Category: Articles

By: Jonathan Cuthbertson

The Apple Vision Pro, recently announced by Apple, is set to make waves in the world of mixed reality headsets. As we’ve seen with previous Apple releases, the company has a knack for refining and streamlining existing product categories, making them more accessible to the general population. With the Vision Pro, they continue this tradition by introducing cutting-edge features and a seamless user experience.

While #mixedreality, #virtualreality, and #augmentedreality headsets are not new, Apple’s approach has always been about enhancing the user experience rather than inventing new product categories. The iPhone, for example, revolutionized the smartphone industry by introducing a highly responsive capacitive touch screen and customized interfaces that made the most of this technology. Apple’s ability to create an exceptional user experience set them apart from the competition.

In the case of the Apple Vision Pro, they have once again taken an existing concept and improved upon it. The standout feature of the Vision Pro is its advanced eye tracking technology, which allows users to select objects simply by looking at them and tapping their fingers together. Gone are the days of relying on handheld remotes or complicated gestures. This intuitive control mechanism sets a new standard for interacting with mixed reality content.

While the Vision Pro is currently in the developer preview stage, Apple’s strategic announcement at the #wwdc indicates their intention to build a robust ecosystem of compatible apps. This approach mirrors what we witnessed with the initial iPhone launch, where developers were given the opportunity to shape the future of the platform. The success of the Vision Pro will depend heavily on the content creators and their ability to unlock the device’s full potential.

However, there are a couple of unknowns that may impact the widespread adoption of the Vision Pro. The first is its relatively short battery life of only two hours, which may limit extended usage scenarios. Additionally, the comfort of wearing the headset for prolonged periods and the aesthetic concerns associated with larger headsets may also be factors to consider.

It’s important to note that the Vision Pro is not targeting the mass market at this stage. Instead, it serves as a developer preview, inviting innovation and encouraging developers to explore new possibilities in mixed reality experiences. Apple’s vision is to collaborate with developers to create compelling content that will shape the future of this technology.

Apple’s introduction of the Vision Pro signifies their commitment to refining and enhancing existing product categories. While challenges exist, the potential for this headset to redefine mixed reality experiences is substantial. With the support of developers and their creative endeavors, the Vision Pro has the opportunity to pave the way for a new era of immersive and accessible mixed reality.

🌟 Exciting News from Infocom: Your USB-C Problems Solved🎉

I’m always eager to share noteworthy advancements that enhance the convenience and user experience for our customers. Today, I have some exciting news to bring to your attention—a product announcement that has captured the industry’s interest: the Lightware Visual Engineering Taurus UCX.

🖥️🔌USB-C has emerged as a ubiquitous connector, providing a single solution for charging phones and connecting laptops to external monitors. Its versatility extends to video display, audio transmission, internet connectivity, and even camera/mouse/keyboard functionality. While this streamlined approach works seamlessly at desks, the challenge arises when it comes to meeting rooms and AV systems, where long cable runs and multiple connection points complicate matters.

Fortunately, Lightware has introduced the Taurus UCX, a solution tailored to overcome these challenges and seamlessly integrate USB-C into meeting rooms and AV environments. Similar to the convenience of a desk monitor setup, this innovative device allows for a single USB connection that facilitates video display, audio output, internet access, camera/mouse/keyboard interaction, and charging capabilities.

One notable advantage of the Lightware Taurus UCX is its ability to address the limitations on USB-C cable length, which has been a longstanding concern in the AV industry. By eliminating this constraint, the Taurus UCX opens up new possibilities for uninterrupted connectivity, enhancing the reliability and flexibility of AV setups.

As someone deeply invested in the industry, I eagerly anticipate the upcoming availability of the Lightware Taurus UCX later this year.

Stay tuned for my hands on review of this exciting new product!

We recently had the pleasure of chatting with two guests on The Tech Simple Podcast (CLICK HERE TO VISIT), and each of them emphasised the importance of the AV systems in their respective businesses “working first time every time”.

