Purchasing a Samsung SUR40 through nsquared in Australia

 
The nsquared sales team has just spent the last five full days presenting and demonstrating our software on the Samsung SUR40 at both the Australian CeBit and EduTech conferences. After generating all this excitement, it was only appropriate that we provide our readers with more information on this fantastic piece of hardware, how it could work for you and how you can purchase it today.

Why buy the Samsung SUR40?

This device  has the ability to create instant and deep emotional connections with its users. It does this by allowing them to interact in a social, collaborative manner around a table; by giving them the power to drive and create their own experiences. In the business scenario, once connections have been increased that can build trust, drive up sales, increase referrals and cement customer loyalty. For educators, connections with content drive deeper engagement for students, thus enhancing and enriching their learning experience.

Quick Tech Specs

• 40’’ Full HD LED Display
• Object Recognition
• Multi-touch, multi-user
• Scratch resistance, heavy duty protective Gorilla Glass (perfect for public spaces)
• WiFi, Bluetooth and Ethernet Connections

How it could work for you – Industries and Applications

The Samsung SUR40 has been deployed as an engaging device across a plethora of industries. We have seen businesses, universities, schools, hotels and  retail outlets continue to see quick returns on their investments. As we know, no hardware is useful without software running on it! We have a variety of off-the-shelf products that are ready and can be purchased today. Here’s a quick snapshot of what we have available:


Click Image to Enlarge
 


Each of these applications can be purchased separately and chosen to meet your needs. Every license of the application is perpetual and includes free updates. For more information on any of the applications listed above, please feel free to visit our website – www.nsquaredsolutions.com

How you can purchase it today

 

The Samsung SUR40 is available here in Australia, it can be ordered directly through us a sales@nsquaredsolutions.com  and can be delivered to your premises between 3-5 business days once payment has been made. ASK US HOW.
 

Longton Real Estate

Longton Group is an international property group, dedicated to deliverying premium quality property products and services across the Asia-Pacific region. Longton specializes in providing modern, luxury apartments equipped the latest digital technology. It was a natural choice to use the Samsung SUR40 with nsquared presenter in their Sydney showroom.

By using the table in conjunction with three short throw projectors, clients and partners can interact directly with content during a sales presentation creating a strong engagement with the sales team.

"Our team has found nsquared presenter extremely easy to use and it’s made a big impression with our clients during sales presentations”

Steven Yu, Managing Director Longton Real Estate, Sydney

www.longton.com.au

Featured in The Australian

We had a great visit from Chris Griffith last week, of The Australian newspaper.

We spent about an hour showing Chris all the great work we are doing with tabletop computers, specifically the Samsung SUR40. 

Today an article from Chris appeared in The Australian newspaper and it can be found online here. 

A video of Chris' visit was taken and is available on the website of The Australian.

Australian Launch event for Samsung SUR40 with Microsoft PixelSense

Last week was a big week for us at nsquared. Working with Samsung, we launched the Samsung SUR40 with Microsoft PixelSense in Australia at an event in Sydney.

Samsung SUR40 with Microsoft PixelSense running nsquared presenter.

The nsquared team at the event demonstrated a number of applications. Amongst the most popular was nsquared presenter, from the nsquared business pack. With nsquared presenter content such as Microsoft Office documents, images and movies can be shared on the table and sent to other screens. Other devices running nsquared presenter can also share content between each other.

With nsquared presenter we are bringing all your digital devices together to create a truly collaborative solution.

Here is some press we received from the day:

PC Authority

IT Wire

Government News

Sydney Morning Herald

University of Sydney Tech Lounge with Microsoft Surface

The University of Sydney has just launched their new Tech Lounge, a space for students. Sponsored by Microsoft, the tech lounge includes a Microsoft Surface unit.

At nsquared we are proud to be a part of this innovative new space to help students learn, relax and engage with new technology.

The software chosen to run on the Microsoft Surface includes a number of the nsquared applications from both the nsquared education pack and the nsquared business pack.


Here we can see the VC has discovered one of the most favoured nsquared Surface applications, nsquared Paint.

Microsoft Surface is available in Australia

Dr. Neil and Shirralee are happy that Surface is now available in Australia. If you want to buy a Microsoft Surface solution you can contact the nsquared Sydney office.

