Volume 11, Issue 20 — October 23, 2013

It’s hard enough these days pursuing an education, finding a fulfilling career path and starting a business. But, try doing all those things when your family is halfway across the world and you don’t speak the native language.

That’s the story of Miri Park, chief operating officer of Chromis Fiberoptics in a nutshell.

“When I was a kid growing up in South Korea, I had always wanted to see more — I had wanted to see the world,” says Miri. “I knew that there must be a lot more ways people live and do things. And those things make my heart tick –  new things, new challenges and the unfamiliar. I had longed for something different and something new. So at a very early age, I began thinking of studying abroad.”

However, Korean culture is quite traditional and Miri’s family is quite conservative. The idea of sending a daughter across the pacific ocean to a boarding school was unthinkable to Miri’s parents.

That wasn’t going to stop Miri. After she finished middle school, she spent the next two years working to convince her parents to let her study abroad in the United States. Her father challenged her. “You know, Miri,” he said, “if you can get admission from one of these school in the States and you can prove to me that you can do this by yourself, I’ll pay for you to go.”

That was just the motivation Miri needed. She started calling people and using magazines and newspapers to find ways to connect to schools in the states. One school gave her an acceptance letter, and that was all she needed.

Miri went back to her father with the letter and said, “You promised me!” She knew that he thought she couldn’t do it, but she did.

Then her father, very seriously, did all the necessary checks on the school she was accepted to and what would be involved in sending her to the U.S. Miri never changed her mind, but her father didn’t give up either.

Even as he was driving her to the airport he said, “You know, Miri, I already paid the tuition, but if you change your mind I can turn the car around.” But she wasn’t changing her mind.

Miri was on her way out of South Korea — leaving the country for the first time heading to America.

Her time at boarding school was certainly challenging and scary. She says, “I was so young, but the school was very safe and I was living with kids my age, so it was a lot of fun for me. We would go to class together, play together, do homework together and of course we lived together. The language was challenging, but thankfully I was young enough to pick things up rather quickly.”

And quickly she did. Miri excelled in school and went on to study at Cornell where she ultimately graduated with a PHD in applied experimental physics. From there she did her post-doctoral work at Princeton.

While studying at Cornell, Miri met Woosuk Kim, another South Korean, who was in the MBA program. They fell in love and got married in South Korea before moving to New Jersey. Woosuk got a job in the city and Miri was able to study at Princeton.

Miri had always been drawn to technology. “I always get so excited about finding technology being applied to the little things in everyday life,” she said. “The very trivial things you pick up. Even this coffee mug that I’m drinking out of, there’s a lot of material science behind it, a lot of work to create this coffee mug. Things we don’t even think about, but I think about those things.

“There’s a lot of engineering work into the table I’m using, the telephone I’m talking into, etc. There’s just so much behind it all. I get very excited about that — about how technology and science can be applied to everyday life. It’s those things that change the way people live and improve the way people live.

“Additionally, when I came to the U.S., science and math just came easier for me. I could do my science and math homework in an hour, but I would struggle writing and essay all night.”

After finishing up her post-doctoral work at Princeton, Miri began working for Lucent Technologies (now known as Alcatel Lucent) working in the company’s optoelectronics field. That work led her to working with plastic optical fibers and eventually to the AV industry.

In 2004, Miri worked with a partner doing a buyout of the plastic optical fiber business at Alcatel Lucen and with that, co-founded her company Chromis Fiberoptics. (Initially, there were four co-founders, but only two of them are involved in the current operation.)

At Chromis, engineers have been commercializing and pioneering the use of plastic optical fiber technology, which let them to getting into supplying the techology for HDMI and DVI cables, etc. In fact, one of the company’s partners, FSR, for which Chromis makes cables, won one of rAVe’s Best of InfoComm 2013 awards this year.

