Most Innovative Rack/AV Furniture Product

Grant's Perspective on ... the Sound-Craft WSV-50 winning an innovation award

While at InfoComm, I noticed that the Sound-Craft WSV-50 was awarded the "Most Innovative Rack/AV Furniture Product" award from Systems Contractor News. This desk/lectern is perfect for universities where many different presenters will want to adjust the unit from desk to lectern height. When the presenter is comfortable they can focus on teaching.



Have a look at the Sound-Craft website for all the WSV-50 specifications.

Just a short post this week as I'm on vacation and hanging out with my kids.

Grant

AMX Retractable Connection Port

Grant's Perspective on ... new ways to cut the cable clutter

My June 9th post/rant on cutting down on cable clutter on the boardroom table was posted before InfoComm. I wanted to note a new retractable connection port launched by AMX during InfoComm. Pictured below is the AMX HPX-1600 Retractable Connection Port and note the cables exit the device even when it's closed.



Have a look at the details on the HPX-1600 at AMX website.

Grant

Obama's Teleprompter Crashes

Grant's Perspective on ... technical glitches

I worked in AV rentals for a long time before I moved into permanent installation systems design and programming. While in rentals I was always aware of Murphy's law stating that "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong". This sentiment was reinforced yesterday when the President of the United States had his teleprompter shatter during the opening of a speech.

If Murphy's law comes into play for Obama it can happen to anyone.



We just added some new teleprompters to our Inland AV rental inventory and I hope they do not crash like Obama's!

Grant

InfoComm Delivers AV WOW

Grant's Perspective on ... AV WOW

Over the years I have heard the term “The WOW Factor”. I never paid much attention to it thinking it wasn’t cool or clever and was probably a term for nerds. However, lately I’ve heard this term more and more – and from cool people! LOL Just the other day I was at a meeting where this term was used, clearly understood in the context of the discussion, and someone, don’t recall who as I was taking notes, asked what WOW meant as they thought it was an acronym. There’s a new joke in there somewhere.

Apart from starting a contest to invent a better term to describe things that are impressive, what is WOW in AV right now, you are probably asking. (Come on be honest)

I have mentioned the InfoComm displays and demonstrations of 3D projectors and digital signage in previous posts and now want to mention 4 other things that caught my eye at InfoComm:

1 - Telepresence
This is a Videoconferencing system, from TANDBERG that is THE total solution for natural communication. The system provides for a collaboration setting that puts everyone into the same environment. Really cool! I can see that once people try videoconferencing in this way it’ll be the way to go, not only with the comfortable experience but with saving companies thousands of dollars while allowing employees to be more productive in meetings while not having to travel as much.


2 - Intermediate level control systems.
This might not seem to be very exciting but there was a definite void in control systems. AMX and Crestron are the Cadillacs of the industry and then there are very basic control components (K-car) but nothing in the intermediate (think Malibu) level. RTI has developed the very attractive K4 in-wall touch screens and remote controls when a full-size control system is not required.



3 - Classroom audio reinforcement systems
Providing the teacher with a mic and audio system has been increasingly popular as the benefits are many. (Saving the teachers voice and ensuring students can hear the teacher, to name two) There are a few to choose from and they have some really great ideas integrated into them. Look for a system soon to be released from Epson and they way they’ve integrated it into the projector mount system. See the picture below of Jared doing his best "Vana" while posing with the Epson AP-60 Sound Enhancement System.



4 - Installation package systems for Classrooms, Training Rooms and Presentation Rooms.
Perfect for the company that have their own staff qualified to do installations and perhaps located in rural areas. The packages come with the mount, speakers, integrated signal distribution and room control unit etc. I find the systems have been improved to be easy to install, and the final result is very nice. I have included a picture of the Kramer Summitview series.



Conversion and transmission over CAT5 cable. These little devices are better than ever. More to come on this in future blogs…….

Grant

Sharp Digital Signage Systems

Grant's Perspective on ... Sharp Digital Signage Systems

My last post featured the AMX Inspired Signage digital signage solution so I thought I should mention the new Sharp Electronics solution. I recently visited Toronto, along with Mike, Inland AV technician from Edmonton, to attend Sharp Digital Signage training sessions. Mike elected to take a programming and a fibre-optic session while I delved into more programming.

We were both really impressed with this easy to use digital signage solution. The Sharp digital signage solution is a great fit for larger companies that want to deploy a unified solution across the country but do not want to manage the technology behind the scenes.

I think it is great that both the Sharp and AMX solutions include the ability to custom configure the screen and include third party real time information such as time, weather, news and sports feeds. I copied an image (see below) from the SharpExperience.com website that outlines the basic screen set up configurations.



I'm like a kid at Christmas, I can't wait for the demo system to arrive!

Grant

George Grech, AMX At InfoComm

Grant's Perspective on ... the people you meet at InfoComm.

I really enjoy attending InfoComm (especially when it is in Orlando). I love the opportunity to see the latest in AV technology. The experience sure gets the creative juices flowing when I start to think how the new equipment can be implemented into the AV systems that I design.

It is even better when the person delivering the demonstration is someone that I frequently talk to on the telephone. George Grech of AMX is a perfect example. He is a great guy, full of energy and ideas to help us develop the best AV solutions for our clients. See the picture that I snapped of George while he demonstrates the latest AMX Inspired Signage developments.



For those who have an interest in learning about how digital signage works, I found this 7 minute video overview on the AMX Inspired Signage solution.

I need to keep this entry short. It was great to attend InfoComm but the work sure piles up when you are away!

Grant

InfoComm 09: The Power Of AV

Grant's Perspective on ... InfoComm 09

I am in Orlando attending InfoComm 09. InfoComm is the annual event for the AV industry. It is a week jam packed with educational workshops, a trade show that features all the new audiovisual equipment and great networking opportunities with over 30,000 AV professionals.

