Must Have Tool for "Back to School"

The HoverCam T3. The first
high-resolution document camera
that changed everything.

 A high-quality document camera is a must-have tool for any classroom teacher.

HoverCam, the technology leader in USB document cameras for schools, changed everything with the introduction of the T3, the world’s first USB document camera with high resolution, a fraction of the size and fraction of the cost of traditional document cameras. More than just a document camera, the HoverCam T3 is also a scanner, grading machine, video recorder and high-resolution web camera. Talk to teachers who have one and you can sense their passion for the HoverCam and all it does.

Over 100,000 HoverCam T3s (priced at $219) are in use at schools across the country. The company offers a newer model called Solo 5 which includes all the features of the T3 but is 5-megapixels, has a fully rotating camera head and is priced at $299.

Scan Right At Your Desk

HoverCam includes software for scanning and managing scanned images. Scan pages from a book, newspaper, magazine, kids’ homework. Use the motion sensor to scan multiple pages into one PDF file. Convert and stack scanned JPEG images into PDF. Email scanned images, post them to your website, organize them in folders or save them to Dropbox or Evernote. With the HoverCam, you’re getting more than a document camera. You’re also getting a scanner. No more trips to the school’s administration office to scan. Now, scan right at your desk.

HoverCam's Solo 5 features
a rotating camera head, giving it more versatility
when recording video. $299

Create Instructional Videos for Flipped Learning
The HoverCam includes a built-in microphone. Use the HoverCam’s software to conveniently record HD quality video with audio directly to your computer’s hard drive. With the HoverCam, it’s easy to create your own instructional videos for the flipped classroom. Upload videos you record to your website, Evernote, Dropbox, YouTube, Facebook or Picasa or email them. With HoverCam’s software, it’s easy to share files with students.

Save Time Grading Tests

Use the HoverCam you teach with to also grade tests. The HoverCam includes a free, one-year license of GradeCentral, a software program for creating and grading multiple choice quizzes and tests.  After students complete the test, place the tests under the HoverCam camera to scan them and record the grade in seconds. This will save you time grading. Data and test scores captured with GradeCentral software may be saved as a CSV file and shared with your school’s grading system.

Save Desk Space

The HoverCam has a small foot-print (less than 4” diameter) compared to traditional document cameras and doesn’t take up much desk space.  It’s always available to make a quick scan or use to present to class.  When not in use, the HoverCam may be “telescoped” or folded into a flat position to easily put away in a drawer or carried to another classroom. Because the HoverCam is USB powered, it’s easy and fast to set up and start using.

Striking Picture Quality
Expect superb image clarity from the HoverCam when compared to document cameras three times the cost. The HoverCam allows you to zoom in and out in real time with the spin of the mouse wheel. Combined with the ability to click and drag the image as needed, you have maximum versatility when presenting and teaching. It’s a great way to show worksheets, book pages, and even your iPad or tablet screen.

Industry Leading HoverCam Flex Software
HoverCam Flex is regarded as the best software of any document camera. It allows you to scan, record video, manage and share files. Whether you’re recording a “flipped classroom” video lesson or dropping a scanned image into a PowerPoint presentation, HoverCam Flex makes it easy. It even works with interactive whiteboards, allowing you to easily show captured images and live video on your interactive board. And, the software is embedded inside the unit, making it easy to install anywhere without having to download from the Internet or find a misplaced CD.

HoverCam Flex Software Features Include:

• Audio and Video Recording
• Screen Capture
• Annotation
• Picture-in-Picture (with the webcam on your computer)
• Interactive Whiteboard Integration
• Image Rotation
• Auto White Balance, Brightness, Contrast, Saturation, Freeze Frame
• Zoom and Scroll
• Archive Manager
• Drag-and-Drop Images or Videos
• Time-Lapse Photography
• Motion Triggered Scanning
• Video Conferencing (with HoverCam Connect)
• Compatibility with Skype, GoToMeeting, Zoom, WebEx
• Image stacking, conversion to PDF, and more

Improve Distance Learning & Remote Conferencing

The HoverCam image appears in a window on your computer screen, which means high resolution images of documents and objects can easily be viewed during remote conferences and distance learning sessions with Skype, GoToMeeting, Zoom, WebEx and other web conferencing programs in “screen sharing” mode. In addition, the HoverCam includes HoverCam Connect, a beta software feature that allows two HoverCam users at remote locations to share each other’s viewing screens over the Internet. The HoverCam provides much sharper, clearer images during remote conferencing than using a typical low-resolution webcam.

