Shopping for a High-Quality, Reliable, Simple and Secure Solution
Whenever you're in the market for computer or electronic equipment, you're likely to bump into a lot of confusing terminology and a host of cryptic acronyms and standards. You can expect the same when shopping for a videoconferencing system, especially when shopping for quality.
Here, we reveal the main features and standards you need to look for in a videoconferencing system, specifically in terms of audio and video output.
In videoconferencing, audio quality hinges on the quality of the input (microphones) and the quality of the output (speakers) and the room's acoustics. Superior audio covers the entire room in which the system is installed and is free of distortion, echoes, and the "buzz" that sometimes occurs when cell phones or PDA's are in the vicinity. When shopping for audio quality, look for the following:
- True CD-quality audio
- A good audio driver that reduces distortion and gives better intelligibility in extended frequency response where no subwoofers are needed
- Electronic shielding to eliminate the "buzz" that can occur from nearby electronic devices
- The option to integrate the audio into PBX systems for flexibility and later expansion
- The ability to dial video calls or add audio participants from a touchpad
Note: The most important aspects of the sound are quality and room coverage.
High quality microphones are probably the most affordable pieces of equipment associated with videoconferencing. Look for a microphone with the following features:
- Uni-directional or omni-directional: If only one person is going to be sitting in front of the screen and talking (desktop conferencing), a uni-directional microphone may be less likely to pick up background noise. If several people in the room will be talking (a boardroom setting), choose an omni-directional microphone.
- Echo cancellation: A microphone equipped with echo cancellation can keep your conference from sounding as though it is taking place in the shower. This is especially important in large rooms.
- Gating: Traditional systems produce a walkie-talkie effect – you have to stop talking in order for the other person's audio to come through to you. Gating reduces this effect.
Caution: Size and depth of the room have a significant affect on sound quality, so make sure you choose a microphone solution that's best equipped for the size and depth of the room you intend to "broadcast" from.
If you have a home stereo or surround sound system, you know how much of an effect your speakers can have on the sound quality. When shopping for speakers, keep the following in mind:
- Larger rooms need more powerful speakers and/or additional speakers positioned around the room.
- On smaller systems, you may be able to get away with using your computer's built-in speakers.
- Speakers that have an external power supply (rather than being powered off of a computer) are much more powerful.
- Lower quality codecs may have audio synchronization issues when using built-in speakers.
Since videoconferencing puts the "video" in conferencing, video quality is of the utmost importance. The video quality relies on three factors: camera (input), monitor (output), and networking/codec. We'll talk about the networking aspect a little later. For now, let's focus on the camera and the monitor.
Tip: Creating the illusion of an in-person meeting requires high-quality video that's not blurry or jerky. The lower the quality the less natural the experience is likely to be and the more self-conscious the participants will be.
Here at Face to Face Live, we always recommend that our clients purchase High Definition Television (HDTV), but that only slightly narrows your options. HDTVs vary in resolution (720p or 1080i), size, and type of display (LCD, plasma, rear projection, and so on). The type of HDTV you need, depends on your requirements:
- Room size
- Room configuration
- Room type (such as office, boardroom, or multi-purpose)
- Expected number of people in the room for a typical conference
- Number of monitors (for video, multipoint, and multimedia, for example)
- Lighting source in the room
Resolution
The system you purchase should have a recommended resolution, either 720p or 1080i. Our LifeSize Room system, for example, has a resolution of 720p. Although some 1080i monitors can display at 720p, you usually get the best results with a device that has 720p as its native resolution. (720p means the monitor displays 720 lines of resolution progressively. 1080i means the 1080 lines of resolution are interlaced with 540 lines of field A followed by 540 lines of field B.)
