New Panaboards From Panasonic

If there was any doubt, interactive whiteboards continue to be wildly popular. I can't even describe how many articles I've read in local and national newspapers touting this or that school as "21st century," describing all the amazing technology recently purchased with special funding... but it isn't the computers, it isn't the document cameras, netbooks, projectors or handhelds they focus on, it's the interactive whiteboard that impresses. And they almost always include some line about them being "the 21st century version of a chalkboard."

Panasonic might not  immediately come to mind when thinking of manufacturers. I bet they will soon. In fact the company has a line of really solid whiteboards, Panaboards, and is aggressively moving into the market to claim their share. This week, Panny announced three new Elite Panaboard models and a November ship date for a fourth. The three Elites come in three sizes, 83", 77" and 64" diagonal and include such features as onboard streaming media playback, integrated stereo speakers, and a screen capture utility that records everything written on the board along with audio commentary for use later. The UB-T780BP is the fourth, and is a USB-powered model that includes a PowerPoint mode for "invoking and annotating PowerPoint presentations without the use of a secondary PC." Looks like a good lineup!

Hitachi's New CP-RX80 Projector

$100 billion electronics giant Hitachi just keeps on keepin' on with projector releases. There are a whole ton of projector companies out there, but I really think Hitachi has one of the best stocked stables on the market. Their short-throw CP-A52 and CP-A100 set the standard, in my humble opinion, for that segment.

This past week 'Tach unveiled the latest, and in case you haven't noticed, projectors keep getting more affordable while boasting specs that were once luxuries. The CP-RX80 is a 3LCD model with 2200 lumens of brightness, a 500:1 contrast ratio and XGA resolution, and weighs just seven pounds. I've eaten sandwiches that weighed more. MSRP of $995, but I've seen it online as low as $499... entry level just keeps getting better.

Inspiration, Pearson, Discovery Ed, School Loop and Leightronix Makin' News

Here we are at hump day, and a variety of things have been going on already so far this week that I can fill you in on:

Inspiration Software came up big with three wins in the ComputED Gazette 2009 EDDIE Awards for their early and upper elementary visual learning software.

Discovery Education is now available on Video On Demand from Comcast... but unfortunately for now, only in Indiana.

Pearson announced that its DRA2 Handheld – Tango Software Edition is now available for the iPod Touch.

School Web site designer School Loop unveiled their new OpenLoop High Priority Group API feature, which allows districts to group the data of students requiring extra attention.

And LEIGHTRONIX introduced SchoolStream.TV (pictured here), a Web media streaming and hosting video-on-demand service for K12 districts.

Video: New Products, September 2009

New iPod Nano Adds Video Camera: One Less Thing For Schools To Buy!

We here at DA love the educational potential of mobile devices.... in fact I'm working on an guide for an upcoming issue right now. Our columnists and bloggers Cathie Norris and Elliot Soloway specialize in this area. I've also written about school use of cell phones, digital cameras and digital video cameras and other mobile devices in the past.

Well the segment continues to evolve--I'm sure I don't have to tell you about the rapid advancement of smartphones--and today's announcement of the new iPod nano is a pretty interesting example. Apple has added a full motion video camera, microphone and larger screen to their minuscule MP3 player, available in 8GB (8 hours of footage or 2,000 songs) or 16GB (16 hours video or 4,000 songs) configurations. Pretty amazing to fit all that into such a tiny package for so cheap: $149 or $179.

So the possibilities are immense for the use of video and other multimedia in classrooms, but increasingly, instead of the old days of schools wondering how to afford thousand-dollar camcorders and deciding whether to trust them with students, here's another example, like smartphones, of advanced technology already owned by students and brought with them to school. What a shift!

FREE STUFF ALERT: Win TI-Nspire Calculators, MathVids Subscriptions

 

MathVids.com is a sort of open source math resource, specializing in free math instructional videos for anyone who wants to view them, be it in the classroom, at home, in the library or anywhere else you feel the urge to learn some new equations.

The site just announced a new contest: users create / submit a math video that features a Texas Instruments graphing calculator, explaining its features, demonstrating its capabilities, etc. The grand prize winner will receive 6 TI-Nspire graphing calculators with computer emulator software and 150 1-year premium subscriptions to MathVids.com. Every entrant will receive at least a 2-month MathVids premium subscription. So if you already use TI calculators.... here's your chance to show the world how, and to get a few more!! Enter any time between Sept. 1 and October 14!

Relentless New Product Releases Part 2!

... and to continue playing catchup, here's a few more of the recent new products in the past week or so:

Netop introduced its MyVision classroom management software.

The Food, Family, Farming Foundation launched The Lunch Box, a school nutrition Web site for administrators.

MSI released the Wind Top AE2010 all-in-one, touchscreen desktop PC.

LanSchool released version 7.4 of their classroom management software, as well as a free version called LanSchool Lite.

ELMO unveiled their new TT-02RX full motion video document camera.

FrontRow has a new classroom microphone for student use, the 950H.

... and NEC has a new standard aspect monitor, the MultiSync EA190M. 

Optoma Releases New Pico Projector

How small can projectors get? I remember holding one of these Pico-class little guys at a couple conferences, and was tempted to slide it into my pocket and walk away. They never would have noticed. Well, perhaps the crowds waiting in line to see them would. And kill me.

At any rate, Optoma announced today the release of the PK102, "the world's smallest and most advanced DLP projector, at just 4.4 ounces" and 4 inches long. Pretty amazing. But wait, there's more: in a new development, this one now includes a VGA port and 4GB of memory for storing video, images or Gone With The Wind. Plus battery power for 1.5 hours, and brightness enough for up to a 60 inch diagonal image. Not measured in lumens, mind you... these aren't exactly for a classroom to watch the complete Roots films on or anything, but perhaps we'll get there soon.