LED Lighting That Never Needs Changing
Have a dark room? No problem. The HoverCam camera works well in low lighting, and if your room is completely dark, the unit incorporates long-lasting LED lights. For the price of the replacement bulb of a traditional document camera, you could simply buy a HoverCam.

Engineering Masterpiece

The HoverCam was cleverly designed to leverage the processing power of the computer to zoom and control most functions, so the HoverCam doesn’t incorporate the large and expensive optical parts found in traditional document cameras. The result is a new form factor that’s compact, portable, durable and affordable. Moreover, with HoverCam’s strength as a software developer, the HoverCam software allows you to scan, record voice & video, remote conference and manage files which is why the T3 is so much more than just a “document camera."

For Mac & PC Users

HoverCam is compatible with Macs and PCs. Included with each HoverCam camera are:  1.3 meter USB cable, positioning mat, carrying pouch, HoverCam Flex Software and a one year free license of HoverCam’s GradeCentral grading software. 

For additional information about the HoverCam and to find out more about the company’s test-drive free-evaluation program for schools, please contact www.thehovercam.com or tel (858) 750-3499.

HoverCam vs. iPad Clamped to a Stand

     

iPad shown with an optional mount. Is
this the best way to use an iPad in class? 

Some teachers ask, "Why do I need a document camera when I have an iPad?" True, you could clamp or mount an iPad to a stand, much as the one shown in the image. But is this the best use for an iPad, and, is it cost effective for the school?

The traditional document camera - made famous by a company called Elmo - is a dinosaur. In fact, Samsung - one of the leaders - has announced it's quitting the document camera business. But, a San Diego based company called Pathway Innovations has come out with a device called a "HoverCam" which has "reinvented" this stodgy product category. The HoverCam Solo 8 is the world's first SuperSpeed USB 3.0 "teaching camera" with 8 megapixel resolution and full-motion, 30 frame/sec speed over USB. Which means teachers can record full-motion HD video directly to their computer, and share it with students and parents. Calling the HoverCam a "document camera" doesn't do it justice, because it does so much more.

Why is the HoverCam Solo 8 an alternative to an iPad on a stand?

      HoverCam Advantages vs. iPad Clamped To a Stand

      * HoverCam is designed to be used as a document camera for classroom use. It is rugged and includes a stand and a lamp. The total cost for HoverCam’s flagship model Solo 8 is $349.

·       * iPad ($499) + optional stand ($50 - $99) is over $550, over $200 more than the cost of the HoverCam Solo 8.

·       * The iPad is designed to be used as a hand-held, portable tablet.  It’s best used that way.  By fastening it to a stand (making it stationary) the iPad’s functionality - and mobility -  is restricted. A school wastes money purchasing an iPad and tying it down as a document camera. If a teacher's iPad is clamped to a stand how are they going to bring the tablet to the other side of the room? Time will be lost unclamping it.

·        * The HoverCam’s camera head is moveable – the camera can be quickly pointed in any direction when recording video, or showing live images. Fastening an iPad to a stand makes the iPad’ s camera less flexible. As a video camera, the HoverCam is more versatile than the iPad and an optional stand.

·       *  HoverCam Solo 8 includes LED lights so it can be used in a darkened classroom.

·       *  If you drop the HoverCam on a hard floor, it’s likely to keep working.  If you drop an iPad on a solid floor, it could break.

·        * The HoverCam has a small profile, even when showing a double-sided, A3 size book.  The iPad + stand combination, as shown above, could block the view of some students.

·        *  The HoverCam – with its fast refresh rate and true 8 megapixel resolution – is a great way to show and train students how to use iPad apps. By placing an iPad under the HoverCam students can see the teacher’s hand movements and learn faster. The Solo 8 can be used to record an instructional video of how to use an app, which can be easily uploaded to a teacher's website.

      The ideal classroom would include both HoverCams and iPads working together. This can be accomplished with Splashtop software, which allows streaming of a HoverCam image to an iPad or tablet anywhere in the room, which increases mobility.

