After having divested LifeSize, the world’s largest peripheral maker still wants to transform collaboration. Just not in the higher end of the market. The company, known as a power in the consumer IT industry that sells quantity via computer dealers and resellers, is interested in the broader market of conferencing and collaboration.
That leads us to Logitech at ISE 2016, showing a new video conference solution, Logitech GROUP, for mid to large size conference rooms.
Logitech GROUP provides HD video conferencing for groups of up to 14 people, or up to 20 with the optional expansion microphones. Logitech GROUP is affordable and enables organisations to use the same room system configuration for whichever unified communications, web conferencing or video conferencing application already in use. The solution deploys in minutes and is simple to use, allowing any meeting space to be a flexible multi-use video collaboration space.
“Until now, people looking to collaborate over video were faced with a choice between installing high priced purpose-built systems or crowding around a laptop that’s placed at the end of a table. This resulted in a poor experience with coworkers packed together like sardines or falling out of the frame,” says Scott Wharton, GM of the Logitech video collaboration group.
“Logitech GROUP provides the best of both worlds, an affordable solution optimised for large rooms with a wide field of view and crystal clear audio quality. Plus, it works with virtually any UC or video collaboration software and is so easy to use that you don’t need IT support to help get your meeting started.”
“Traditional video conferencing systems are no longer the only option for enterprises. We see an expanding variety of category-defying solutions using audio video peripherals in the meeting room to connect to a PC or mobile device,” adds Andrew W. Davis, senior partner at Wainhouse Research. "This fast-growing class of easy-to-use and low-cost solutions is creating a new market that traditional solutions could never reach. With its ConferenceCam portfolio, Logitech has a strong leadership position in this emerging market."
Logitech GROUP, the successor to Logitech’s popular ConferenceCam CC3000e, has a full-duplex, sleek speakerphone delivering sound that is crisp, clear, and can be heard by everyone in the meeting. Its metal case helps improve acoustic performance, and by isolating the microphone and speaker it provides premium audio quality. The combination of four omnidirectional microphones, acoustic echo and noise-cancelling technology delivers conversational realism. Conference participants can converse within a 20-foot diameter around the base, or extend the range to 28-feet with optional expansion microphones. It can also be used with a Bluetooth enabled mobile devices for audio calls.
The 1080p video quality and a wide 90-degree field of view and smooth pan and tilt controls make it easy to see everyone in the room. On-board H.264 with scalable video coding frees up bandwidth by putting video processing within the camera, resulting in a smoother video stream. And the 10x lossless HD zoom allows participants to zero in on close-ups of objects and whiteboard content with outstanding detail and clarity.
GROUP helps businesses facilitate collaboration between distributed workforces with certified software applications (Optimised for Microsoft Lync 2013, Certified for Skype for Business, Cisco Jabber and WebEx compatible) and enhanced integration with Logitech Collaboration Program members, ensuring a seamless experience with virtually all video conferencing platforms. GROUP works with any computing device with a USB connection (PC, MAC or Chromebook).
Wharton says Logitech has already sold more than 100,000 ConferenceCams, making them Number Two in the world in the category. And just after ISE 2016, Logitech’s ConferenceCam Connect won a coveted iF DESIGN AWARD, a high honor in Europe.