Competition in Education

Join Dr. Neil and Maridee at nsquared headquarters as they speak again of technology and education. Today they discuss the appropriateness of competition in the learning environment. See why competition enhances learning and benefits students in preparation for the real world. Compare the most recent technologies available to teachers to enhance competition in learning. We welcome any feedback regarding this sometimes controversial topic. Contact us with opinions, questions, or ideas!

Education and Collaboration

Today Dr. Neil and Maridee sat down in the Australia home office of nsquared to talk about the role of collaborative technology in education.

Learn about the importance of collaboration in education and how technology can enhance collaborative experiences. Discover how collaboration enhances learning through shared responsibility and the use of “jam sessions.” Though technology use in the classroom often amounts to a solitary experience for students, there are many up-and-coming technological tools available for teachers to enhance collaboration in learning. Watch our video to learn more!

Validating Design Decisions

Join nsquared in our Sydney office as we chat about validating software design decisions. Is user testing always the best answer? Dr. Neil and Maridee come to some interesting conclusions...

More is Less

Join Dr. Neil and Maridee at our nsquared office in Sydney as we follow up yesterday's chat. Discover why more is less and less is more in terms of software development. Enjoy!

Discover Principles of Surface Design

Today Dr. Neil and Maridee sat down in Sydney to converse about the five principles of Microsoft Surface design:

• Direct Manipulation
• Performance Aesthetics
• Scaffolding
• Contextual Environments
• Supperrealism

Developers and designers worldwide can use these principles to build dynamic Surface applications. What principles do you use for your software development?

Microsoft Surface Controls

Today Dr. Neil and Maridee sat down in nsquared's Sydney office to discuss Microsoft Surface controls. What are some examples of good controls? Which are overused and why? Why are some controls less than ideal? View our educational discussion to uncover these answers and more.

What are your favorite Surface controls? Contact us and let us know!

Do You Have What it Takes?

According to a recent study by ACS, the majority of Australian teenagers are eager to pursue careers in IT. The industry has shed it's "nerdy" image and is now as sexy as the acting, gaming, and fashion industries. Teens are excited to both make money and participate in the leading edge of technology.

But be warned, oh Generation Z, IT will not deliver if you don't. This highly romanticized field is not for the faint-hearted. It takes a true lover of technology, someone infused with enthusiasm and zest for understanding of the vast possibilities the future holds. Someone willing to take risks and expose their internal creative nature. And someone willing to get down and dirty with the code and the deadlines.

At nsquared, we have a passion for technology and as well as a firm committment to the realities of the field. If you have these qualities and something unique to offer, contact us! Can you deliver?

iPhone Spread

iPhone is spreading across the globe, with nearly 50% of iPhones being used outside the US now. Today, Australian based nsquared has its own iPhone spread to show you...



Check out some of our fab apps

• Translation Station: Translate between 12 languages using the Microsoft Translator.
• Lady Match: Match the gorgeous girls in this new twist on Snap.
• Pic Picker: Match your own pictures in another Snap game.
• Follower: Play this game of memory and concentration by repeating the patterns.
• Finger Bars: Repeat the notes on the colored bars using your fingers.

Thanks for checking out our stuff! If you need an iPhone app you would like developed, contact us!

Why be Humble?

I've seen one NYT article call the Windows 7 RTM a "Release to Modesty". There is so little enthusiasm from Microsoft. The usually animated Steve Ballmer actually downplayed the whole thing on Tuesday, stating, "Hopefully, Windows 7 will be part of a catalyst. Maybe it will. Maybe it won't." Though he was speaking of the potential effect of Windows 7 on the PC market, we think he should have been a tad bit more excited.

Vista has had lots of bad press. Vista is actually a great operating system but the software built on Windows nowadays does nothing to highlight the great features of Vista and so the blame is laid on Vista. Now Microsoft really needs to get behind developers building great software for the Windows 7 APIs. If Microsoft continues to encourage developers to keep building applications using the lowest common denominator abstraction, called .NET, then we will likely continue to see the problems that Vista has with Windows 7.