The HoverCam Solo 8 is a multifunctional scanner, document camera, video recorder and grading machine for classroom instruction, & corporate training, presentations, scanning and flipped learning. It can also be used as a USB 3.0 webcam for distance learning and virtual field trips.

(Note - this post was updated December, 2014)

How To Use HoverCam With An iPad

I’m often asked, “How can I use the HoverCam with the iPad?”

Here are some ways to get the most out of your tablet and your document camera.

The HoverCam is a great
way to show images on an
iPad and train how to use apps.

First, the HoverCam is an excellent way to show a large screen image of a tablet (or smartphone) screen.  Just put the tablet underneath the HoverCam, and the high resolution, true 5-megapixel sensor of the HoverCam Solo 5 displays the tablet screen crystal clear. The advantage of showing the tablet screen this way is the audience (or class) can easily follow the instructor’s hand movements, making it easier to comprehend how the teacher is using the tablet.  And with the Solo 5 being the world’s fastest 5-megapixel USB document camera, there’s not much blurring (and less blurring than there would be with high-resolution USB document cameras from other manufacturers).

If you’d like to use the iPad to control a HoverCam, a great way to do that is with an app called Splashtop, which allows you to control your computer screen with the iPad.  With the HoverCam attached to your computer and with Splashtop installed on your iPad you can control all HoverCam functions with the iPad. The camera images can be simultaneously seen on the iPad, the computer and the projector and you can annotate and manipulate the HoverCam image with the iPad.  Splashtop also has an app to turn the iPad into an “interactive” tablet / whiteboard.  Our technical service department has thoroughly tested Splashtop. The application installs easily and works perfectly.  We recommend it.  (Of course Android tablets such as LearnPad that are Splashtop compatible also work well with HoverCam.)

We occasionally run into a person who says, “I don’t need a document camera.  My tablet has a camera.”  We believe – as do our customers – that both products can co-exist in the classroom.  A blogpost next week will explain why.

Upstart HoverCam Stakes Out Leadership Position in "Document Camera" Market

HoverCam "scanning cameras" are made by a feisty, bootstrapped, start-up company out of San Diego, CA called Pathway Innovations. Three years ago, Pathway was just two guys in a garage with a new type of "scan camera" - a camera on a stand with software that took a high-resolution picture of a document in a second, much faster than traditional flat-bed scanners.  In January 2010 Pathway exhibited at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas and sold a few units. At the end of the show, a visitor approached Ji Shen, the founder and inventor, and suggested, "You ought to be in education." Then, the light bulb went off and the company changed directions approached the school market where every classroom and every teacher in the world could use one of its HoverCams. There was a market for such products already called "document cameras," and there was an 800 lb. gorilla making them: Elmo Corporation of Japan. But the HoverCam concept was different. The traditional products were like "mainframes" -- they were large, expensive and hooked up directly to a projector.  But the HoverCam was small, cost just $199, connected to a computer, and used software to become an all-in-one, multifunctional device to teach, scan, record voice & video, Web conference and even grade tests. Every teacher who saw one wanted one, and the company has since grown to more than 50 people and opened a factory in China to keep up with demand.  Sales doubled in 2012 and are expected to double, or more, in 2013 according to Mr. Shen.

From (L), the "Mini", the world's small-
est document camera, (C) the Neo with
two cameras, (R) the Solo, world's fastest
5 mega pixel document camera.

The company makes a bold claim it is the technology leader in the document camera market for schools and the products it has developed seem to back it up. After shipping the first high resolution, USB document cameras 3 years ago, the company has developed the world's smallest document camera (the so-called Mini) which fits in a pocket and will begin shipping in Q1 2013. It developed a book scanning product called the Impress that scans books automatically and won a 2012 CES "Innovation Award." Earlier this year, the company began shipments of Neo 3, the first "document camera" to incorporate a two-camera design, that supports the concept of the "flipped classroom" by giving teachers the ability to easily create video content with the two cameras showing picture-in-picture, or to use the second camera when web conferencing. The company's latest introduction is the Solo 5, and its claim to fame is the world's fastest 5 mega pixel USB document camera for schools.

Like it's predecessor, the Solo 5 is also an all-in-one USB document camera targeted for the school market that allows teachers to present, scan, record voice and video and grade multiple choice tests.  Solo 5 offers twice the performance of HoverCam’s best-selling T3 and has the world’s fastest refresh rate of any true 5 mega pixel document camera, which means no more blurry images. In addition, the shooting area is A3 size which is much larger than its previous cameras and more practical for teachers.