Miri, passionate about the work they are doing, says, “There is so much of technology and science behind a seemingly simple product like one of our HDMI AOCs — just plug one end into a DVD player, the other into a HD display.  It is the result of many years and millions of dollars of R&D in plastic optical fiber technology, starting with its origins at Bell Labs at Lucent Technology and continuing to the present day here at Chromis Fiberoptics. I know it well from having lived through its product development and commercialization.”

To say Miri is hardworking and successful would be an understatement.

While being a co-founder of a company isn’t exactly a nine to five job, Miri does her best to balance it all. She is a wife and a mother to two daughters, Alexis (16) and Jessica (11). She also is active in her community, volunteering to teach catechism at her church and helping during the Christmas season with fundraising for an organization that raises money for poverty-stricken children in North Korea.

“I work with the youth at my church to show them that they need to think about other people around the world,” said Miri. “It’s so important to show them and teach them about caring for others.”

In addition to all of that, Miri is encouraged about working in the AV industry and where it’s headed. She hopes to inspire others with her story. “I want people to know, especially women and younger people, that if you have a desire and you’re prepared to contribute and and prepared to add value, it’s all fair game,” she said. “Yes, being a minority is more work and more difficult at times, but as long as you prepare yourself to work hard and add value, you can be successful. Don’t be afraid of going into it and trying your best.

“Having more women and increasing diversity in the AV industry is so healthy. It will only continue to be that way the more we work hard at what we are trying to accomplish.”

Miri’s example is inspirational and one we could all look to follow.

This month, we will talk about the fundamental changes that will drive these different ways of making decisions.

A different way of evaluating effective communications

The most fundamental change I can think of in communications, and one that is masked somewhat by the sheer number of communications types that are available, is the basic expectation that far more of the next generation’s communications are considered shared or public.

This will be driven by the rapid change to communications types that lend themselves to making information public. Social media, SMS, Web-based meetings and cloud-based systems all lend themselves to the much faster, and sometimes less deliberate, publication of information. The next generation is growing up comfortable with the expectation that very few of their communications that travel electronically will be truly private. They are growing up on the Web, and every day see that even private information is quickly republished. And the genie cannot be put back in the bottle. Therefore, it’s reasonable to presume that the next generation of executives will, by their very nature, conduct things more openly. It’s a simple change that is often not seen by the current generation of executives. In fact, studies indicate that junior executives are using social media for business communications at a much higher rate that their bosses believe they are. As the next generation takes over, this basic and often unstated tendency will drive the way they do things. In the business, we need to have an expectation that information that we pass to clients will be shared with others,  in a fundamental change from what we currently expect. Currently, most of us become outraged when our ideas or proposals get into the hands of potential competition. The next generation will expect this.

A different view of quality

For the last couple of decades, the audiovisual industry that I have been part of has fought what we consider a decline in production values. In talking to friends around the staging industry, the general attitude that I get is that public events are planned on shorter time frames and with less detail than they used to be. The next generation values immediacy more than a meticulous attention to detail. The quality of a video is not interpreted by its impact on individuals, but by how fast it is produced, and even more by how fast it spreads. In other words, “Oscar” is going to be nowhere near as important as “viral.” Recently, I have seen more than one company publish a motivational video that was created simply by combining submitted camera phone footage from their employees. In fact, one of the new ways of evaluating the message content of a video production is by how many of the organizations people were involved in producing it.

A different view of how project teams operates

Another fundamental change in decision-making criteria will be the fact that these next generations of executives will find the idea of working in amorphous project teams the norm. They have the expectation that teams will form and reform during a project as different talents are needed or desired. At its very root, this questions the idea of how they will look at supplier loyalty. Currently, most of the businesses in our industry are heavily reliant on “owning” a client.  We try to build client loyalty by attempting to satisfy all of their project needs, project after project. But we could easily see a change to reevaluating suppliers based on very specific job and talent requirements for each job, especially as the teams in charge of these functions within our client organizations may itself change  from one project to another.