We think Windows 7 has great potential. More stable than Vista, more polished, more evolved. And it was successfully finished on time! Windows 7 has received a consistent amount of positive feedback, and the pre-orders demolished the Vista pre-orders. So where's the Microsoft generated hype? Where's the glossy marketing? Such a shame that they aren't more confident, because confidence sells.

nsquared isn't afraid to toot our own horn! We have been working hard on multiple projects using the Windows 7 touch capabilities on our touch screens. While we can't reveal the details quite yet, stay tuned! If you have project ideas you would like to see implemented using the new Windows 7 features, contact us!

Surface Presentation in the Netherlands

On August 6th, Dr. Neil will be presenting a session at the Microsoft Surface user group in the Netherlands and the local community is pretty excited about it! Read about it here. If you can't read Dutch, I will provide a translation courstesy of the Bing Translator (with some minor edits).

On 6 August 2009, we have a special guest: Dr. Neil Roodyn is in the Netherlands and has offered to speak to the user group dotNed Surface. Of course, we would like to make use of this offer!

Dr Neil Roodyn is the official trainer for Microsoft Surface development. He gives his training throughout the world and at Microsoft events. He regularly communicates with the public and the press about the capabilities of this new platform.

In this session Dr. Neil will focus on the soft skills of Surface development. He will speak about design and usability issues, which are particularly important aspects of the Surface. But, of course, he knows the answers to almost all of your development questions, both in the areas of WPF and Microsoft XNA.

This evening is hosted by Capgemini Los Angeles. As usual, there will be something to eat and drink, and then the session starts at 7:00. Of course this special evening is free of charge.

If you are in the Netherlands and are interested in attending, click this link: Aanmelden voor deze bijeenkomst to sign up. nsquared headquarters are in Sydney, Australia and we offer Surface training worldwide. Contact us if you would like Surface training for your area.

nsquared Surface Out-of-the-Box Experience

Today for our vlog, presented on location at the nsquared Australia office, Dr. Neil discusses some vital Microsoft Surface setup questions. What are some considerations when first unpacking and placing a Surface unit at a location? Why is calibration important and what is the best method? Where can you access applications for your new Surface?



Thanks for checking out our vlog and be sure to contact us if you have Surface ideas to implement or would like training in your area!

nsquared is Agile!

On Thursday last week, we received a request from some clients to spend time in Europe. We responded in agile fashion. Dr, Neil was on the plane from Australia by Sunday afternoon in response to their query, knowing full well that nothing can substitute for face-time with the customer (or potential customer).

What is Agile? Dictionary.com says, "quick and well-coordinated in movement" and "marked by an ability to think quickly; mentally acute or aware."

Agile software development must be all of these things and more. It is a strict process focused on flexiblity, a disciplined aproach to being versatile. Those may sound like oxymoronic expressions, but not the case. At nsquared, we are rigidly committed to excellence through iterations (small steps to reach the larger goal), consistently relying on customer feedback and always ready to change direction in a moment's notice. In fact, Dr. Neil wrote a book about it!

Stay tuned for more adventures in agility with nsquared!

nsquared Discusses the Microsoft Surface Vision

Why was Microsoft Surface created? What are the basic principles of Surface design? Where does Surface really shine? Join Dr. Neil and Maridee in the Australia office as they discuss all these questions and more in nsquared's latest in a series of Surface vlogs.




Stay tuned for more Surface magic!

Why Software Sucks

Dr. Neil is whinging again (Australian for whining) about poor software development. He says the wrong people are developing software because the common tools have become so easy (see his blog post, "democratization of software") and that developers aren't avidly considering UX. His favorite book on the subject, David Platt's Why Software Sucks supports his theory.

"I could think of a way to get a higher percentage of software developers thinking of UX" says Dr. Neil. "Remove the others." Wow, imagine working for THIS guy! He sure doesn't mince words! :)

Here at nsquared, UX is our priority. We start with UX considerations for every project and then use the right tools for the right jobs. The problem with the majority of developers out there is that they don't know enough tools. "It's the hammer and nail analogy," says Dr. Neil. "If all you have is a hammer, you try to use it for everything." Of course we use Visual Studio, Expression Blend, and other Microsoft tools, but we are also adept at a number of other programs such as Paint.NET and Xcode, Dashcode, NUnit, and many others.

If you have projects where wowing the end user is your priority, contact us!