Size
The optimum size of the monitor depends on the room size and the number of participants who are expected to be viewing the monitor. You don't what to buy too large for a small room or too small for a large room. The following list can help you find the right fit based on the expected viewing distance:
Distance Screen size
6.25 feet 30"
7.3 feet 35"
8.3 feet 40"
9.4 feet 45"
10.4 feet 50"
12.5 feet 60"
13.5 feet 65"
Tip: Keep in mind you might be looking at Excel spreadsheets or PowerPoint presentations – you want a large enough display, so everyone can read the spreadsheet or slides.
Display type
Your selection of display type depends a great deal on how you would prefer to position the monitor in the room, what you plan to display, and how the room is lit. The following are the most common types of monitors used in videoconferencing applications:
- LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) Flat-panel: LCD is good choice for many types of video applications. They are very thin (easy to mount on a wall), durable (50,000 hours plus lifespan), available in many sizes, offer good clarity at many viewing angles and distances, are not reflective (good for brightly lit rooms), and are not very susceptible to burn in. One slight disadvantage of an LCD is could suffer from slight picture degradations in a high motion video, which is usually not a problem in conferences.
- Rear Projection DLP: DLP projection is a very good solution for videoconferencing. They are offered in a wide selection of sizes (and are becoming increasingly thinner). DLPs have excellent color reproduction qualities, excellent contrast ratios (generally speaking), and are completely immune to burn-in. The main drawback is that the picture can be a little unclear when viewed up close (three feet or closer to the screen).
- Plasma: Plasma monitors get their name from the gas that is inside each picture element or pixel. The plasma HDTV has the widest viewing angle of any of the types of monitors, meaning the participants can be sitting very close to the screen and off to either side and can easily see the video. Although plasma screens may seem like the perfect solution, they have a few disadvantages: increased susceptibility to burn-in, weight (heavy), and the fact that they tend to lose their brightness over time.
- CRT: CRT monitors (the type that have been used for 50+ years) are made in full HDTV resolution and in widescreen configurations. They come in direct-view ("tube") type and in rear-projection types. Both offer truly excellent HDTV picture quality, with good brightness, color rendering, and black level. While they are also the least expensive by far, they are generally large and heavy.
Bottom line
The differences in quality and features of the different types of monitors are such that we can offer no absolute on which is best. Rear projection DLP HDTVs seems to give the most options for size, cost and picture quality. Plasma screens provide excellent picture quality at generally a higher premium with some considerations that should not be overlooked. Because there is a very dynamic market for HDTVs and a wide range of vendors, it is important to review your purchasing options and work closely with your reseller or AV integrator.
All videoconferencing cameras are not created equal. When selecting a camera for your system, consider the following:
- High definition also expressed as 16:9 or widescreen format (older, analog TV sets display in 4:3)
- Pan/Tilt/Zoom capabilities, so you can point the camera at the person you want to see or project
- VISCA control – a technology that enables the other participants in the conference to pan, tilt, and zoom your camera, so they can see you better
- Wide-screen lens that captures more of the room.
- Auto focus to keep the image clear as the camera or the people or objects the camera is recording move
- Automatic iris to adjust for changes in lighting.
HD versus SD
As you're shopping for a system, two of the most common acronyms you'll encounter are HD and SD. HD stands for high definition. SD means standard definition. High definition (HD) is in. Standard definition is out.
New technology and people's expectations demand high definition video – clarity, which is directly related to pixel count. Pixels are the tiny dots that make up a display. If you look very closely at your TV (you may need to use a magnifying glass) you can see the pixels.
The difference between the HD and SD is the number of pixels going horizontal and vertical. The more the pixels, the sharper the image. SD has 704 pixels across each of 480 scanning lines (704 x 480), whereas true HD has two formats: 1280 x 720 pixels (720 lines progressively scanned with a widescreen 16:9 ratio) and 1920 x 1080 (a 16:9 widescreen image with 1920 pixels across each of the 1080 scan lines)
If you know people who have a bad taste in their mouth about videoconferencing, you can be 99.9 percent sure that they had a bad experience with an unreliable system in the past. Reliability in telepresence is hinges on two things:
- The quality of equipment: The quality of the equipment is pretty easy to evaluate. Good equipment is readily accessible, and although we don't want to encourage you to overbuy, don't underestimate your needs, either. This is one of the reasons Face to Face Live decided to give clients an option to rent. Equipment and technology can become obsolete very quickly. The ability to upgrade quickly and affordably without getting stuck with a lot of obsolete equipment is very important.