Those two guests were:

• Mark Mitchell – Oceania Premises and Workplace Services Leader at Ernst & Young
• John Preece – Chief Property Officer at Hub Australia
Why is this such an important requirement now? Well, each of them stated that positive customer experiences are critical. By customers they were referring to their staff as well as external customers. A poor or negative customer experience is simply not tolerated anymore. AV needs to work first time and every time. Just like other business tech such as phones, Wi-Fi, or a laptop.

So how do you achieve this in your business?

Take a look at this diagram below. The triangle shape is the key. The three elements forming the sides of the triangle must be present to hold the shape together. If one of the elements is not in place, the triangle collapses and the ability to reach the goal of AV working first time every time is gone.

So let’s dive a little deeper into what you should be aiming for with respect to each of these three elements.

GOOD AV DESIGN

• Quality components made by quality manufacturers
• Designed by an AV specialist with experience in the specific technologies
• Ease of Use is at the forefront of the design
• The designs are simple, elegant, and not unnecessarily complex
• Design enables the other two elements in the triangle: Proactive Monitoring + Reliable Support

PROACTIVE MONITORING

• The AV equipment is connected to one or more networks
• Using monitoring software there is the ability to see status of AV equipment from a central remote location
• Further to above. Ability to avoid end user impact resulting from faulty AV equipment by either remotely fixing an issue, or rescheduling an end user away from the affecting space
• Ability to remotely manage updates of firmware to AV equipment
• Ability to remotely manage security patches and updates to AV equipment

RELIABLE SUPPORT

• You have trained internal staff to assist with basic Level 1 support issues e.g. user error
• You have a support agreement in place to handle more technical issues/repairs. The agreement is with an experienced and reliable AV service provider. The SLAs are clear and adhered to

With the above things in place you will be well on the way to achieving the goal of AV systems working first time every time for your customers.

Like to have a chat about how we can guarantee the AV systems in your organisation work “First Time Every Time” for your end users?

Feel free to reach out.

It is 2023 and your organisation may have recently made significant investments in new AV technology systems to support hybrid working – especially in 2021 and 2022.

As you look around it is almost impossible not to notice how quickly AV technology progresses month after month. It can be very tempting to consider further upgrades, which would likely add value to your people and perhaps improve experiences with your customers.

Why wouldn’t you? Others are doing just that.

But hang on just a second.

Don’t get be wrong, I am the first to acknowledge the significant benefits that the ever-improving AV technology solutions in the market can bring to an organisation. However, you are running a business and there are not endless buckets of money available.

Instead, let’s look at what you currently have, and focus on ways to better manage and optimise things. Let’s seek out those tangible improvements and leverage your existing AV assets without investing significant time or money. Here are 3 options you could be considering, noting that the AV equipment should firstly be connected to a centralised network.

1. Remote monitoring and management.
2. Analysis of AV Technology Utilisation.
3. Proactive approach to Software Updates.

Picture that all too common situation where an end user books a room, turns up to start their meeting, and then finds out that the AV isn’t working. There is nothing more frustrating for them. A remote monitoring and management software can be used to help avoid such an issue. Receive alerts when a device goes offline or isn’t functioning correctly, and then take measures to rectify the problem before end users are affected. Often a device can be brought back online remotely. The result? Happier users and lower service and maintenance bills.

What AV tech is being used the most and by whom? What tech is rarely being used, and why? When you know the answers to these types of questions you can make the necessary adjustments across your workspaces and drive up utilisation levels. End users are happier, and the organisation enjoys a greater return on the AV investments it has made. A blend of software connected to your AV devices and some sensors can provide you with the data on utilisation.

