The rapid growth in the digital classroom has created huge opportunity for suppliers of display, presentation and interactive components. Steve Montgomery finds out where visualisers fit in the picture.
A considerable amount of the increase in global spending on education technology can be attributed to the rise in the use of mobile PCs and tablets in the teaching environment, particularly with the increasing availability of software applications that enable group and class collaboration between personal devices and with large room displays. This shift has affected sales of other presentation devices, notably interactive whiteboards and projectors and, to a lesser extent, peripheral devices such as visualisers.
Visualisers are low-cost items, compared with projectors and whiteboards, and are often considered as useful add-on devices to supplement the main teaching equipment. They are primarily supplied to schools and colleges by resellers as part of a complete solution. However penetration levels are low: EMEA classroom penetration was just 3% by the end of 2013, although some areas, such as the UK have levels of around 17%, offering considerable scope for sales, but pitched against competing devices which are often seen as more attractive and important.
Despite these low rates, manufacturers are generally satisfied with sales levels. “The UK was an early adopter of visualiser technology, and we have recently experienced a slowing down of the market due to the large quantity of product that exists already,†says Adam Phillips, UK sales manager, Lumens Digital Optics Inc.
“In other regions they are still a new product and we are achieving good sales levels. Germany and Poland are still showing strong growth which we predict will continue for some years yet. The Netherlands has a large installed base of interactive whiteboards and touchscreens so visualisers are the ideal accompanying product. However in other regions, like the southern part of Europe, budgets have drastically been reduced due to the continuing financial crisis.â€
Samsung also reports buoyant business, as James Frame, European and Nordic sales manager for Samsung points out: “Growth of visualisers in the EMEA region has increased by 30% over the past two years from a flat period before that.â€
Learn more about products available on the market and trends in visualiser technology from Lumens, Samsung, Wolfvision, Optoma, Qomo, Smart and Epson by reading the full article in InAVate Active. If you are not already registered then follow the quick sign up for your free subscription and immediate access to this article and the InAVate archive.