Need a bigger tablet? Google reveals 55inch, $5,000 'Jamboard' it says could replace the whiteboard

  • Will compete with Microsoft's Surface Hub screen
  • Can be used with a finger or stylus, and can be controlled remotely
  • Pictures and even drawings can be sent from  from phones or laptops
  • Owners will also have to pay Google a $600 a year  

By MARK PRIGG FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

Published: | Updated:

Google has unveiled a giant touch-screen canvas for companies trying to make it easier for their employees to brainstorm as they work on team projects and other assignments.

The 'Jamboard,' will replace whiteboard, the firm hopes, and will go on sale in May for $4,999.

It boasts a 55-inch, ultrahigh-definition screen capable of recognizing the difference between when someone is writing on it with a stylus or touching it with a finger.

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The 'Jamboard,' boasts a 55-inch, ultrahigh-definition screen capable of recognizing the difference between when someone is writing on it with a stylus or touching it with a finger, Google says. 

The 'Jamboard,' boasts a 55-inch, ultrahigh-definition screen capable of recognizing the difference between when someone is writing on it with a stylus or touching it with a finger, Google says. 

HOW IT WORKS 

As with a whiteboard, employees can post their ideas, documents and images on the Jamboard, only they won't need markers, tape or sticky notes to do it. 

Instead, they can use their fingers, a stylus or smartphones and smaller tablets to share information and content from anywhere with an online connection. 

All the work posted on a Jamboard can be saved in Google's online storage service, Drive.

 

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Google is releasing the device to a small group of companies Tuesday before making it widely available early next year.

As with a whiteboard, employees can post their ideas, documents and images on the Jamboard, only they won't need markers, tape or sticky notes to do it. 

Instead, they can use their fingers, a stylus or smartphones and smaller tablets to share information and content from anywhere with an online connection. 

All the work posted on a Jamboard can be saved in Google's online storage service, Drive.

Jamboard represents Google's latest effort to lure business and government customers away from Microsoft, which makes a similar product called the Surface Hub. 

Google is undercutting Microsoft by pricing Jamboard at $4,999, a 33 percent markdown from the $9,000 Surface Hub.

Using Jamboard will require a subscription to Google's G Suite of email and other business applications, a service that starts at $5 per month, and there is also a $600 per year maintenance fee.

Jamboard reinforces Google's push to make its own gear in an attempt to hook more people on its software and other digital services. 

Until this fall, Google had teamed up with other manufacturers whenever it made a phone or other gadget.

The Jamboard comes with two pens, and a digital eraser - but fingers can also be used

The Jamboard comes with two pens, and a digital eraser - but fingers can also be used

But Google just rolled out a fancy smartphone called the Pixel that it designed itself. Soon it will start selling an internet-connected speaker called Home. 

Both those devices feature a digital assistant powered by Google's artificial-intelligence programs.

Google is undercutting Microsoft by pricing Jamboard at about $6,000, a 33 percent markdown from the $9,000 Surface Hub.

Jamboard operates with an application that works on smartphones and tablets powered either by Google's Android software or Apple's operating system for iPhones and Pads. 

Jamboard won't work with Microsoft's Windows system, making it incompatible with Surface tablets and most personal computers.

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