Building a winning team not entirely unlike building… well, a building. Ah, it’s that time of year. The kids have gone back to school, the northern states have a crisp evening chill in the air, and the pigskin has begun to fly. Millions of people across the United Sta read more
Springing Forward on the 2017 Spring E4 AV Tour
A Behind-the-Scenes Interview with Gary Bailer, Director of Product Management, Sharp Ahh, spring is definitely in the air! The snow is melting, the birds are singing, we’ve changed the clocks and have more afternoon daylight…oh, and the Almo E4 AV Tour is on the road! read more
Digital Signage – Any Which Way
October finished up the last of the Almo Pro AV E4 AV Tours for 2016, the last of which was in Dallas, TX.
One of the many things to do is walk through the Exhibit Hall, where all of Almo’s manufacturer partners showcase their latest and greatest products…
I really “flipped” over the all-new R Series product displayed by Sharp at our Dallas Show.
This beauty will come in a 42”, 49” and 55” display, and with the extreme tilt capabilities opens up new mounting possibilities that gives more flexibility than ever before to digital signage installations. My imagination went wild. Not only can this series be mounted in portrait or landscape mode, imagine the 42” display mounted face up on a table in a sleek apparel shop, or the 55” face down from the ceiling in a planetarium…
While I wouldn’t suggest mounting it on a floor surface that would be walked on, the design of these monitors is robust enough that they can be suspended from the four corners of the rear housing using wires. I immediately envisioned a simple, elegant look for an office lobby, like an attorney’s office or accounting firm or a retail shop where information, daily specials or other content could be simply and beautifully displayed.
The ingenuity and creativity of our dealers and integrator customers is always impressive. And I can’t wait to see what they come up with when they let loose with Sharp’s new PN-R Series!
I’m Ready to Geek Out
I’m an aspiring techie. As a marketing manager in the Pro AV channel I marvel daily at what you guys and gals (girl power!) can do. While I’m at home battling my wireless printer you’re out there day after day beaming Cecil the Lion onto the Empire State Building in New York City. Well, maybe you don’t do that every day, but what you do on a daily basis is still quite impressive.
I was a high school student in the 90’s. (You Gotta Fight! For Your Right! To Partyyyy!) We had the old school projectors that shined the lesson written on multiple sheets of clear plastic onto a pull down screen, or even a cement wall in some classrooms. Teachers would walk away with colorful smudges on their hands from the ink they were using to illustrate their points. Imagine how Mr. Flammond would teach me the DNA sequence of an amphibian these days!
But, I digress. I haven’t walked the halls of BHS since back when we were sporting Members Only Jackets and fluffy Love Eric socks, but I see now what you the installers and integrators are putting inside those classrooms. And I’m downright jealous. I want to go back and learn the way children of today are learning!
And education isn’t the only way you are changing lives. Making meetings more productive with amazing technology like Sharp AQUOS BOARDS and the InFocus Mondopads and Barco Clickshare in boardrooms and conference rooms is changing the way companies think and do business. Even Almo Pro AV!
Don’t even get me started on retail right now. I just can’t. Because if I start talking about that LG Dual-Sided Curved OLED display and how many pair of shoes that thing could sell me I may have to run to the Galleria Mall immediately.
The point is… the dealers and resellers and installers and integrators that trust Almo Pro AV with their technology needs are pretty impressive folks. And I’m going to be lucky enough to meet some of them in person this coming Tuesday in Dallas, Texas, where our E4 AV Tour makes its last stop in 2016. If you’re close-by, come check it out. You can register here. There are classes and other educational opportunities for CTS Renewal Credits and a super-cool experience by Samsung of their outdoor displays that Paris Hilton would actually describe as “that’s Hot”.
Yes, I’m going because it’s my job. But don’t think I won’t be walking away all geeked out and excited over the technology we’re showcasing. And when I come home I’m going to beat that pesky wireless printer!
Making Collaboration Easy is one Smooth Move
It’s a popular buzz word in the Pro AV Industry. More and more manufacturers are introducing products that enable users to collaborate wirelessly via a single piece of hardware or software-based solution. Many of these solutions are focused on sharing from multiple screens to one master display or from one display to many devices in this BYOD world we live in. The industry-leading Sharp AQUOS BOARD ® offers both.
Collaboration. Defined as to work, one with another towards shared goals.
It’s a popular buzz word in the Pro AV Industry. More and more manufacturers are introducing products that enable users to collaborate wirelessly via a single piece of hardware or software-based solution. Many of these solutions are focused on sharing from multiple screens to one master display or from one display to many devices in this BYOD world we live in. The industry-leading Sharp AQUOS BOARD ® offers both.
If you’re looking for more interactive presentations, lively discussions and paperless meetings in both business and education settings, take a look at Sharp’s PN-C series Interactive Display Systems. Available in 60” and 70” screen sizes, these entry-level models come equipped with Touch Sharp Display Connect software, which allows onscreen content, including handwritten notes and drawings, to be viewed on mobile devices such as PCs, tablets and smartphones. SHARP Display Connect also enables file transfers, interactive onscreen writing and drawing and remote control of the interactive display from mobile devices. Flexible and cost-effective, the PN-C Series displays provide a platform to boost collaboration (there’s that word!) and enhance the impact of lessons, meetings and presentations.