A fundamental comfort with electronics as part of their life

The most blatantly obvious change that we are already seeing is the entry of a generation of clients who are fundamentally comfortable with electronic systems. In fact, this results in them taking for granted system interoperability that we have long charged premium dollars to create, whether on a stage or in a board room. In their private lives, and in their offices, they are used to data that is easily shared between multiple devices and control that is plug-and-play. This is already causing them to dive deeper into project cost than they have in the past, because they do not understand all of the custom work and programming that will have to be done to create the same effects in a meeting situation. And, the scary fact is, they may not have to. But we are already seeing people with these expectations in our end of the business, because their very comfort with the technology  has them already being put in charge of the things that we do.

All told, these changes are simple and obvious, but profound. We will need to expect them and have more effective methods of dealing with them in order to stay in business.

Next month, we’ll examine some ways for our strategies to morph as our clients do. IMHO.

Like “punt” and “Hail Mary pass,” the huddle room draws its name from football terminology embedded deep in the lexicon of American business. It’s also the outcome of a long-term trend in corporate architecture by which traditional, closed-off offices have faded from favor, while wide-open workspaces pioneered by high-tech firms in Silicon Valley and SoHo have grown popular.

Intended to encourage collaboration, these spaces eventually became so wide and so open that workers began to feel the primal pangs for someplace to get together and shelter themselves from the office environment buzzing around them. That space became the huddle room, or huddle space, a concept that’s been around longer than we’ve had a moniker for it (although NewVista Advisors, a New York City IT management consulting company, staked a claim to it in 2003).

If the need for a huddle room is clear, its definition, particularly in terms of audio and video technology, is less so. One of its defining characteristics is its ad hoc availability, free from rigid automated scheduling systems. Yet a huddle room or space still has to contain some basic AV and IT components to be useful. What those components are exactly server to underscore how the technical definition of a huddle room is a moving target.

‘Not a Downsized Boardroom’

“A huddle room is a formalization of something that’s supposed to be informal, which is pretty ironic,” says Bruce Kaufman president and CEO of Human Circuit, an AV design and integration company based in Gaithersburg, Md.

Kaufman says there’s a tendency to look at huddle rooms as simply smaller versions of boardrooms or even video teleconferencing suites. That, he believes, is a problem that cuts more than one way. When it comes to those larger, conference room-style spaces, Kaufman warns against the perception that huddle rooms could simply replace them. And when it comes to huddle rooms themselves, he says such spaces would lose the immediacy and intimacy that spawned them in the first place if they were to be too elaborately outfitted with technology.

“A huddle room is not a downsized boardroom,” Kaufman says. “But with shrinking office-space budgets, people sometimes look at it that way. I’m hoping that integrators and their clients see the huddle room for what it is: an adjunct space to boardrooms and meeting rooms, not a replacement for them.”

AV manufacturers have certainly noticed the huddle-room trend. Companies such as AMX, Barco, Christie, and Crestron used the most recent InfoComm show to demonstrate solutions, some of which are scaled for the huddle-room concept, such as Barco’s ClickShare, and others developed especially for it, like Crestron’s AirMedia wireless HD presentation solution, which was designed for small conference rooms and spaces that don’t have an AV system.

These solutions specialize at getting documents and other media from BYOD users’ laptops and smartphones to shared displays. For instance, using AirMedia, users can enter the huddle room, connect to the existing display over Wi-Fi and wirelessly present HD content from their own device. Content from up to four devices can be shown simultaneously on one room display, and up to 32 users can connect at once. Barco’s ClickShare now works via Apple and Android apps, which support JPEG images and PDF documents; iPads can share video content from the tablet to a shared screen via Apple’s AirPlay using ClickShare Link.

Keep in mind, however, that integrators and technology managers should pay attention to solution costs and how they affect the huddle room’s identity. Derek Holbrook is principal sales engineer at Verrex Corp., a New Jersey integrator that specializes in high-end corporate meeting spaces. Recently, Verrex has also integrated scores of huddle spaces to go along with its corporate projects. He says the AV budget for an average huddle space is around $6,000, with a few approaching $10,000. Depending on the huddle-friendly presentation solution and related AV equipment, you can eat up that budget in a hurry.

