Latest interactive whiteboards and sound system expected to create buzz at inaugural education supplies exhibition

Dubai, UAE - January 21, 2008 - SMART Technologies has announced that it will display a range of cutting edge products at the Gulf Education Supplies Show (GESS) 2008, being held at the Madinat Arena, Dubai from January 22-24. SMART's new products, comprising the new, second-generation of the SMART Board™ 600i interactive whiteboard system, version 10 of Notebook™ collaborative learning software, the SMART Classroom Audio System and SMART Board™ 685 interactive whiteboard, will be showcased to an audience of more than 5,000 buyers, specifiers and decision makers from schools and educational bodies around the region.  

More than 150 companies from 20 countries will be demonstrating their latest technology and resources for the learning environment at GESS 2008, which is the first Middle East exhibition to feature all aspects of supply, learning resources, school design and solutions for the overall education environment from pre-school through post-graduate education and life-long learning.  

"With education increasingly becoming a focus for regional governments, a growing number of educational institutions across the Middle East are adopting technologically advanced teaching tools," says Nancy Knowlton, SMART's CEO. "As an industry pioneer and leader in user-friendly ICT products, SMART welcomes the opportunity at GESS 2008 to showcase our latest products, designed to enhance teaching and learning in the classroom."

SMART products at GESS 2008

Notebook collaborative learning software ? version 10 of Notebook collaborative learning software offers over 30 new features to make lesson creation and delivery even easier. It now includes access to more than 100,000 new pieces of educational content and an updated teachers' resource hub, which connects teachers to hundreds of lesson activities and offers tools that help them use Notebook software 10 more effectively. Version 10 also offers support for five additional languages, which brings the total to 41.

The SMART Board 600i interactive whiteboard system ? the second generation of SMART's integrated system combines the SMART Board 680 interactive whiteboard with the new Unifi™ 45 projector to provide a better image. It costs 25 per cent less than the original system, making it both convenient and affordable.

The SMART Classroom Audio System ? designed to improve the audibility of teacher and student voices in the classroom, the system includes a teacher microphone, student microphone, charging station, two infrared sensors, an amplifier and four ceiling or wall-mounted speakers. The SMART Classroom Audio System reduces teachers' vocal cord strain by distributing their voices to all corners of the room and enables students to hear clearly.  

The SMART Board 685 interactive whiteboard ? this is a wide-format interactive whiteboard with a 16:10 aspect ratio that measures 87 inches (221 cm) on the diagonal. The extra wide format offers 20 percent more working space than a SMART Board 680 interactive whiteboard and provides a solution for teachers who choose to adopt 16:10 wide-screen projectors.

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About SMART
SMART Technologies is an industry pioneer and global education market segment leader in user-friendly ICT products and group collaboration tools. The award-winning line of SMART Board interactive whiteboards is the most widely installed in the world because of its unsurpassed product quality, versatility and ease of use. The SMART Board interactive whiteboard is used to teach over 18 million students in more than 600,000 classrooms in more than 100 countries around the world.

SMART is a private company founded in 1987. Employing more than 1,000 people, SMART is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with assembly facilities in Kanata, Ontario and offices in Bonn, Tokyo, Shanghai, New York City, Chicago and Washington, DC. SMART has been issued and maintains a broad portfolio of patents with numerous U.S., Canadian and other patents pending. In 1992 SMART formed a strategic alliance with Intel® Corporation that resulted in Intel's equity ownership in the company. SMART products are sold through dealers across North America and distributors worldwide. To learn more about SMART, visit www.smarttech.com .

For more information, contact
Orient Planet PR & Marketing Communications
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© 2008 SMART Technologies ULC. SMART Board, Notebook, smarttech and the SMART logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of SMART Technologies ULC. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other third-party company names and products are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

© Press Release 2008