A Google search for "electronic white boards" reveals that there are many brands that produce the product being discussed. I didn't realize that SmartBoard was the name of a specific company. It is probably the first name educators think of but it appears that the business world also has a strong presence in the market of purchasing these tools. Traditional electronics powerhouses Panasonic and Hitachi made the top 5 brand list from that search. The final two spots went to mimio and PolyVision. mimio focuses on the portable EWB market, while PolyVision offers progressive technologies including a calibration free model and one that requires no cables or wires.Going back to that Google search, the first link offered is for the Electronic Whiteboard Warehouse. Who knew that there was such a place? I was even more shocked when looking at the left side navigation menu and counted 20 different brands of EWBs. Did I mention that SmartBoard is not among them? The Warehouse offers bundled packages of EWBs, projectors, mounts, and other accessories from between around $1,000 and $4,000. The two best selling boards alone were $995 and $1095 respectively. Installation prices vary depending on the size of the board. Since the company is based in San Diego, I wonder how far they would travel to install the EWB to the standards they list on the website. Probably not all the across the country to New York.
I wanted to make a connection to this week's course content. One of the synchronous communications that was discussed in the readings was video chatting. As I mentioned in my discussion board posts on BlackBoard, my 2nd grade class participated in a video chat last school year. The interactive white board that was housed in our school's library served as the medium for the video chat. It provided a large enough screen for all students to see and be seen by the friends on the other side. Since the librarian set up the hardware and the video chat, I am not sure if the EWB was used because it was convenient due to its size and lack of wall space or because the technology required it to be.
Next time I will discuss the different types of interactive white boards. I didn't know there were different types. I am enjoying learning about them and sharing it all with you.
Hi Greg:
ReplyDeleteGreat posting! Who would have thought of Interactive White boards (IWB) being a competitive product with a board costing only $995 to $1095, but the accessories associated with this product varying in price range from $1000.00 to $4000.00. It seems to me that it is in the accessories market where a lot of the profit can be made with this educational tool. In terms of purchase of this item, I would assume most east coast schhools would prefer to use a local vendor or one as close to the east coast as possible for maintenance and repair reasons. If/When an IWB breaks, does a repair person come in to maintenance it like what happens with xerox machines or does the entire item have to be shipped back to the vendor of origin? Maybe you could touch base with your school librarian and ask her about the repair policies and procedures associated with her IWBs. ~Aja
Greg,
ReplyDeleteMaybe you'll always call electronic whiteboards "Smartboards" now (like I refer to facial tissues as Kleenex). Thinking about electonic whiteboards as potential corporate training tools,I further explored the portable electronic whiteboards and found that these devices attach themselves with rubber suckers to standard dry-erase whiteboards to turn them into copyboards. Those offered by the Electonic Whiteboard Warehouse cost between $625 - $1,165. I'm not sure if that's a deal or not.
I look forward to your next post.
I have already mentioned to my school's librarian that I would like to sit down with her in the next few weeks to hear what she knows about IWB and I will make sure to include your question Aja. I will also inquire as to where they were purchased. Her information will help us to decide what a good deal is on them.
ReplyDeleteGreat Greg! I look forward to reading your future postings. You have such an interesting topic! ~Aja
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