Vernier Announces Expansion of the LabQuest(R) Family of Probeware

New Sensor and Interface Options Provide STEM Educators With State-Of-The-Art Technology and Unprecedented Value

BEAVERTON, Ore., Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Vernier Software & Technology continues to deliver products that improve hands-on scientific exploration while meeting school budget constraints. Vernier announced this week at both the Florida Educational Technology Conference (FETC) in Orlando and the British Education and Training Technology (BETT) in England the latest products in their probeware offerings: the Labquest® Mini and the SpectroVis® Plus. Also new to Vernier's technology offerings is the Mini GC®, or Mini Gas Chromatograph.

The LabQuest Mini offers an interface solution for educators who use a computer or netbook to collect scientific data. Based upon Vernier's flagship interface, the Vernier LabQuest, the LabQuest Mini has many of the same features, without a screen, for less than half the price, making it an ideal solution for students using computers to collect data. LabQuest Mini offers the same 100 kHz maximum sampling rate as the LabQuest, along with five sensor ports that are compatible with more than 54 sensors. LabQuest Mini includes free Logger Lite software, or for more advanced analysis it can interface with Logger Pro® 3 software. Sixteen Vernier lab books covering core topics in Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, Environmental Science, Physical Science, Physics, Physiology, Engineering and Water Quality are also available for hands-on experiments.

Analyzing compounds in general chemistry and organic chemistry is now easier with Vernier Software & Technology's new Mini Gas Chromatograph—the Mini GC. For use in high school and college courses, the Mini GC uses newly patented technology that allows students to use room air as a carrier gas.

"In the past, chemistry instructors have only had the option of gas chromatographs that cost many thousands of dollars—often over $10,000. This new technology gives college chemistry instructors the ability to outfit a lab more cost effectively. At the same time, high school science lab teachers who may have considered gas chromatography, but it was beyond their reach, can now provide state-of-the-art technology for advanced chemistry classes," said Dan Holmquist, Senior Partner at Vernier and a former chemistry instructor.

The Mini GC takes up a small footprint on the lab bench and is light enough to be easily moved from lab to lab. Students can learn to separate and identify compounds using technology that is now thousands of dollars less than traditional gas chromatographs.  Students can use the following compounds in the Mini GC: Alcohols, Aldehydes, Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Carboxylic Acids, Esters, Ethers, Ketones, and Nitriles.

Rounding out Vernier's new product offerings is the improved SpectroVis Plus®, an array diode spectrophotometer. The updated SpectroVis Plus has an improved range of 350-950 nanometers, enhanced optical resolution and new support for fluorescence, all at a price hundreds of dollars less than traditional spectrometers. This sensor is ideal for high school and higher education chemistry and biology classes and can be used with either a computer or a LabQuest interface.

Pricing and Availability

The Mini Gas Chromatograph is now shipping and sells for $1,749. The LabQuest Mini sells for $149 and will ship in February. SpectroVis® Plus sells for $449 and will be available March 1.  Vernier is also offering its handheld solution, the Vernier LabQuest, at a newly reduced price of $299 when purchasing eight or more. For more information visit the website at www.vernier.com.

About Vernier Software & Technology

http:///Vernier Software & Technology has been an innovator of data-collection technology for 29 years.  Creating easy-to-use and affordable science interfaces, sensors, and software, their products can be found in education from elementary school to college. Vernier helps teachers enhance their science curriculum, increase learning, and build students' critical thinking skills. Vernier's technologies are in use worldwide in more than 125 countries. For more information visit www.vernier.com .

SOURCE Vernier Software & Technology