet to those who need it outside of the library walls, Jon said.

The hotspots will provide portable Wi-Fi to assist with job seeking, school work, accessing online health portals and more, and will connect to mobile enabled devices such as smartphones, laptops and tablets.

This initiative is a recipient of the statewide $1.6 million emergency COVID-19 recovery fund, which is providing hotspots and laptops to community libraries across California.

Funding for this initiative comes from the federal Library Services and Technology Act, which requires libraries comply with the Children‘s Internet Protection Act to receive devices.

Any Canyon Lake resident who is at least 18 years of age and who has an active library card in good standing may borrow a Wi-Fi hotspot from the library.

The hotspots are limited to one device per household and are available on a first come, first-serve basis. Chargers will not be checked out.

The Riverside County Library System is a division of the Office of Economic Development.

For more information and to check first to see if a device is available, contact the Canyon Lake Library at 951-244-9181.