Enterprise Communicationscisco

Recent Briefings 070515

by Dave Michels

AC Rules. It never occurred to me how the popularity of teleworking may be impacting the HVAC market. I know that I bought an air conditioner for my home office and I suspect I am not alone. Add someone else’s air conditioning to the list of benefits for working in an office – ok. so that list now has one item.

Here’s a few recent updates I think you should know about:

3CX

3CX WebMeeting Goes WebRTC with low cost, plugin free web conferencing for unlimited users for the whole company. The company announced the release of 3CX WebMeeting v8. The latest version of its video conferencing solution is now completely WebRTC based. New unlimited user licensing means all company employees can use unlimited video conferencing for one flat fee starting at $495 / €475 per year. The solution includes traditional video conferencing features such as recording, remote control/assistance and screensharing.

Ingate

Ingate Systems made a major shift in the company’s product line and pricing structure. In a nutshell:
  • Ingate consolidated the entire product line into three categories: high-, mid and low-capacity.
  • Consolidated the mid-range of E-SBCs with the new SIParator S52
  • Added more capacity to all E-SBCs
  • Upgraded high-capacity SBCs with 48V DC power supplies, and they are now NEBS-compliant
  • Overhauled licensing and pricing structure to simplify for customers

Acano

Acano made some news with Dual Home and new Firewall Traversal. Dual Home dramatically improves the experience of Skype for Business meetings that include other video conferencing participants by creating a familiar experience for users. Previously, when video conferencing users connected via different platforms, a “dominant” platform took over. Acano’s ‘dual home’ technology preserves each users’ chosen experience, while also allowing users to see a list of call participants and share screens. Acano is often mistaken as an MCU company, but its mission and capabilities are much more centered around collaboration.

Collaboration Squared

Collaboration Squared (which uses Acano) launched Ubiety Room. Users can turn a PC, Mac, or even Chromebook into videoconferencing endpoints that support up to 25 participants. Said participants can be on Ubiety, Cisco, Polycom, LifeSize, and other systems. CEO Daryl Hutchins said that that being selected for the Innovation Showcase at Enterprise Connect 2015 made this all possible. Ok, he didn’t say that, however Ubiety (and Daryl) are making video (personal, huddle, and room-based) systems accessible and logical for organizations of all sizes. It is a highly innovative solution from a highly innovative company.

VDO360

VDO360 launched a camera-bot dubbed Clearwater. This product got recognized for Best of Show at Infocomm. It’s basically the VDO360 Compass PTZ camera elegantly bolted on to a NUC. The result is a very intelligent endpoint, er camera, er video system. There are several accessories that turn a PC into a room system, but this peripheral includes a host. It also eliminates the cables for camera and audio equipment.

Smart

I was already impressed with the Kapp – it is the most elegant solution to the analog white board in a digital era. It’s effectively a BYO computer and network solution to the whiteboard. Draw on the board with real dry-erase markers and then via a Smartphone App share it with a URL. It’s a great solution for sharing, but not collaborating because it is a one-way device. That get’s fixed with the Kapp IQ. It’s a similar concept, but uses an Android-powered video screen. Draw on it with e-ink – AND/OR – watch what others draw on their app. It’s basically an over-sized tablet designed for visual collaboration.