Traditional "document camera" before advent of the HoverCam.

One of HoverCam's strong features has always been its software, called HoverCam Flex.  The software allows instructors to easily crop and capture images, zoom, rotate, annotate, record, manage documents, share via email or cloud services and even connect over the Internet with another HoverCam user anywhere in the world (this is the "HoverCam Connect" feature). The Solo 5 is compatible with leading interactive whiteboards and may be used with remote conferencing software including Skype™, Go To Meeting™ and WebEx™.  Other advanced features include a flip-up, fully rotating camera head, auto focus and the ability to tilt the arm to just an inch above an object for super close-ups that until now where possible only with document cameras costing hundreds of dollars more.

HoverCam Solo 5 (L) in closed
position. When opened, it has a
fully rotating camera head which
may be used as a webcam or
pointed down to scan or display
hi-res images of documents or
solid objects.
.

Each Solo 5 includes a one-year complimentary license of HoverCam’s GradeCentral™ software, which saves teachers time and provides student assessment quickly and easily. Solo 5 folds up to a compact size and is powered by a USB cable, so it is easy to move around and set-up. Because the foot-print is so small, it may be kept on the desk ready for immediate use anytime. More than just a document camera, the Solo 5 is a cost effective, multifunctional device for education that assists every teacher convey concepts more effectively, increase student engagement and save time capturing and managing documents.

The Solo 5 for education is priced at $269 and is available for purchase from the HoverCam's website and through a network of authorized education resellers.  For additional information and to test drive a unit, contact the manufacturer at www.thehovercam.com

The table below provides a summary of Solo 5  features & benefits:

Key Features	Benefits
5 MP resolution (2592 x 1944) sensor with Auto Focus and Auto Focus Lock	Capture and display clear images, so students at the back of the room can see small type on a full page document. With such high resolution, Solo 5 may also be used as a scanner to scan articles and student papers. Auto Focus makes it easier for teachers to set up and use.
Fast refresh rate of up to 25 frames/second at HD 720p resolution and UXGA 1200 X 1600	Display clear images with little blurring or delay, the Solo 5 may also be used to create instructional videos for “flipped learning” and for remote conferencing.
A3 shooting area	Capture and display images up to 17” x 22” including legal size and both pages of an open book.
Reticulated folding arm provides 12 mechanical zoom	Position camera head 1” above an object to show clear close-up shots desired in science classes. To achieve such clarity and level of zoom typically costs hundreds of dollars more. On top of that, 16X digital zoom.
HoverCam Flex software	Intuitive, easy to use software for zooming, manipulating images, capturing images, annotation, recording and sharing documents, videos, photos and content created. Ideal tool for "flipped" classroom instruction.
Multi-functional, all-in-one design	Incorporates key features of multiple devices into one HoverCam for scanning, grading, recording voice and video and live presentations providing a cost-effective tool for every classroom with a fast payback in instructor enthusiasm, improved delivery and increased student engagement. Cost effective alternative to Elmo brand products.
One-year GradeCentral™ software license included	Saves instructor time compared to grading by hand and provides immediate results compared to walking to another building to drop off tests at a ScanTron™ type of machine. GradeCentral allows teachers and schools to create test keys, score tests and analyze results.  Data capture may be easily exported to the school’s SIS.
Quick Keys	Use the quick keys on the base to snap an image, zoom in and out, freeze frame and snap to focus.
USB Interface	Just plug the USB cable from Solo 5 into the computer and you’re ready to use it immediately as the device is USB powered. Software is embedded in the unit so it's not necessary to download from the web. As a USB device, captured images may be drag and dropped into the window of any software program, including interactive whiteboard software and Microsoft Office™ applications. Use HoverCam's Whiteboard Connector software to display live video on any IAWB.

Full disclosure: The writer has 20 years experience in the education technology marketplace and has been an importer and distributor of document cameras made in Japan, Korea and Taiwan. In the past, he was product manager of a business development project that included Elmo Corporation and is currently a consultant to Pathway Innovations, manufacturer of The HoverCam. The opinions expressed are his own, unless noted otherwise. Specifications and pricing are subject to change, but were accurate at the time of writing.