Until now, AVIO projectors, a uniquely styled projector series with a camera built inside, have cost between $5,000 - $10,000. The company announced it will begin shipping in November the iP-01UE, a cost-reduced model with an estimated street price of only $3,495.Manufacturing companies and schools have been a major user of AVIO projectors. The lower price is expected to make the projector more affordable for the North America K-12 market. If the U.S. $ strengthens against the Japanese yen in the months ahead, it's possible the projector may break the $2,995 price point for multiple unit sales. A significant improvement to the iP-01U is a wide angle lens, which allows a teacher to use the projector at the front of a classroom and to fill up the projection screen with an image.
Production departments of manufacturing companies have been using AVIO projectors to allow shift employees to communicate process status updates without a computer, by writing notes on paper and placing them on the projector. AVIO projectors are quite popular in Japan, although they have never taken off in North America. Cost has been a hindering factor. The $3,000 price point is expected to open up the general corporate market and also law firms.
Although Nippon Avionics, a subsidiary of Japan's NEC Corporation, has been manufacturing the AVIO style projector for 15 years, they are not well known in North America. Because the projectors are unlike any other projector (they resemble a flatbed scanner), they need to be seen to appreciated, leaving the company caught in a vicious Catch-22 circle as most resellers prefer to offer their customers well-known brands. Moreover, the AVIO projectors are a "concept sell", which require a sales person to demonstrate and explain the advantages of an all-in-one unit (something which many projector sales people would prefer not to do). AVIO plans to take advantage of advances in Internet technology to create videos showing how the projectors work, increasing their exposure to a broader audience.
Personally, I have found AVIO's projectors to have a very crisp, clear image when using the camera to show documents and clippings from newspapers. Small print is legible. Also, the unit is easy to set up, because it is just one piece of equipment.
Key specifications of the projector include: 2,500 lumens; single chip DLP engine with 6-color wheel and BrilliantColor(TM); 11 lbs; camera with 3.15 million pixels; USB image capture.
For additional information, and current pricing try visiting AVIO's Facebook page and the Alliance Warehouse. Alliance International is an authorized distributor and repair center for AVIO in North America. Tel: (858) 558-2030. E-mail: claudia (at) alliance-intl (dot) com
