More and more manufacturers are marketing their products and services to you — the actual end-user of it all. With over 300 major manufacturers in the ProAV market, the attention of the integrator is getting hard to grab — and most of them have their favorite 20-25 different manufacturers that get 90 percent of their attention. So, the other 800 or so are pushing messaging towards you.
But, buyer beware. Not all products and services — even the one’s that look similar, are the same. Take the LED market, for example. There are over 100 Chinese-based companies that claim to manufacturer LEDs. Yet, the big brands — Absen, Leyard, Unilumin, Samsung and Aoto dominate the top 10. Why does it mater? Well, the bigger companies don’t just supply products, they give localized service, too. If you use a no-name company, you may suffer the consequences when you need is services — ever tried to schedule a conference call with someone in a country that’s 12 hours ahead of you?
Same goes across the board with AV gear. Not all switchers, speakers and cables are made the same. Buyer beware — just because it looks the same doesn’t mean it is.
We’ve compiled a listing of the best new products we’ve seen so far this month. Companies like Barco, BrightSign, Chief, PreSonus and Epson all have new gear aimed at you. But, my favorite thing in this month’s issue is Scott Tiner’s column. He knows all about end-users as he is one — the director of client services at Bates College. Enjoy!