“Some of the products being marketed to this segment have pretty high costs, but they’re targeting a segment that is emphasizing quantity over quality,” says Holbrook. Customers often don’t want a few huddle rooms—they want several, which add up.  Verrex recently installed a dozen huddle rooms in the Global Services Center of law firm Bingham McCutchen in Lexington, Ky., where it also also built three conventional meeting rooms.

“Most of these spaces are pretty basic, with a 42-inch LCD display mounted on the wall and some cable for connecting laptops,” Holbrook says. “There are a couple speakers mounted next to the screen and maybe a webcam on top of it. And for many of these kinds of huddle rooms, that’s really all they need. There are workplace strategists who believe that the audio and video don’t really have to be much better than the iPhones we also use for work.” Holbrook says in certain situations, he’s found that Extron’s TeamWork collaborative system fits both the cost and functionality requirements of huddle spaces.

Continual Development

The proliferation of huddle rooms has prompted changes in the way companies think of presentation solutions. David Silberstein, director of commercial marketing at Crestron, whose AirMedia platform was priced with the huddle room in mind, says that although the huddle room concept has been around a while, a drop in the costs of displays and broadband is what precipitated manufacturers’ rush into the market with flexible, easy-to-install solutions. “It’s become affordable to the point that you can no longer do your job without that kind of technology being available throughout your workplace,” he says.

AMX introduced its app-and-cloud-based Enzo system at InfoComm 2013, a content-sharing and meeting-scheduling system that will ship in December. AMX Vice President for Global Marketing Joe Andrulis says Enzo grew out of the realization that even as traditional AV meeting products and systems have grown more affordable over time, they would not be able to reach a price point that the huddle concept demanded. Huddle spaces require new designs.

“What we’re seeing, from a work-style point of view, is transitioning from a structured model of collaboration to one of continuous collaboration,” he explains. “That changes the relationship between the space and the technology.”

Huddle-room systems aimed at impromptu meetings must still take into account the fact that not all of the participants may be physically present, even for quick huddles. Christie’s Brio presentation system, also introduced at InfoComm 2013, uses wired or wireless connections to share up to five simultaneous audio and video presentations on one or two meeting-room displays. All users, even those not physically present in the room, can collaborate on and annotate the material.

Ultimately, the definition of a huddle space will differ by user. Some want only the most basic solutions, including no AV at all, but just a conference phone and access to the building’s Wi-Fi cloud for presenting on a laptop screen. While others will want huddle rooms that resemble mini conference rooms, with multiple screens and short-throw projectors.

Either way, huddle rooms won’t be going away any time soon. Businesses operating smarter since the recession, plus the exponential growth of mobile devices, have led to the current dynamic — AV integrators report that office designs increasingly have huddle spaces included in the architects’ blueprints. In other words, the huddle room has quickly become an institution of American office culture — like the water cooler, and Monday morning quarterbacks.

This article was reprinted with permission from InfoComm International and originally appeared here.

Image via bakokojp

“Today’s acquisition of Duran Audio BV bolsters HARMAN’s stated commitment to advance our technology leadership through both R&D and acquisitions,” said Dinesh C. Paliwal, HARMAN’s chairman, president and chief executive officer. “Over the years, Duran Audio has established a distinct and loyal customer base built on innovative technology. By leveraging Duran’s unique product lines with HARMAN’s global footprint and product synergies, our business is optimally positioned to serve new customers around the world with expanded audio solutions.”

Echoing this viewpoint, Gerrit Duran, founder of Duran Audio noted, “Our focus has always been on innovation. Over the years we have developed a range of solutions for some of the most difficult problems facing sound system designers, architects and acoustic engineers. Today’s acquisition by HARMAN presents many wonderful opportunities to push the R&D boundaries even further and to deliver some truly unique technologies to a wider customer base.”

