5 Reasons You Won’t Want to Miss LAVNCH WEEK 6

The time has once again arrived, #AVtweeps. LAVNCH WEEK 6 will be here and upon us Oct. 24-27. You’ve likely seen or heard us remark that this will be one of the best live events yet from us — and we’re serious about that! But if you’re still on the fence about why you should […]

5 Reasons You Won’t Want to Miss LAVNCH WEEK 6

Staffing Levels

I’m sure you’re all familiar with the aphorism that “to the person with a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.” I knew someone who had to read “Boom, Bust & Echo,” the book by demographer David Foot and journalist Daniel Stoffman, in college. After doing so, they related a factoid — no matter how […]

Staffing Levels

The Ideal Classroom

I was recently recording a podcast with a group of fellow technology managers in higher ed. A question came up that I have not thought of in quite a while: What does the ideal classroom look like? Often when we ask questions like this we limit ourselves to the current technology that we know exists, […]

The Ideal Classroom

More Than One in Five US Classrooms Now Has a Non-interactive Flat Panel Display

By Chris Pennell Futuresource Consulting K-12 schools across the USA are investing in non-interactive and flat panel displays, presenting new opportunities for vendors. As AV display installations sweep through classrooms and schools’ public spaces, a new EdTech AV report from Futuresource Consulting shows that, in 2021, 16% of school rooms had a non-interactive flat panel […]

More Than One in Five US Classrooms Now Has a Non-interactive Flat Panel Display

Powering Down Your Digital Signage

Five Simple Steps to Reduce the Power Consumption of Your Displays and Players With energy costs rising at 30% year over year, businesses are increasingly concerned about reducing consumption. Digital signage is way below heating, lighting and air conditioning in terms of energy consumption in most offices and retail outlets. Nevertheless, the displays are very […]

Powering Down Your Digital Signage

CEDIA Expo 2022 Thoughts from Someone Who Didn’t Go

I didn’t go to CEDIA Expo 2022 in Dallas. But like both ISE and InfoComm this year, I acted as the editor in charge of rAVe’s product videos from afar, and therefore watched all 573 videos that the team shot on the show floor over the past few days. I missed seeing industry friends and […]

CEDIA Expo 2022 Thoughts from Someone Who Didn’t Go

3.9 Reasons to Attend the E4 Experience in Boston on Oct. 20

Soooooo, there’s only one stop left on the 2022 E4 Experience tour — Boston on Oct. 20. As you likely know, the E4 Experience is the largest regional educational-based trade show in the ProAV, UCC and Digital Signage markets and is in its 13th year. The show, running alongside an AVIXA CTS-certified educational conference, includes […]

3.9 Reasons to Attend the E4 Experience in Boston on Oct. 20

EU Power Ruling Will Turn Off 8K Sales

March 2023 will be Armageddon for the 8K industry in Europe. New EU power consumption regulations will go into effect then — and the new power consumption limits required for 8K TVs (and microLED-based displays) are so low that experts claim no devices will pass. Not a one. This effectively bans the sale of 8K […]

EU Power Ruling Will Turn Off 8K Sales

When Testing Goes Wrong

Long story short, we were cleaning out the basement, and purging clutter when I found a subwoofer that I forgot I had in storage. I packed it up when we moved house nearly three years ago. It was great when I had a dedicated media room in the basement with good acoustics. However, the new […]

When Testing Goes Wrong

Meeting Room Camera Market Breaks $1 Billion Barrier in 2021 and Continues to Perform

By Alistair Johnston Futuresource Consulting The market for meeting room cameras continues to show buoyancy, as hybrid working patterns maintain their presence in the commercial landscape. A new report from Futuresource Consulting shows that volumes increased across every meeting room camera category last year, culminating in 15% volume growth and 19% value growth year-on-year. Meeting […]

Meeting Room Camera Market Breaks $1 Billion Barrier in 2021 and Continues to Perform

