BlackBerry Presenter with Pico Projector Tutorial

Micro Projector

BlackBerry Presenter with Pico Projector Tutorial

We recently wrote about how great the iPhone 4s mirroring ability was that allowed us to project everything on the phone onto a projection.  We know the iPhone is a popular phone but another popular phone is the blackberry line.

As we all know the BlackBerry, better known as the CrackBerry is used by many business professionals out there and I can only imagine how many of them wish they could easily connect their phone to a pico projector to do a presentation.  With the combination of the BlackBerry Presenter and a pico projector this is now possible.

 

 

AAXA Technologies made a nice little write up on how to hook up the BlackBerry presenter to their P4 pico projector but the steps will be pretty similar to any other projector with VGA input.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured is the BlackBerry Presenter along with a BlackBerry Bold 9000 and an AAXA P4 Pico Projector.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After hooking it up the BlackBerry Presenter start up screen looks like this.  

Once you open your document on your phone and press present it shows up like this.

Obviously I skipped some steps, but I just wanted to show essentially how easy it is to present with BlackBerry phones for all of you who complained that we only talk about the iPhone here.

The Full Tutorial can be found here:

http://www.aaxatech.com/support/faq/BlackBerry_Presenter_AAXA_P4.php

Benq joybee GP2 handheld micro projector

Micro Projector

Benq joybee GP2 handheld projector

The Benq Joybee GP2 is Benq’s latest projector replacing their previous GP1 model.  It’s pretty small but not small enough to classify it into the pico range.  It is however small enough to be a micro projector.    The GP2  looks similar to the previous model as it still has the same black and white casing but the features have been greatly improved.

 

Features:

The BENQ Joybee GP2 features short throw projection, integrated iphone/ipod doc, a multitude of connections and an external 3hour battery pack.  Unfortunately the extra battery pack does double the size of the projector, but it is still a nifty thing to have.

The GP2 also features 200 lumens led light engine with 2 2w stereo speakers.  With its WXGA(1280×800) resolution it can be be a great viewing device.  You can now get the this micro projector for $549

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

iPhone projector, or standalone pico projector we have the answer

Micro Projector

iPhone projector, or standalone pico projector, we have the answer

Right now there are three main pico projectors made specifically for the iPhone.  There is the Brookstone iPhone case which is the newest one getting all the buzz for the holiday season. The mili Pro v2.0 has been around for quite a while but never seemed to catch on because of the giant price tag.  The is also the Thanko pico projector attachment just connects to the bottom of any iPod, iPhone, or iPad.

Brookstone iPhone case/projector/battery pack


$229.99,

15 lumen,

64×360 native display

.5w speaker

2100mAh battery with ability to power iPhone

 

 

Mili Pro v2.0, iPhone, iPad, iPod Video Projector

$398.99

10 lumen

native 640×480 resolution

integrated speakers


Thanko iPhone, iPad, iPod Video Projector

$202

10 lumen

320×240 resolution

Analysis

From looking at all three, I’d have to say that the Brookstone projector probably gives you the most bang for the bug.  With its recharging ability it won’t put a drain on your iPhone.  One MAJOR flaw I did notice is that headphone jack is placed right above the projectors lens.  If you wanted to put in some headphones and watch some videos , you might have some problems.

Main problems

The other main problem I have with these projectors is the lumens.  With 10 and 12 lumens you will need very dim ambient light to get good images.  You can get a standalone 10 lumen pico projector like the aaxa p1 jr for 100 bucks and it can hook up to iPhones through its a/v jack.  The don’t think being made specifically for apple devices constitutes the dramatic increase in price.

Solution: get a stand alone pico projector

There are plenty of 50-80 lumen projectors available in the $200-$300 dollar price range.  We had the chance to test the AAXA p4 and we love the 80 lumens that it has.  For $339 we think its well worth the price over any of these specifically tailored iPhone projectors.

Luidia’s eBeam Edge interactive whiteboards with projectors

Micro Projector

Luidia’s eBeam Edge interactive whiteboards with projectors
We love news of projector technology being mixed with others types of interactive media.  Disney is working on their version, microsoft is working on their omnitouch, and now Luidia has an interactive whiteboard.

 

The device can be attached to a wall and plug in a usb cable and you are ready.  There are also BlueTooth versions which would let you not need that usb cable.

Pair this system with a micro projector or even a pico projector since they are getting brighter and you have an interactive whiteboard solution.  With the stylus you can choose from a palette of controls to change colors, line sizes and other features.

With the ebeam hardware being small and portable, it would be easy to put all your essential tools in a small bag and carry it from classroom to class room.

How to display my iPhone 4S on a projector, Tutorial

Micro Projector


How to display my iPhone 4S on a projector, Tutorial

                We recently discussed how useful the mirroring ability of the iPhone 4s was and we got a large amount of readers asking exactly how connect it.  It’s as easy as counting, 1..2..3!(well almost)

 

For this example we will again be using the AAXA P4 pico projector.

