SmartBoard or Promethean

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Permalink Reply by Alisha Cunningham on May 12, 2008 at 2:08am

Hello Leigh, We are using both Promethean and Smartboards in our school. We had Promethean installed in Grades 3-6 and Smartboards in K-2. I have experienced both boards and have to say that the Smartboard software is easier to use. Because it is touch sensitive you do not need to worry about faulty pens and it seems that the smartboards do not need to be calibrated as often as the Promethean. In saying that, the Promethean is much sturdier, having a hard surface. What I would suggest is find out what the local schools in your area are using and what your education dept will be supporting as far as professional development. Our region went with Smartboards and therefore have many more opportunities for workshops and sharing. Any other questions, let me know. Hope this helps.

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Permalink Reply by Leigh Newton on May 12, 2008 at 5:06am

Thanks Doug, Danny and Alisha. This is turning into a good cross-section of the teaching world's experience.
We have two iboards at our school, neither of which are SMART or Promethean, and I have a different one again (Polyvision) which I found frustrating as board was made for industry and 'retrofitted' for education by us purchasing EasyTeach software. The software was okay, but when the next version was very experience, compared to SMART's free updates I decided that it was a poor investment.

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Permalink Reply by Josh Allen on May 12, 2008 at 6:12am

Don't quote me, but I believe Stanford U went with Polyvision because it has a quicker reaction time than SMART Boards. No, I'm not sure how that is measured. With our SMART Board, I think the only way to be quicker would be to think ahead of me. But you then have to go back to Doug's point about the software.

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Permalink Reply by Quyen Arana on June 4, 2008 at 6:38am

The University of Oklahoma also has lots of Polyvisions. They also have lost of Polyvisions that aren't being used (I've been in countless meetings at OU, and have yet to see one in use other than as a marker board). I'm sure this is partly due to training, but the only two chances I had to use one, both times I was told it was "out of service".

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Permalink Reply by Leigh Newton on May 12, 2008 at 6:16am

Mmm. Should have edited before posting. It should have read, "I had a different one again" (some years ago).
Also should have said, "when the next version was very expensive..."

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Permalink Reply by Linda Wallin on November 3, 2008 at 9:54am

Welcome to the International Mistake Makers Group!

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Permalink Reply by Austin Keeping on May 12, 2008 at 7:24am

At our school we have only tried the smartboards. All teachers in the Math Department have one and we have had no problems with them. We have had no problems with setup or use. We enjoy them very much

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Permalink Reply by Fran on June 3, 2008 at 12:16pm

We have been trying the new SMART Notebook 10 and have run into some trouble with the drivers. It caused some issues with Adobe products. Has anyone had problems with that?

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Permalink Reply by Scott Beiter on June 4, 2008 at 7:45am

Don't rule out Starboards from Hitachi. They are relatively inexpensive compared to other products on the market and Hitachi is making great efforts to expand their business into education. Our district went with them over all the other brands. No special pen required and no expensive board technology like in SMARTboards. You could drill a hole through the board and it will continue to work. You'd have to try one out to see if it fits your needs.

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Permalink Reply by Leigh Newton on June 4, 2008 at 10:30am

Good comment Scott. Thanks for the info. What do you know about Hitachi's software for educational purposes? That's the most important thing for teachers.

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Permalink Reply by Scott Beiter on June 4, 2008 at 12:59pm

The software is similar to the other products on the market. It has the ability to record, import, export, etc. The only thing that Hitachi lacks is the depth of lesson plans and resources that the others (smart and prometheon) have. As I said, Hitachi is just getting into the game. Another benefit for students is that the newer boards have the ability for 2 students to write simultaneously in certain situations. Also, don't be sold by SMART's airliner and clicker; other boards (like Starboard) have those as well (sold through a third party).

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Permalink Reply by Kyle Vannoy on June 25, 2008 at 11:33pm

After much consideration, our school decided to go with Hitachi's Starboard also. Price was certainly a factor. We have been very pleased. We did have some issues with the Mac version of their software, but that has been worked out. We have been using the Starboard for several months and I have no complaints. We thoughtfully considered Smartboard and Activboard and recieved hands-on demonstrations of both products. Smartboard will work with your finger or any object really, but you can also purchase a stylus pen and then set the software up to only accept input from the pen. The board itself is extremely durable and the software was very user friendly. In the end Hitachi provided more bang for our buck.

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