Steph Says: CEDIA Expo 2022 Day 3 Thoughts

I promised you I’d be back to talk about Day Three of CEDIA Expo 2022! As expected, Saturday was a little bit slower than Thursday or Friday were, but that’s always to be expected with a show that goes until the weekend. The great thing about this was that I got to spend a little […]

Steph Says: CEDIA Expo 2022 Day 3 Thoughts

BEST Demo at CEDIA Expo 2022: A Collab Between Trinnov, McIntosh, Sonus Faber, Kaleidescape and madVR

I’ve been attending CEDIA Expo for 20+ years. In case you don’t know what it is, CEDIA Expo is the industry’s premier high-end residential AV show — filled with stuff to make your home smarter, build the ultimate home cinema or tech that makes nesting a home better. No, this isn’t CES — the Consumer […]

BEST Demo at CEDIA Expo 2022: A Collab Between Trinnov, McIntosh, Sonus Faber, Kaleidescape and madVR

It’s Not Just About Your SSN — It’s About Protecting Your PII

TL;DR Tech giant Samsung suffered two major data breaches this year. It alerted those customers who were affected. Now there’s a class-action lawsuit against the company. On Sept. 6, 2022, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (hereinafter “Defendant” and/or “Samsung”). Plaintiff Shelby Harmer and thousands of individuals (hereinafter referred to as […]

It’s Not Just About Your SSN — It’s About Protecting Your PII

Steph Says: CEDIA Expo 2022 Day 2

As promised, I’ve returned to write a bit about the show floor trends and more I’m noticing here at CEDIA Expo 2022. While on Day One I focused on just a few key things I was picking up on from my short forays onto the show floor, I continued that with the things I saw […]

Steph Says: CEDIA Expo 2022 Day 2

Steph Says: CEDIA Expo 2022 Day 1 Thoughts

Welcome to the latest edition of my series in which I deliver my thoughts no one asked for about the trade shows I attend! To preface, this is my second CEDIA Expo. My first was in 2021, and while that was a great first trade show since COVID rocked our world in 2020, I didn’t […]

Steph Says: CEDIA Expo 2022 Day 1 Thoughts

The Washington, DC E4 Experience Might Well Have Been the Best-Ever

Coming back out of this long nightmare known as the pandemic has been painstakingly slow and that’s an understatement. We’ve had a number of starts and stops in and all over the live events market. And, attendance at every event along the way — from ISE, to NAB to InfoComm and a host of regional […]

The Washington, DC E4 Experience Might Well Have Been the Best-Ever

Why Use a Consultant?

My first direct engagement with the AV consulting world was in 2015. I was working in the AV/broadcast technology integration business when one of my financial services clients decided to hire an AV consulting company for its very large NYC project ($1 billion total project budget with a $100 million AV budget). I had never […]

Why Use a Consultant?

Calling All Audio Pros: What’s THE Sound of All Human Knowledge?

What is the Sound of All Human Knowledge? Here’s a challenge for audio pros and everyone else: Through an open contest, the Wikimedia Foundation invites you to create nothing less than “The Sound of All Human Knowledge.” The Wikimedia Foundation is the global nonprofit that hosts Wikipedia and Wikimedia, the movement behind Wikipedia and 12 […]

Calling All Audio Pros: What’s THE Sound of All Human Knowledge?

An Analysis of Crestron’s ‘Town Hall’ Sessions: Addressing the Supply Chain

It is no secret to the AV world that most companies have dealt with incredible supply chain issues in the past 18 months. We hear horror stories of companies changing ship dates from weeks, to months to even years. It is not uncommon today to hear of 18 -24-month ship dates. For some reason, much […]

An Analysis of Crestron’s ‘Town Hall’ Sessions: Addressing the Supply Chain

Always Defer to Expertise

One of the things I’m fond of reminding people of is the quote from Pablo Picasso that everything “is either easy or impossible.” I can usually be counted on to suffix that by adding that the difference between the two often comes down to having the right tool for the job. Just the other day […]

Always Defer to Expertise

3 Often Overlooked AV Design Considerations

In a world of highly repeatable, commoditized solutions, the art of good design can definitely get lost. In the current market, we see a lot of products being kitted together and marketed based on the size of the room.  A small room kit, a medium room kit, a large room kit, etc. In other cases, […]

