Remember when using a projector with a whiteboard in the classroom seemed high-tech? Since then, a series of “interactive whiteboards” have hit the market, aimed at the business customer and promising to turn a board into a touchscreen - but these have often still required a projector.
Google has now entered the fray with Jamboard, which appears to be the antithesis to every clunky pseudo-“interactive whiteboard” on the market. The 55-inch 4K display has a built-in HD camera, speakers and Wi-Fi. The entire board sits on a stand with wheels and appears to be lightweight enough to move location quickly.
The point is, Jamboard is not just meant to look fun - which it does, frankly. It’s meant to be part of the collaborative remote team working that Google promotes with its suite of online applications, including Google Drive, Gmail and Hangouts. Or, as the marketing material extolls, it wants to “merge the worlds of physical and digital creativity”. Don’t we all.
All the data or images you drag and drop onto the digital whiteboard, from other applications or the web, and everything you scrawl on the screen on digital post-its, will be instantly shared with anyone who has access - just as with Google Docs. There will be a Jamboard app, so your colleagues can work on the same board - or, “jam”, as Google wants us to call it - on their smartphones or laptops wherever they are. And every new addition will be saved to Google Drive.
Jamboard itself has a few nifty features including sticky notes, stencils, and handwriting and shape recognition. It comes with a stylus and a round eraser so it’s natural to make adjustments on-screen as you would a normal whiteboard. Although you can use your hands to drag and drop, it will also recognise when you make a wiping motion with your fingers to erase something. Google attests that it doesn’t need batteries - but this slightly defeats the purpose of making it mobile on wheels, and means it won’t be convenient for every situation around the office.
Jamboard won’t be out until 2017, and still seems extremely pricey at “under $6,000” (almost £5,000 thanks to today’s exchange rate). Google is still tinkering on the Jamboard as well and is inviting its business customers to partner with it though an Early Adopter Program to help refine the board. It claims to have already consulted with customers Netflix and Spotify to streamline the design of both the hardware and software.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