- The quality of the network: A great system will perform poorly on an unreliable network. If your company wants complete peace of mind, a managed service is be the way to go. A good managed service can install, train, and manage the entire network for you, your scheduling, various multipoint capability, bridging, streaming, management reporting, technical support 24/7, and consulting services.
The network has the burden of carrying huge amounts of audio/video data between all conference points. Your network must be stable enough to carry the data without packet loss, delays, or mixing up packets and sending them out of order. Otherwise, no matter how good your audio/video equipment is, quality will suffer considerably. When it comes to networking, you have several options:
- ISDN: An ISDN (or circuit switched network similar to a private phone line) network handles just your application and nothing else. The application goes from local wiring to the local telecommunications carrier (phone service) to a long distance carrier, making the connection dependent upon three circuits. If a company manages its own network, they will need IT/networking personnel to ensure quality of service.
- Internal IP Network: Companies can also utilize their own internal IP network. The question: can the internal network support high bandwidth and quality of service required for videoconferencing? You will need to be able to interface with the end user, so it is imperative the internal network be designed to support the number of users using the videoconferencing system.
- Internet: Another option, although not the best, is to conduct videoconferences over the public Internet. This solution is not one of the best, because Internet traffic and system failures can significantly reduce the quality of your connections.
Ease of use is key in ensuring that your staff will use the videoconferencing system once it's installed. If they have to read a thick manual every time they need to place a call, they'll simply find some other way to communicate – something less efficient and effective. Several systems currently available come with a simple remote control that handles dialing capabilities, monitor switching, camera control, volume control, input (PC, document reader, DVD) switching, and so on.
Warning: Many high-end telepresence systems are complex and require professionals to install and monitor. The complexity of these systems means that they leave more room for problems. Some organizations find that the quality is worth the complexity. In the less expensive telepresence systems, installation might require professionals to some degree, but a good managed solution provider like Face to Face Live or a qualified in-house IT/networking department can install with the right experience and expertise can certainly handle the installation manage the system.
If you plan on sharing sensitive information during your videoconferences, you had better make sure your videoconferencing system is secure. Obviously, the CIA and the Department of Homeland Security would require higher levels of security, but how would you like to carry on a sensitive videoconference with a colleague or client only to have it show up on YouTube the next day?
Now that videoconferencing sessions can occur over the Internet, you need to at least consider your security needs prior to purchasing and installing a system. If using a portable videoconferencing system, setting up a network to allow the videoconference unit to connect to the outside world can be a challenge if you're not technically savvy. You need to know hi-tech stuff like the following:
- Which firewalls are in place and how to deal with them. (Firewalls protect the internal network from the outside world.
- How to configure a NAT (Network Address Translation) entry to link the videoconferencing unit's internal IP to its assigned external IP and open up the required ports. This can be a bit complex depending on the devices.
The good news is that if you're connecting various videoconferencing systems through your own internal network or via a secured communications pipeline such as a T1 line, it's not as complicated.
Note: The most important thing you need to make sure of in terms of security is whether the system meets industry standards. AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) at 128 bits minimum is adequate. Financial institutions who do videoconferencing have 128 encryption and it's very secure. The security lies in the codec, so when you're looking to purchase a videoconferencing system, make sure the codec supports AES 128. Any knowledgeable IT/network professional understands this type of security and networking and can handle connectivity for the smaller systems. As you get into larger, more expensive systems, the configuration is more complex and will take a more sophisticated level of expertise to install and manage.
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