The addition of Duran Audio to HARMAN’s portfolio of commercial audio and lighting technology companies underscores Harman’s strategy to complement continued growth through targeted acquisitions in adjacent technology and product areas across all geographic and vertical markets.

Founded in Zaltbommel, The Netherlands by Gerrit Duran in 1981, Duran Audio has earned a strong reputation for its AXYS range of professional audio products including loudspeakers, amplifiers, signal processors and network devices. Duran Audio pioneered modern loudspeaker “beam steering” and “beam shaping,” which are essential to addressing demanding acoustic environments. The company has also established a leading position in audio solutions for European EN-54 safety applications and software technologies for audio design.

Harman can be found here. Duran Audio can be found here.

Well, our listeners love everything iOS. Sure, we have Android listeners and plenty of fans listening via their desktop and laptop computers, but iOS listeners top them all. And, it’s likely because, in addition to all our podcasts being available via our website, now all our podcasts live on the iTunes store — and here’s how to subscribe to each one!

Almost Daily Rants and rAVes: Our founder, Gary Kayye, has been in AV for over 20 years and he sometimes rants about bad AV and does a lot of raving about good AV in this nearly-daily podcast. You can subscribe of the iTunes feed here.

GreenAV: rAVe contributing columnist Midori Connolly — a GreenAV goddess herself — leads this monthly podcast on how to sell, market and integrate GreenAV profitably. Subscribe to the iTunes feed here.

The WEEK: AV-industry veteran Joel Rollins interviews one AV-personality a week, during which they talk about what’s hot and what’s not in AV. You can subscribe of the iTunes feed here.

The WAVEcast: This monthly podcast focuses on what’s up with the Women in AV organization and other important industry topics. It’s hosted by Women in AV founder Jennifer Willard. Subscribe to the iTunes feed here.

AV Insider: Our newest AV podcast is headed by 20-something AV personality Johnny Mota, who gives us his take on AV is all young, social and mobile. Subscribe to the iTunes feed here.

So, want to enter our iPod Touch giveaway? It’s simple: Be following us on Twitter and you’ll see us Tweet out each podcast. After you’ve listened, Tweet at us with any one of the topics and we’ll enter you in to win one in November!

“Epson is clearly a leader in projection technology with some of the most specialized high end projectors for everything from the conference room and classroom to large rental and staging venues like stadiums and concert halls,” said Sam Taylor, executive vice president and COO for Almo Professional A/V. “Additionally, Epson understands the needs and capabilities of the AV dealer by providing quality demo products and great margin potential. With Epson on the E4 AV Tour this fall, our partners will have valuable one-on-one networking time and the opportunity for hands-on product interaction.”

The following Epson commercial projection solutions are now available through Almo Pro A/V:

• Epson BrightLink Pro 1410Wi: The new meeting room productivity tool helps increase collaboration throughout an organization. Using the 3100-lumen WXGA interactive projector, it is simple to use because it works like an appliance and doesn’t require a computer. BrightLink Pro serves as a digital whiteboard allowing any wall to be used as an interactive surface. It also offers exclusively-designed optional all-in-one mounts from Chief Mounts.

• PowerLite Pro Z Series Multimedia Projectors: Offer up to 10,000 lumens of color light output and 10,000 lumens of white light output for virtually any venue, including lecture halls, conference centers and entertainment venues, even those with ambient light.

• PowerLite Pro G Series Multimedia Projectors: Epson’s first projector family offering up to 7,000 lumens with a single lamp, select models in the Pro G Series combine HDBase-T, HD-SDI, HDMI and DisplayPort connections and the ability to accommodate live video streaming, making them ideal for applications requiring installation flexibility and robust connectivity.

Epson is here and Almo Pro A/V is here.

Peerless-AV said this month that Loctek has agreed to settle the lawsuit, but terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Peerless-AV is here and Loctek is here.

For more information or to register online, click here.