According to Urban Dictionary, a smooth operator is someone who can handle multiple situations in a fashion that can only be described as awesme, or spectacular… It goes on to say a smooth operator is someone who tends to be ‘on top of things’ and is usually in control of any given situation.
If you’re looking for the Smooth Operator of AQOUS BOARDS, do yourself a favor and check out the Sharp PN-LW Series, also available in 60 and 70” screens. With built-in wireless connePN-L Seriesctivity, information can be presented on the AQUOS BOARD interactive display directly from users’ devices – without the need to pre-load files or data. The 2×2 split screen feature creates a virtual video wall of presentation data, seriously driving (guess what?) collaboration. As data is not stored during the wireless connection, confidential information cannot be leaked, so information is secure (one less thing to worry about). And, with up to ten touch points, allowing four users to annotate on-screen at the same time, the power of teamwork has been amplified.
Consider Sharp AQUOS BOARDS and start collaborating.
Sharp AQUOS BOARDS: Helping You Collaborate Better
The Next Generation of Sharp Aquos LED Interactive Displays
Recently, Sharp Professional introduced the PN-L703W/603W displays into their suite of AQUOS BOARDS. These brand new wireless AQUOS BOARDS are available only in 60” and 70” making them great for boardrooms and smaller huddle rooms. In addition, BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is easy with a built-in wireless controller. Its intuitive design enables its users to collaborate better regardless of the operating system being used on laptops, phones or tablets. Another impressive feature about the PN-L703W/603W displays is that they can display onscreen content in TWO ways: in a 2 x 2 split screen or any one of the individual screens can be enlarged full-screen size. All of it done by the built-in wireless controller that allows the PN-L703W/PN-L603W to give off its own SSID once it is set in the wireless mode. Because no data is being stored during wireless connection, you won’t have a problem leaking any confidential info.
Sharp Aquos: Improving Collaboration
Some of the most talked about products that we have been seeing within the Pro AV industry are ones that involve wireless collaboration. Other popular products that get talked about are interactive pieces. Today most display manufacturers have a product that has touch capabilities whether it is a projector or a flat panel display. With this being said the manufacturers of the wireless collaboration products sometimes try to partner up with the display manufacturers to showcase these collaboration products. Throughout my travels in the Pro AV industry, I have not seen many all-in-one solutions that involve wireless collaboration and a display with the exception of a few and the ones I have seen did not have touch capability until now.
These Aquos boards have gained a lot of popularity in the education market, along with teaching hospitals. They have become more and more popular in the corporate board rooms for video conferencing and collaboration. With the pen software, you can jot down ideas, save the file as a PDF and email it to colleagues or customers working on the same project. Sharp is primarily known for its display hardware and technology. However, Sharp also excels in software development that compliments hardware products. This is something to take note when specifying a project, do you want your hardware from a company that specializes in software or an Aquos board which is made by Sharp a company that specializes in hardware.
One of the best things about the new wireless capable AQUOS BOARDS is the software needed to collaborate comes free in the box. The SHARP Pen Software is not only easy to use but has a special handwriting recognition function that converts selected onscreen handwriting into standard text.
Sharp has been an industry leader in touch 60” and above with their AQUOS BOARDS products. So with these new additions, I am looking forward to seeing how they will further evolve over time.
Top 5 Features of the Sharp AQUOS BOARD:
10-Points of Touch
One of the great new features of the next generation AQUOS BOARD is the 10 points of touch. Write, draw and gesture with more than one finger. Combined with the simultaneous annotation mentioned next, users are in a prime position to make the most of their time in any classroom or meeting room.
Simultaneous Annotation
With a highly responsive design, users now have the capability to simultaneously with up to 4 people. The interactive touch pens may operate at the same time and even write in different colors for further distinction. Each pen has its own function buttons, pressure-sensitive and customizable. What a great way to encourage group learning in the classroom or facilitate a brainstorm session at the office.
No More Input Modules Needed
These new models do not need input modules for the various connection combinations. Now, most of the connections are built on the panel allowing the AQUOS BOARD to have more capabilities. It now has multiple HDMI, Display port, LAN connection, audio, and USB. While these units do not have the 9-pin connection for control, it can still be controlled via IP.
Free Software
Included is the latest version Sharp Pen Software 3.0, which is, even more, user-friendly than previous versions. The built-in web search (AQUOS BOARD must have an internet connection) and smoother handwriting recognition, along with a multitude of other features, can be customized using its new on-screen menu. The new pen software supports multi-touch and comes with Touch Display link software. Touch Display Link 2.0 is an effective and multilayered communication tool and BYOD. Handwritten notes and drawings are done in real time and can be viewed at the same time on the AQUOS BOARD and mobile devices.
Print Directly from the AQUOS BOARD
We know most people and companies are trying to go paperless, but there is usually always something that needs to be printed – especially in brainstorming sessions where you’re annotating documents. The AQUOS BOARD can easily accommodate this! You can also scan images or documents from a color scanner and import to your AQUOS BOARD all via the pen software, but you’ll need to be connected to an MFP.
