End-of-life was near. And that was a good thing. The Wilmington Area School District technology team was more than ready to part ways with their aging projector-based whiteboard systems. Maintenance and cost were the primary pain points. This time, they wanted an interactive system that didn’t rely on a projector or proprietary software.

“The number one reason we wanted to make a change came down to cost savings, along with wanting to avoid proprietary software,” said Matt Maine, district Technology Manager. “The cost of a new Promethean whiteboard plus the required projector exceeds the cost of a new ViewSonic ViewBoard display. Plus, the projectors need new lamps every year or two.”

It was time to make a plan for replacing their aging projector-based whiteboard systems.

Implementing the plan, however, had a bumpy start. The district’s first interactive displays turned out to be duds.

“We weren’t initially familiar with ViewSonic, and our first few displays were from another manufacturer,” said Maine. “It was a complete flop. We had tremendous issues with the product.”

Thankfully, they were able to negotiate a return. Then back to square one. This time, said Maine, the tech team performed intense due diligence, looking at hundreds of online reviews. From these, they chose to demo the ViewSonic ViewBoard IFP6550 65” interactive flat panel display with 4K Ultra HD resolution – an option their reseller, Connection, wholeheartedly agreed with.

“We brought the ViewSonic ViewBoard display in and tested it for several months,” said Maine. “We were very rigorous and it performed beautifully.”

Thoroughly pleased, the district put a new plan in place: Replace 20% of their aging projector-based systems each year with ViewSonic ViewBoard IFP6550 displays. Math and science classrooms were the fortunate first recipients in 2016. Next came the remainder of the elementary, middle and high school classrooms.

At 31+ ViewBoard IFPs installed and counting, teachers and tech staff alike continue to be more than satisfied. Improvements over the projector-based systems include better image quality, the freedom to use any content, and the virtual lack of maintenance.

“ViewBoard displays are rated for 50,000 hours of use,” said Maine. “I look forward to the nearly seven years of zero-cost maintenance!”

Thanks to the 4K Ultra HD resolution, Teachers and students benefit from vibrant, crystal-clear images and text.

“One of nicest things about the ViewSonic ViewBoard displays is the picture clarity compared to our projector-based systems,” said Bradi Rhoades, District Technology Coach. “Even though the screen size is smaller, students can see text in the back of the room more clearly. This allows teachers to get through more content more easily.”

While transitions are often difficult and time-consuming, this one wasn’t. Getting teachers up and running with the new interactive displays was amazingly easy, Maine said.

“ViewSonic came in and did some training for the teachers,” said Maine. “And we helped them get started. But mostly, they figure it out. Working with the ViewBoard displays is very easy and intuitive.”

Breaking free from the constraints of proprietary software lets teachers make the most of the ViewBoard displays’ robust interactive capabilities, Maine noted.

“The teachers love not being locked into the software like they were with the Promethean system,” said Maine. “They can use whatever they come up with to teach, with no constraints on their creativity. And, they’re no longer limited by the device, they can plug in almost any device and it will work with full touch functionality.”

ViewSonic vCast™ provided Wilmington teachers with even more added flexibility. Now, teachers can control and interact with the classroom display from their tablets while moving around the room. This capability was another big selling point for ViewSonic, noted Rhoades.

“vCast lets teachers move around the classroom while broadcasting from their device to the display,” said Maine. “For example, a math teacher can be in the back of the room working with students while also writing an example and sending it onto the ViewBoard display for everyone to see.”