SMART showcases new line of educational displays and software to make connected learning experiences a reality

Unique collaboration technology called iQ is available as a standard feature in new interactive displays

LONDON, Jan. 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ - SMART Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SMT) (TSX: SMA), a leading provider of collaboration solutions, has launched three new lines of displays designed to simplify teaching and learning and unleash the power of SMART software to connect teachers, students and content: Two of the new panel series will feature proprietary collaboration technology called iQ that provides unparalleled integration of personal devices, software and content all within the interactive displays.

• The SMART Board 7000 series is the company's most advanced interactive display that offers superior teaching and learning experiences. Its exclusive iQ technology enables the display to act as the central hub of classrooms, unifying students, teachers, classroom displays, software, content and personal devices into one cohesive education-focused experience. It also features HyPr Touch™ (Hybrid Precision Touch) to deliver superior writing performance and touch accuracy, as well as the ability to recognise commands from an array of different interactive tools.
• The SMART Board 6000 series, currently the most popular interactive display amongst educators, now includes iQ technology as a standard feature to provide simple one-touch access to teaching materials, software and applications.
• The SMART Board 2000 series is an everyday display designed to encourage better collaboration in the classroom. It is the first non-touch display integrated with wireless screen sharing.

All SMART educational displays are optimised and include SMART Learning Suite software, a subscription-based software platform with interactive lesson delivery, game-based activities, formative assessments, and collaborative, online workspaces. Continuous enhancements including integration with the new iQ technology on the SMART Board interactive displays. It also provides an unparallelled experience for lesson delivery and interaction across web, mobile and desktop devices for increased engagement and improved educational outcomes.

"Collaborative learning is important in today's digital classroom. It teaches students important life skills such as collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking. It helps students discover and develop their unique potential." said Warren Barkley, Chief Technology Officer at SMART Technologies. "Our new range of SMART solutions and software are designed to deliver a more immersive learning experience for the whole class, a small group and individual teaching environments." 

SMART aims to connect people and technology to create collaborative learning environments that inspire greatness in every student. As students increasingly embrace digital innovation in their personal lives, many educators struggle to simplify learning and incorporate meaningful technology into the classroom. Research has shown that collaborative learning can significantly increase performance and teach students valuable life skills, yet often students are merely encouraged to use technology for consuming, not contributing content.

SMART Board 7000 series interactive display with iQ 
The SMART Board 7000 series interactive display with exclusive iQ technology is the most advanced interactive display for education offering unrivalled collaborative features and ease of use. SMART's proprietary HyPr Touch™ (Hybrid Precision Touch) is the next generation optical technology delivering superior writing performance and touch accuracy, as well as the ability to recognise an array of different interactive tools (pen, eraser, etc.).

The intutiative display enables four users to write simultaneously in the pen colour of their choice (Pen ID™). The interactive display can intuitively distinguish between different commands, allowing users to write with the pens, select content with their fingers and use their palms to erase (Object awareness™). It supports up to 16 simultaneous touch, writing and erase points for maximum ease of use. Other features including magnetic pen tray, multi-port Convenience Panel, dual presence detection sensors, on-screen video preview and source switching, 4K Ultra HD resolution and ENERGY STAR^® compliance offer the most convenient and futureproofed teaching and learning experience available. SMART offers a three-year warranty (may be higher depending on region) and one-year subscription to SMART Learning Suite software. The displays are available in 75" and 86" panel sizes.

SMART Board 6000 series interactive display with iQ
Expanding on its most popular interactive display for education, the new SMART Board 6000 series interactive display now comes with the unique iQ experience built in as a standard feature to provide a robust and affordable solution for the classroom. It also shares exclusive features with the 7000 series, including Silktouch™, Object awareness™, Pen ID™ (supports two users writing simultaneously in the pen colour of their choice), SMART ink™, 4K Ultra HD resolution and ENERGY STAR^® compliance.  A three-year warranty (may be higher depending on region) and one-year subscription to SMART Learning Suite software are standard. The displays are available in 65" and 75" panel sizes.

SMART Board 2000 series display 
The SMART Board 2000 series is a new non-touch display with built-in screen sharing capability for students and teachers to present lesson content from their laptops, tablets or any other mobile device. Broadly supporting iOS, Android and Microsoft devices, the new SMART Board 2000 displays in 4K Ultra HD resolution. It is a flexible solution to implement in any learning environment and promotes greater levels of student engagement. A three-year global warranty and one-year subscription to SMART Learning Suite software are standard. The display is available in a 75" panel size.

SMART will showcase the new lineup of hardware and software at global education events. In addition to BETT 2017 in London from January 25-28, customers can also visit FETC (Future of Education Technology Conference) in Orlando, Florida from January 24-27, or the TCEA (Texas Computers Education Association) from February 6-10.

To learn more about the full range of SMART products and education software, visit www.smarttech.com.

Follow us on Twitter (@SMART_Tech) and join our Facebook page (@SMARTTechnologies) for the latest updates. The hashtag for the BETT event is #SMARTbett.

About SMART Technologies Inc.
SMART Technologies Inc. is a world leader in simple and intuitive classroom technology solutions. We are an innovator in software and interactive technologies that enable natural collaboration, helping every student and teacher discover and develop their greatness. To learn more, visit smarttech.com.

About SMART Solutions for Education
Nearly 70 million teachers and students around the world use SMART solutions for education to make learning more interactive, engaging, effective and fun. A consistent innovator and the inventor of the SMART Board® and SMART's Learning Suite (featuring SMART amp™, SMART Lesson Activity Builder, SMART response® 2, and the world's most popular collaborative learning software, SMART Notebook®). With a full range of interactive displays, including flat panels, whiteboards and the SMART kapp™ digital capture board, SMART helps educators achieve better learning outcomes. To learn more, visit smarttech.com/education.  

Reader's advisory
Certain information contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking information or statements. By their very nature, forward-looking information and statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking information and statements will not be achieved. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these statements as a number of important factors could cause the actual results to vary materially from the forward-looking information or statements. We do not assume responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the forward-looking information or statements. Any forward-looking information and statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

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SOURCE SMART Technologies Inc.