As we were making our way to Orlando, our feelings were that the show would be smaller than previous years due to the global economic downturn. I was pleasantly surprised that the show was the size it was with lots of new products and delegates doing more than just kicking the proverbial tires.

3D projection systems were one of the shows highlights that really caught my attention. Some systems require the use of glasses and some did not. The systems that required the glasses performed better but it is certainly interesting that 3D without glasses is possible and only going to get better.

See the picture of myself and other Inland AV staff members wearing the 3D glasses and checking out the new Sharp 3D projector.



I'll try to post some pictures and more show highlights early next week. I have to go and catch my flight back to Winnipeg.

Grant

Cable Clutter on the Table

Grant's Perspective on ... Cable Clutter on the Table

My previous post was a bit of a rant about people who spend a huge sum of cash on their boardroom aesthetics and almost nothing on the room's communications system. I'm following this up with another pet peeve; a great looking room and a great AV system but with cables everywhere.

Consider connecting a laptop on a boardroom table or a lectern when doing a presentation. You'll need to at least connect the computer video, possibly power, and potentially computer audio and a LAN connection. So often this means the aesthetics of the room and presentation is marred by a tangle of cables.

There are a few options when it comes to table top cable management. By that I refer to the connection points where a user will plug-in their equipment to an AV system. Not to a traditional wall plate loaded with connection points located far away from the boardroom table, but a place conveniently right on the table.

On a boardroom table you may find connection point devices that are either pop-up, tilt-up, flip-open, or well style. There may be more than one per table and when in the closed state they hide the connection points while providing an elegant solution to a well designed AV system.

A pop-up, when activated, will elevate itself above the table to expose the connection points. A tilt-up is very similar but a tad more discreet. A flip-open is simply a lid that when open allows access to the connection points recessed below the level of the table.

All of the above require interconnect cables. These are the cables that connect your device to the connection point. I personally don't like the fact that the excess cables lay on top of the boardroom table cluttering up the area, which looks unkempt and may be a distraction.

My preferred method is the cable well where the required interconnects already exist within the well and can be extracted when required. This way the user simply pulls out only the desired connection point to the required length to their laptop.

To do one better than that, there are wells available that also include a keypad in the lid (see the picture at the top of this post). This provides the user with control of the AV system right at the location where they connect their device. How cool is that? No more searching for the projector remote or walking across the room to a wall mounted controller and an audio mixer located in a credenza. A common example of this would allow the meeting chairperson to connect their laptop, turn on the AV system, and throughout the course of the meeting adjust the volume and select any of the other connected laptops to be displayed.

The goal is to provide a reliable AV system that is very easy to use while keeping the room looking neat and clean.

Grant

Improved Boardroom Communications From System Integration

Grant's Perspective on ... the value of a boardroom AV communications system.

Here is my pet peeve - As an AV guy I'm biased but it blows me away when I hear of a boardroom where the furniture cost is an exorbitant amount (furniture sales people please do not take offense, I'm just looking for balance) and yet they have no AV or some little audiovisual system and their only form of conferencing is a telephone desk station used as a speaker phone (which is only half duplex audio!). I'm surprised at the number of boardrooms that do not include popular presentation technologies.

Don't get me wrong, I have a great respect for the old-school ways of business and the person who had the "natural knack" for business, and if AV isn’t a requirement…that’s just the way it is.

Audiovisual is all about communication. Tools are necessary to effectively communicate your information - could your teacher have taught math & spelling without a chalkboard? Or was it an overhead projector? Or was it via a projector or interactive whiteboard? Audiovisual is the tool - sight & sound used to effectively communicate the information. Throw a few more "tools" into the mix to provide easy operation of these components and you have: "Improved communication from system integration...."

Today, every boardroom and multi-purpose meeting room should have a presentation system. This includes a projector & screen or flat panel display(s), sources (computer, DVD, BluRay, document camera, etc) controlled lighting, proper audio and acoustic treatment, audio conferencing, video conferencing, and an easy and intuitive control system interface to operate the system.

We specialize in boardroom and training room presentation systems and have completed many rooms where we work with the existing décor – and we know not to scratch your furniture. At the end of the day, it’s really great to see a completed integration help a business achieve their goals.

Grant

Sharp Scientific Calculator Promotion & Survey

Grant's Perspective on ... Sharp Scientific Calculator Promotion

Have you seen the promo from SHARP on the Inland AV website? Great idea!

It’s available for any K-to-12 school. For each and every SHARP PG-F267X short throw projector purchased the school will receive 25 Sharp scientific calculators. Free! And that’s not all; 1 CD calculator software simulator. Ya gotta love it!

Now I’m no marketing genius but I recall back to my elementary school days and the World maps with a picture of a chocolate bar in each corner. Maybe this is why today I’m addicted to the Crispy Crunch (psst… Cadbury, kick backs are sent to my home address – I think it’s your company policy…). I recall my Mother mentioning to me she had similar maps when she was a kid. What a great way for the schools to acquire these teaching aids and equipment. Would there have been so many maps in classrooms without that promo? Sharp definitely had their historical thinking caps on when they developed this promotion.

Students love their cell phones and i-Pods so I would think they’d enjoy using a scientific calculator.

Then I thought about how the scientific calculators would be used at the school. Would they all remain in the room with the projector? Would they be provided to the classroom that needs them? Maybe they would be given to the students that would benefit the most from a free scientific calculator. The school could also give them away as prizes. Please check out the survey (closes June 13) on the right hand side of the page and tell me how you would distribute the 25 free scientific calculators.

Grant