What you will need

  • AAXA Technologies p4 pico projector
  • iPhone 4S
  • AAXA P4 VGA Cable
  • APPLE  VGA adapter

 

 

 

 

Step 1:

Insert APPLE VGA ADAPTER into iphone 4S

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 2:

Insert AAXA P4  Pico Projector VGA Cable to APPLE VGA adapter

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3:

Insert small end AAXA P4 Pico Projector VGA cable  into the side of the P4 labeled VGA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 4:

Turn on AAXA P4 Pico Projector by pressing power button on top.

Step 5:

Using the arrows on the projector, highlight the icon labeled source and press the center button

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 6:

Using the arrows on the projector, highlight the 1280×768 Resolution and press the center button

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Congratulations you now have your Iphone 4s screen mirrored using your AAXA P4 Pico Projector.

 

You can now watch videos, share pictures, play games, give a presentation and do all the cool things that the Iphone 4S lets you do.  But now…. Its 1000% bigger!
Here are some videos in case you missed the last post!

You can get the iPhone 4S at http://store.apple.com/us
You can get the AAXA P4 at http://www.aaxatech.com

New Iphone 4s Features Video Mirroring Output making it the Perfect Pico Projector Accessory

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Although the IPhone 4S looks almost identical to the Iphone 4, they are most certainly not the same phone.  Along with the new camera, the faster processor, and antenna changes, the feature that fits our blog the most is its ability to mirror video output.

What this means is, when plugged into a projector, the iPhone 4S will project on your wall exactly what you see on the iPhone’s Retina LCD Display screen.    This ability really makes it the perfect pico projector accessory.

We tested various apps from the app store on our AAXA Technologies P4 Pico projector and found that it worked amazingly.  It’s the newest, brightest pico projector so we thought it was a good fit to test with the iPhone 4S.  AAXA has a iPhone cable available but we had a spare apple vga cable around so we used that.

For Games: imagine playing your favorite game like angry birds, plants vs. zombies or even real racing 2 on a screen that was 100”. You could play on the garage, in your backyard and even on your roof projecting onto your driveway if you wanted to.

*note: we don’t recommend you climbing onto your roof

For Business: You can use all your favorite apps like Keynote, pages, keynote, and goodreader and presentations through your pico projector right from your iPhone 4s without the need for any power cables.

For Education:  For education, iPhone’s, iPads, and iPods are changing the way students and teachers interact.  From the apple website “iPod touch has transformed the learning experience for fourth-grade students at Central Elementary School in Escondido, California. These students are excited about learning. And they have the test results to prove it.” http://www.apple.com/education/profiles/escondido/

With the mirroring ability and pico projectors, teachers can more readily teach small groups of students instead of having them all crowd around 1 iPad or Iphone.

You can get the iPhone 4S, iPad, or IPod at http://store.apple.com/us

All Apps available on itunes.

You can get the AAXA P4 at http://www.aaxatech.com

 

Vingo Projector AP-40

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Neckers a manufacturer from Korea has leaked some information about their latest pico projector.  The Vingo comes sporting 40 lumens and  dlp technology, which is average for pico projectors that are coming out.  What the Vingo does that other pocket projectors aren’t doing is providing more connectivity via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.  This ability allowed for wireless file transfer which some will enjoy rather than playing files from a USB or SD card.

That is all the information we currently have on this pico projector but we will update you when we find out more.
If you’re in a rush you can always check out some other pico projectors from manufacturers like AAXA Technologies, Optoma, or 3m.

Turning iPad into a PowerPoint Presenter for Projectors

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Rick Broida from PC world wrote a nice article about the trouble people have presenting their slides with their iPad’s.  You can find the link to the full article at the bottom

He suggest installing  slideshark which supports both ppt and pptx files.  There are a few other apps which can read many of the MS office files we are all accustomed to using.

The most popular apps similar to this that I have used are keynote or goodreader both which have video out capabilities to connect to projectors or TV’s.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another option is to use one of the more powerful pocket projectors that have on board file players.  There are a few pico projectors that have the power to run ms office files directly from usb or sd cards and these include AAXA’s P4, along with 3m’s mpro series.

www.aaxatech.com

www.3m.com

 

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/242693/turn_your_ipad_into_a_powerpoint_presenter.html

Apple and Zimbabwean government work together to make solar powered iPads with Micro Projectors Inside

Micro Projector

Apple and Zimbabwean government work together to make solar powered iPads with micro projectors inside.  The goal is to deliver these iPads to rural and remote schools.

Apple is hoping to reduce the cost of electricity, printed textbooks, and increase the use of their popular iPad devices.  By targeting developing countries, Apple may be able to hold onto their share of the tablet market throughout the world.

There have been rumors of led pico projectors being embedded into iphones and ipads so it will be interesting to see what Apple does.

 

Seeser laser pico projector powered by android

Micro Projector

Seeser pico projector powered by android

ESPlus has recently introduced their new Seeser projector which offers 25 lumens.  It is capable of projecting image up to 100″ at a resolution of 800×600.   With a 1Ghz processor running Froyo and an sd card slot on the side, this projector can run alone without being hooked up to external devices.  Unfortunately there is no access to the android market.  There is no price on this unit yet but we can only hope its not too high.