InFocus JTouch and LiteShow 4 Review #EdChat

I'm excited to share with all of you a new addition to our growing Makerspace in my school. The InFocus JTouch and LiteShow 4. 

The JTouch 65" Interactive Touchscreen Display is an excellent addition to the classroom looking for a more interactive experience for students. At the special educational price of $1,999, it is a great deal. 

Here is a short video that explains more about the display. 

The one thing that jumps out to me is the clarity of the screen. It is crisp! I hooked up my Mac directly to the screen and the image was very bright. This is key because we plan on keeping this in the library with our Makerspace equipment and we will not be able to turn the lights down just for that area. A clear screen will help all of the students in the room. I also connected our document camera to the Mac to see how it would look on the bigger screen and everything looked great. The connection to the Mac was simple and quick. I would have liked to see more than one HDMI port so multiple items could be connected, but I can always go online and purchase a dongle that will allow me to connect extra HDMI cables if I need to. 

We were not able to mount the display on the wall, so we needed a stand. The stand provided by Chief was the perfect solution. It has wheels that allows us the flexibility to move the display around the space and configure the room how we need it depending on the use of the day. I think that is so important for Makerspaces. The stand hides all of the wires and allows for the display to be moved up and down. This is great for students that might be a bit shorter than others. That would not be possible if it were mounted on the wall. If you are looking for the flexibility of moving your display around, check out Chief for some great deals on stands. 

Here are some shots of students using the JTouch with different interactive websites. 

I did not tell the students anything about how to use the display. I just pulled up a site and said use it. The students quickly got the hang of the touch screen and were able to move around the site with ease. Students have been drawn to the nice sized screen and have been asking to spend more time with it. It has definitely changed the library space in a very positive way. 

The display is strong and no delay could be detected when watching the screen and the movement. Sometimes there can be a delay that can cause problems during use, but everything worked very smoothly. I was very happy to see how quickly I set up the display and was able to navigate around the Mac without any delay or choppiness. I really felt that the JTouch was everything advertised and I couldn't be happier to have it as part of our new Makerspace. 

The direct connection to the Mac was nice, but that could prove a pain if we wanted to move the display around often. It means the computer has to come with it. That was no longer a problem once I connected the JTouch to the LiteShow 4. 

The LiteShow 4 is a wireless receiver that allows you to connect your computer to the JTouch without all of the extra wires. This awesome devices allows for complete wireless control of the the Mac. The computer can now be set up in the corner and the screen can be moved to anywhere in the room. By freeing the display from the computer, it allows for a more flexible learning space. That is a huge plus for me. 

The LiteShow 4 also allows mobile devices to connect by using the MirrorOp app. Now I can have students send their image to the screen by using this free app. Little details like this always make a huge difference in the classroom. Now I can have students work independently, but then share their work with the group quickly by sending it to the screen. 

You can even have multiple computers connected and shown on the screen at once.

As my students start to design and create, this is a great option that will allow students to compare work and choose the best direction to head in for a project. This was not a possibility before. Another excellent part to a great product. It is worth adding to your space if you are looking for wonderful ways to share work and collaborate. It is $399 lives up to all of its promises. 

The  JTouch and LiteShow 4 have been an excellent addition to our growing Makerspace and I would highly recommend them to other educators looking to add a wireless and interactive display option to their classroom or other learning space.

I was sent a JTouch and Liteshow 4 from InFocus for the purpose of this review.