The theme will play a large role in almost every one of the seven DSE 2014 educational seminar tracks, with speakers expanding upon the different ways that return on investment (ROI) and return on objective (ROO) impact decision-making, with forward-looking perspectives on the industry.

“In order to substantiate investment in digital signage and interactive technologies, companies want to know what benefits they can realize from their investment. However, there are different methods to calculating a return because individual project goals, venue environments, and target audiences are unique to each situation. That’s why DSE’s 2014 educational offerings will help attendees focus on ROI and ROO at each step, beginning with the importance of planning and goal setting,” said Richard Lebovitz, educational and editorial director for Exponation LLC, which produces DSE.

Attendees will be able to choose from 28 general conference and seminar programs presented by an outstanding faculty of peer professionals and industry specialists. DSE’s educational oversight committee reviewed scores of proposals and selected the most relevant and timely topics that will be presented at DSE 2014 in the following tracks:

• Digital Signage Fundamentals
• Interactive Technology
• Digital Out-of-Home Networks
• Hardware, Software & Connectivity
• Network Design, Management & Operations
• Content University
• Special Interest

Go here to register.

• 
  AV Insider — Episode 7: Sony Doesn’t Sacrifice Luxury For Convenience
• Rants and rAVes — Episode 176: The Barco Corporate AV Projector Line Plan
• THE WEEK – Episode 51: Talkin’ Architecture
• Rants and rAVes — Episode 175: Thanks for the Fond Memories Mitsubishi!
• Rants and rAVes — Episode 174: HDBaseT Won!
• Rants and rAVes — Episode 173: A Video Interview with Almo ProAV VP of Marketing Melody Craigmyle
• THE WEEK – Episode 50: CEDIA News and the Shutdown Lunchroom
• Rants and rAVes — Episode 172: Two Blogs
• Rants and rAVes — Episode 171: Our CEDIA Coverage Is Up

The Epson PowerLite 97, 98, 99W, 955W and 965 are all XGA or WXGA resolution projectors that include network content connectivity via RJ-45 as well as HDMI connectivity. Where they differ from the 17 Series is that Epson has incorporated moderator software into these projectors, which allows teachers to present up to four different device screens to the class, enabling collaboration (BYOD-capable). Administrators can also manage up to 1,024 Epson networked projectors using the included EasyMP software or Crestron RoomView management systems.

Both lines are 3LCD projectors that include +/-30 degree automatic vertical and manual horizontal keystone correction, can remotely deliver video and audio presentations over the network with the included EasyMP Network Projection software, have 6,000-hour lamps and are part of the Epson Brighter Futures program.

Here’s a look at the detailed specs for each model:

Get more information about the projectors here.

The SMART Room System for Microsoft Lync is available in three sizes. The SMALL system is for six people and uses a 70″ IP-based VTC system, the MEDIUM system is for up to 12 people and uses an 84″ monitor and the LARGE system is for up to 16 people and uses two side-by-side mounted 70″ displays. All the displays are SMARTBoard enabled with touch and collaboration software. The displays also offer integrated ink controls for color selection and proximity detection, an innovative feature enabled by sensors that automatically detect user movements to turn the display on when you enter the room and power off when not in use. The SMART Room System includes an ultra wide-angle, high definition camera offering 109-degree field of view and room grade optics, customized speakers and microphones along with an extra-large room control console with an 11.6″ (29.5 cm) display.

Microsoft’s says its internal studies have indicated that it takes an average of 8 to 12 minutes to begin a meeting using technology, but with the SMART Room System for Microsoft Lync, the start-up time for an active session with full access to audio, video and presentation data is reduced to a single touch, with the meeting starting in less than a minute.

Here are all the SMART Room System specs.

Here are the details.

The solid state 521 features switchable phantom power, polarity invert and peak amplitude clip detection, just as in the original ZDT Zero Distortion Pre-amplifiers. The transformer-less output stage of the 521 will easily drive long cable runs without loss of quality. Transparent gain is switchable from 5 dB to 60 dB in 5 dB steps.