How many AV devices do you have within your organisation? How many different manufacturers are there? What are the various age ranges of the equipment. If you are answering “lots” to these questions, then managing software updates can be quite a task to stay on top of. Manufacturers are regularly making improvements to their products and releasing new features. If you are not taking advantage of this you are simply not getting the most out of your AV investments. More importantly, you are potentially limiting the quality of experience for the organisation’s end users. A systemic and proactive approach to keeping software and firmware up to date across the AV fleet is key.

The above 3 optimisation strategies can often be managed by a single software solution. Some examples to investigate include: Crestron XIO Cloud, Q-SYS Reflect, and Innomesh.

Like some help with Optimising your existing AV Assets?

Feel free to reach out.

When’s the last time you “pretended to be a robot” when trying to work the AV technology at your organisation?

What does this mean? It means taking a step back and removing the things you take for granted, or assume everyone understands, when using the technology. In other words, you pretend to be a simple robot that cannot really make any complex decisions by itself.

Small and seemingly trivial things can be unwelcome barriers to achieving seamless end user experiences for human beings. The best way to uncover these is by pretending to be a simple robot!

At konnectus we have learned the art of playing the robot and built it into our processes when working for our clients.

For example, our independent audits and testing of systems have become much more rigorous, which helps to optimise system configuration and the end user experience for humans.

One of our team will try to use the installed AV system. Noting as they go what might confuse a human end user. What might make the person stop? Think? Do the wrong thing? Or just walk away completely?

We always do the testing with client representatives present, and often they say…

“Oh that’s not supposed to happen.”

“Hmm we need to fix that.”

“Why did that image take so long to appear on the display screen?” etc.

• ♦  As technical people we often don’t see exactly what our regular end users see.

♦  We assume everything is working the way it’s supposed to work.

• ♦  We have blind spots that blind or confuse our fellow humans that will be using the systems.

A confused mind always says NO.

When you find and fix the problems found by pretending to be a simple robot, you can significantly improve the human end user experiences in your organisation. What would that be worth to you?

Could it be worth thousands of dollars each month?

Your million-dollar advice for today: Play the role of the simple robot. Or, much better yet, have someone else (outside your company) do it for you.

Like to know more about this topic? We can help. Feel free to reach out.

A friend of mine, and AV industry colleague for well over 10 years, managed to really stir up the pot earlier this week through a very simple post on LinkedIn.

The post was all about conferencing soundbars in meeting rooms, and he was asking for some input and recommendations from his professional network.

His question was quite straight forward. “I need a 1-year temporary conferencing solution for my client in a medium size room that will have people seated up to 7 meters away from the front of the room. For audio I am thinking conference soundbar. Do any of you have any good recommendations based on experience?”

Within minutes he had more than 30 different responses from AV experts that actually made me laugh. Here are just a few examples:

♦ Model XYX will be perfect

♦ Conferencing soundbars are designed for smaller spaces

♦ You will need to have a room with great acoustic properties

♦ We evaluated model ABC, and it worked OK up to about 5 metres

There were no stupid responses. All had opinions that were valid and made sense, but I couldn’t help thinking how confused my friend must have been after reading them all!

The big takeaway for me though was that audio in meeting rooms (and in most AV applications) can be very subjective. At the end of the day, what is an acceptable audio experience for the situation? In my friend’s case:

♦ What is an acceptable listening experience for the people in the room? Will the loudspeakers in the conferencing soundbar output the right quality sound to meet that desired experience?

♦ What is an acceptable listening experience for the people connecting to a video conferencing call with this room? Will the microphone in the conferencing soundbar pick up the speech of people talking in the room to an acceptable level to meet the desired experience?

It’s interesting that none of these AV experts actually asked my friend any qualifying questions to gauge the desired audio experience for his application. They all just jumped straight into offering solutions.

Many years of experience have taught me that different people can have different definitions of good, bad, and awesome when it comes to audio. It always needs to be qualified – especially in a meeting space environment in which clear communication of the spoken message is key.

Like to know more about this topic? We can help. Feel free to reach out.