Unified communications specialist Polycom expanded its line of telepresence solutions with three new offerings-the EagleEye Director room camera tracking system, the HDX 4500 executive desktop telepresence system and the mobile telepresence m100 solution.
The EagleEye Director and the HDX4500 will be available late April through certified channel partners starting at a list price of $8,499 and $11,999, respectively. The Telepresence m100 will be available in June through certified channel partners starting at a list price of $49.
EagleEye Director is designed to offer “production studio experience” for conference room telepresence environments. The platform features a coupling of voice triangulation, face-finding technology and a dual-camera tracking system. EagleEye Director delivers a more personalized face-to-face telepresence experience in any conference room by ensuring the speaking party is always highlighted (zoomed in and centered) for a one-to-many experience. The appliance transitions between highlighting individual speakers to capturing the entire room.
“Not every meeting room’s layout is ideally suited for video conferencing. The result is a compromised user experience in which some remote participants appear too small on screen during video meetings,” said Ira Weinstein, senior analyst and partner at Wainhouse Research. “EagleEye Director’s ability to intelligently zoom in and focus on active speakers provides an ‘up-close and personal’ video experience without costly room upgrades or noticeable camera panning during conferences.”
The HDX 4500 desktop telepresence all-in-one solution delivers HD quality at up to 50 percent less bandwidth than other platforms, according to a company release. The newest member of the HDX 4000 family, the HDX 4500 brings high-quality video and audio conferencing to the executive desktop through an all-in-one solution. The desktop telepresence solution eliminates the need for peripherals while offering a large LCD display and Polycom UltimateHD technology.
The HDX 4500 delivers standards-based interoperability and broad native integration with Polycom Open Collaboration Network (POCN) partners, including Microsoft, HP, IBM, Juniper, BroadSoft, Siemens, McAfee and Avaya. In addition, optional four-way MPPlus with HDCP (high-bandwidth digital content protection) enables the extension from point-to-point to multipoint video communication.
The Telepresence m100 software application for PCs is standards-based software allowing users to share content in a video conference and connect to any standards-based telepresence solutions, including both H.323 and SIP deployments. In addition, the m500 application can be deployed on notebooks or tablet computers like the Samsung Galaxy Tab and the Motorola Xoom. An “instant messenger-style” interface allows users to make point-and-click calls from stored lists, and the application works with most USB cameras and embedded cameras.
“We are continuing to deliver on our UC Everywhere vision and strategy with cutting-edge advancements that leverage our UC Intelligent Core technology and the cloud to personalize and extend the UC experience,” said Sudhakar Ramakrishna, Polycom chief development officer. “Polycom is leading in UC innovation through our customer-centric development that brings solutions to market that enable new applications, increase interoperability, enhance productivity and promote the viral use of telepresence.”