You might be wondering why you should upgrade your interactive whiteboards to new, more technologically advanced interactive flat panels. Is it worth it? Well, there are a lot of benefits that come with this kind of investment. In this article, we will try to highlight the most important points.
First, there are a lot of benefits to using interactive flat panels. With a touch sensitive surface you can do just about anything that your old IWB could. Whether your IWB was touch-based or a pen input, it doesn’t matter. With the IFPDs, you can use either your finger or the stylus. You do not loose any features at all; it is all gains where Interactive Flat Panels are concerned.
Better for the Students
Interactive Flat Panels have much higher resolutions, are much brighter and have a higher contrast ratio. All this adds to the student’s viewing experience when looking at the IFPD for prolonged periods of time.
The increased contrast ratio also means that you get to see a lot more detail in your images when they are projected onto the IFPD’s screen. This is especially true for things like graphs and charts which rely heavily on their colors in order to convey the message.
No Calibration or Drivers
There is no calibration or drivers to install. This was always one of the barriers to use of IWBs. Does the computer I want to use got the right driver? Does the IWB software work with a Chromebook?
Whether you are on a PC, MAC or Chromebook, just plug in the USB and HDMI and you are away. It just works.
Easier Installation
The IFPDs are also much easier to mount. This saves time and money on installation. Most schools will use their janitorial staff to mount the IFPDs as the installation is no more difficult than mounting a television at home. Granted, they weigh a little bit more!
Six or eight screws into the wall for the wall plate, attach the hangers to the back of the LED and then it just lifts onto the mount. Most manufacturers like us will include a wall mount in the package at no extra cost.
No Shadow
It may be pretty obvious but IFPDs are just like your TVs are home. They do not rely on a projector or front projection system. Even the shortest of throw projectors had some form of shadow to contend with. With the IFPD, there simply is none.
This again is something that makes the student’s viewing experience much better.
No Serviceable Parts
There are no filters to change. There are no bulbs that degrade over time. There is simply nothing to service on the IFPDs. Simply use a damp cloth to clean the surface. A little window cleaner if you have some fingermarks that you need to remove from the surface and that is it.
Lower Total Cost of Ownership
This may actually surprise you, but the IFPDs over their lifespan are going to cost you less that the IWBs that you are replacing. If you think that you have probably had your Interactive Whiteboards for several years. How many filters have you changed? How many bulbs have you had to buy for the projector?
How many days of use have been lost because the bulb had blown? How many man hours have been used to service the IWBs? All of this adds up and costs money.
With the IFPDs there simply are no service costs.
Standalone Devices
Most Interactive Flat Panels now come with an onboard operating system. This means that you do not have to have a computer connected to the screen in order to be able to use it. If you are lucky, IFPDs like the TouchIT Rapide come with an App Store too that has 1000+ Apps that are all free that you can download and install on the panel itself.
What this means is that there is now a lot more free and readily available content for you to use natively on your interactive flat panel.
Comprehensive Software Suite
Technology and software has advanced massively in the 15 years since the first IWB made it into a classroom. Today, collaboration, App Stores, Casting, Voting and more all comes as standard with the likes of the TouchIT Rapide Interactive Flat Panel.
Today, there are so many options for how you can use your IFPD in the classroom; they are simply much more than “just a touchscreen”
If you would like more information, a webinar or a quotation on the TouchIT Rapide Interactive Flat Panels, please contact us or drop us a quick message on chat.