The Earthworks microphone pre-amplifier topology provides outstanding common mode rejection, excellent overload margin and an incredibly low noise floor, combined with the ultra-wide bandwidth of the ZDT Preamps (1Hz to 200kHz ±0.5 dB) and distortion of less than 1 part per million (0.0001 percent). This exceptional level of performance is maintained over an extensive range of impedances applied to the input, making the 521 suitable for practically any microphone — ribbon, dynamic or condenser.

The Earthworks 521 lists for $999 and full specs are here.

Here are all the specs on the $699 display.

NEC’s V652-TM display offers digital signage users interactive capabilities with full-HD resolution at a cost-conscious price. Within the Touch-Integrated V Series bezel is an integrated, low-profile, four-camera optical-imaging technology that allows for up to six simultaneous touches. Its anti-reflective glass coating protects the panel and allows for higher brightness transmittance.

The new touch-Integrated V Series model includes the following features:

• Commercial-grade LCD panel and components
• 1920×1080 native resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, 430 cd/m2 (maximum brightness), and 4000:1 contrast ratio
• 4-camera optical-imaging technology, which supports up to six simultaneous touches
• Integrated, double-sided anti-reflective glass protects the LCD panel, while minimizing reflectivity
• DisplayPort, HDMI and DVI-D
• Networking capabilities through RS232C, RJ45, IR Remote and DDC/CI inputs
• Built-in expansion slot for Open Pluggable Specification (OPS) devices
• Built-in, low-profile 10-watt speakers
• Optional accessories, which include stands, 3G/HD/SD-SDI card, DVI daisy chain, OPS devices, OPS adapter (required for use with OPS adapters) and external PCs

The V652-TM will list for $7,499 and ship later this month. Here are the details.

The PN-K322B 4K LCD from Sharp is available in both a touch screen and non-touch version and will be 32″ diagonal with a 350 cd/m2 of brightness. It’s an edge-lit LED-based LCD offering DisplayPort, HDMI and network content ports. And, it will scale 2K to 4K. And, for those of you who go, ho-hum, reading the 2K to 4K scaling line — you’re wrong. Don’t overlook this. Scaling 2K (or 1080p) to 4K looks incredible — even with crappy scalers. This new model will officially debut in November and will have 10 touch points and can be mounted horizontally, vertically or flat.

We saw it (and took a photo) at the Whitlock Convergence Show last week in Durham, NC. Mac Rumors is also reporting that Sharp showed the display at CEATEC in Japan earlier this month using Mac OS X with full touch support.

All the specs are here.

Other features include:

• A turn knob to allow a single user to easily adjust the screen height 48-65” (122-165 centimeters)
• Flexible cable covers for lay-in access anywhere along the column
• Room for internal storage of AV components, including hardware to vertically mount 2 RUs of AV gear
• Black or silver finish

Here are all the details.

Built on a professional rackmount foundation of fully welded-steel construction (UL Listed), RCS Series racks accept both professional rackmount and consumer shelf-mounted components.

Two integral 95 CFM active cooling fans ensure proper thermal management while locking removable sides and locking rear access panels provide faster, easier integration with greater security. RCS racks also include a front and rear adjustable rack rail along with a cable management grommet and pre-installed blank panels.

Again, Middle Atlantic is aiming these at the HomeAV market, but we’ve evaluated them and they will be fine in many ProAV installs. Full details are here.

The FPS-200 flat-panel lifting mount provides a simple stationary or mobile wall mounted unit that utilizes a motorized lifting and lowering system to help gently guide the display to the desired height. Mounting over the top of a whiteboard, the FPS-200 can be easily adjusted to the desired vertical position and provide a great tool for interactive presentations or classroom learning environments.

The FPS-200 is here.

The PSD-HDCA is here.

The XTP T UWP 302 can transmit HDMI with its embedded audio, or alternatively, embed audio from a separate analog stereo input prior to transmission. This XTP transmitter features two Extron’s EDID Minder, which ensures continuous EDID communication between devices, and Key Minder, which authenticates and maintains HDCP encryption to provide quick and reliable transmission across the XTP System infrastructure.

