Polycom transforms small workspaces into high-powered collaboration hubs

The emergence of huddle rooms—which Frost & Sullivan predicts will reach into the tens of millions by 2020 due to greater emphasis on open office spaces—has created demand for high-quality voice, video and content collaboration solutions specifically designed for these kinds of ad hoc meeting environments.

Polycom RealPresence Group Convene video collaboration solution is right-sized for any small workspace—from huddle rooms and personal workspaces to open office environments.

Designed to work with Polycom’s industry-leading Polycom RealPresence Group Series solutions and Polycom EagleEye Acoustic camera, Polycom RealPresence Group Convene delivers rich 1080p60 video and content collaboration, crisp audio and an easy-to-use interface.

It’s sleek and compact design is customisable, with a single or dual screen display and tabletop stand or wall mount, allowing anyone to create a productive work environment tailored to their needs and space. The complete system is easy to set up and also integrates natively with Microsoft Lync 2013.

“The modern workspace is evolving, giving way to more open and more shared workspaces,” said Ashan Willy, Polycom Senior Vice President, Worldwide Systems Engineering and Product Management.

“Organisations are looking for voice, video and content collaboration solutions that can change with their workplace and meet the needs of employees today, tomorrow and well into the future. Polycom RealPresence Group Series solutions give both IT and end users the flexibility to collaborate in any type of office environment, including huddle rooms and personal workspaces," Willy said.

Polycom RealPresence Group Convene works with the Polycom® RealPresence® Group 500 and the brand new Polycom RealPresence Group 310 video collaboration solutions.

The Polycom RealPresence Group 310 solution features simple installation and a compact design that provides a high-quality collaborative experience for small conference and huddle rooms.

Building upon the functionality and quality of the Polycom RealPresence Group 300 solution, the Polycom RealPresence Group 310 adds a new level of clarity to business communications. Content can now be sent and received in up to 1080p60 quality and is easily shared through direct HDMI or VGA connections, or by using the Polycom People+Content IP application.

These improvements allow participants to share everything from animations and videos, to medical diagrams and CAD drawings, with the same full, rich detail they see on their own computer screens.

Polycom SmartPairing technology also allows people to share and annotate on documents from their mobile devices or PCs wirelessly. Coupled with Polycom EagleEye IV, a camera with powerful optical zoom and optional wide-angle lens to capture everyone in the room, and Polycom EagleEye Producer technology, which automatically frames participants using the latest in facial recognition, collaboration becomes more intuitive and interactive.

RealPresence Group 310 video collaboration solution also inherits Polycom-only audio benefits, including conversational stereo and Polycom® NoiseBlock™ technology, providing an exceptional user experience.

"We are seeing a lot of different approaches to outfit huddle rooms with visual collaboration solutions,” said Rob Arnold, Program Manager, Unified Communications and Collaboration, Frost & Sullivan.

“Many of these require sourcing codecs, cameras, monitors and more from multiple providers. This raises potential usability, management and support issues that can cancel out any perceived cost savings. Polycom's approach delivers robust features that users want without compromising the control that IT needs," Arnold said.