Here are all the specs.

The Kramer KW-11 is part of Kramer DigiTOOLS family of compact solutions and lists for $675.00.

Here are all the specs.

The VNC 325 uses the PURE3 codec, which provides an unmatched combination of bit rate efficiency, low latency, visually lossless image quality and a high immunity to network errors. It preserves a high image quality and keeps latency to a minimum without the need for Forward Error Correction, which increases bandwidth and encoding delay. Common applications include transport of camera video across a campus, production collaboration and studio to studio media exchange. With its very low encode and decode latency of just 35 ms each, the VNC 325 is also excellent in applications that must support bidirectional communication or remote device control.

Here are all the specs.

The control interface on the KX2′s LCD display is configurable using RTI’s Integration Designer software and that also is capable of managing the twelve buttons with macro functions.

Here are all the specs.

The DTP 230 twisted pair input on the MPS 602 can receive signals from a remote DTP 230 transmitter in areas such as a conference table, lectern, or wall for connecting a guest laptop. The DTP 230 twisted pair output can be used to transmit digital AV signals from an MPS 602 in a rack to a DTP 230 receiver behind a flat-panel display on a wall, above a ceiling-mounted projector, or any other remote location. To simplify installation, bidirectional RS232 and IR signals can be inserted from a control system and transmitted over the single CATx cable together with the video and audio, enabling control of a source or display. The MPS 602 can also remotely power the DTP 230 transmitter and receiver over the same CATx cable, streamlining system design and installation.

The MPS 602 includes six-input analog audio switching, a mic/line input with 48 volt phantom power, HDMI audio embedding and de-embedding, and several audio processing features for mixing and ducking. The mic ducking feature automatically reduces program audio when it detects a microphone signal, replacing the need for a separate ducking processor. To streamline audio setup, the MPS 602 features front panel mic and program audio output volume controls that allow for independent adjustment of mic volume, program audio volume, and muting. Two MPS 602 models feature integrated power amplifiers. The MPS 602 SA delivers stereo power amplification with 50 watts rms per channel into 4 ohms and 25 watts rms per channel into 8 ohms, while the MPS 602 MA provides mono 70 volt amplification with 100 watts rms output.

To simplify integration of sources and displays, and to help ensure optimal system performance and dependability, the MPS 602 features two Extron-exclusive technologies: EDID Minder and Key Minder. EDID Minder manages EDID communication between the display device and input sources to ensure that the correct video formats are displayed reliably. For HDMI signals with protected content, Key Minder authenticates and maintains continuous HDCP encryption between input and output devices to ensure quick and reliable switching.

Here are all the specs.

Available now, the Christie IMB firmware update enables the change for all of Christie’s 2K and 4K, DCI-compliant Solaria Series 2 projectors having a Christie IMB. Built into Christie projectors or inserted into previously purchased units, the Christie IMB utilizes industry standard, non-proprietary storage solutions, giving exhibitors the smoothest possible transition to HFR (high frame rate) and 3D projection standards. The Christie IMB provides an integrated solution from a single, trusted equipment supplier.

All Solaria Series 2 projectors are designed to integrate seamlessly with the Christie IMB and the Christie Previsto High Frame Rate (HFR) technology. It features complete cinema content support, as well as MPEG2 and H.264 support for pre-show advertising and alternative content.

Learn more about Christie IMB here.

To read the complete press release online, click here.

To read the complete press release online, click here.

To read the complete press release online, click here.

To read the complete press release online, click here.

Phil Maddocks joins the education technology team as a market analyst, focusing primarily on mobile computing devices within compulsory education. James Edwards joins the marketing team as a sales and marketing assistant, supporting the delivery of the company’s global marketing strategy. Nicky Price joins the broadcast equipment team as a research analyst tracking pro monitor and camcorder markets.

To read the complete press release online, click here.