3 Often Overlooked AV Design Considerations

Innovation Beyond the Tagline

I’ve written a lot about innovation over the years and if you’ve read any of my blogs on the subject, you know I’m pretty skeptical about the use of the term most of the time. A lot of people use “innovation” to describe iterative improvements over time, and I’ve come to terms with the fact […]

Innovation Beyond the Tagline

Stat AV Is Changing the Integration Game

It’s a complaint we’ve heard time and time again in the AV industry — that there’s something missing in the relationship between manufacturers and integrators. It’s quite an important, symbiotic relationship, and in today’s climate, there is no room for miscommunication or inefficiency. This is something the Stat AV team identified during their time spent […]

Stat AV Is Changing the Integration Game

Pearl Tech Hosts Successful 2nd Annual Showcase

Earlier this week, #AVTweeps descended upon the Peoria Riverfront Museum for the Second Annual Pearl Technology Showcase. Over 150 AV professionals gathered to check out the latest ProAV solutions from companies like AtlasIED, Q-SYS, Absen, Sonance, Top Shelf Digital Media and more. “This year’s Showcase was a success,” proclaimed Jeremy Caldera, CTS-D, CTS-I, senior vice […]

Pearl Tech Hosts Successful 2nd Annual Showcase

Crestron Responds to Aurora’s Latest Marketing Email

You might remember the conversation that took #AVtweep LinkedIn by storm last month, all stemming from an Aug. 10 marketing email from Aurora Multimedia. Social Media Recap: Aurora Calls Out Crestron in Recent Marketing Email This week, Crestron responded by issuing a cease-and-desist order. Aurora then sent out the following second marketing email Sept. 13: […]

Crestron Responds to Aurora’s Latest Marketing Email

Tech Updates in Traditional HOW Spaces: The Challenges

The more things change, the more they stay the same. As time and technology have progressed, styles and trends have shifted in the house-of-worship world just as they have in the rest of it. In the HOW market, these shifts are especially difficult to reconcile — HOWs often have limited resources as well as significant […]

Tech Updates in Traditional HOW Spaces: The Challenges

Will Supply Chain and Inventory Problems Change AV?

In mid-August, Gary Kayye shared an advertisement from Aurora on his LinkedIn page. In the advertisement, Aurora took on Crestron’s well-known stock issue directly. You can read more about the various reactions in Steph Beckett’s blog post here. The comments are interesting as a real-life experiment regarding what works with advertising — or what doesn’t. […]

Will Supply Chain and Inventory Problems Change AV?

Asking Probing Questions

Since you all know I like kicking things off with an aphorism, here’s a two-for-one deal: business author Alan Weiss wrote, “Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern.” Before that, Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond novels (you may have heard of him) wrote, “Once is happenstance, twice […]

Asking Probing Questions

Why CEDIA Expo, a Home Tech Show, Added UCC to Its 2022 Event

I have been attending CEDIA Expo since 1991; I think it was the first-ever CEDIA show, in fact. It was in Dallas, Texas, and (if my memory serves me right) it was in the Dallas Market Center. It’s always been one of my favorite trade shows. It’s like the state fair of trade shows — […]

Why CEDIA Expo, a Home Tech Show, Added UCC to Its 2022 Event

How Tripp Lite Ended Up in the Global News

We all know the brand Tripp Lite with its product line of power strips, UPS and other IT peripherals. If you don’t know the brand made popular at PC retail chains and residential installers, you may know Tripp Lite as a leading supplier of “power quality” products and connectivity solutions including single-phase uninterruptible power supply […]

How Tripp Lite Ended Up in the Global News

5 Things to Expect at CEDIA Expo 2022

CEDIA Expo 2022 is almost here. The event – held Sept. 29 – Oct. 1 in Dallas, TX – will bring together residential audiovisual experts from around the country. Here are five things you can expect at the 2022 show. 1. An Action-Packed CEDIA Expo Floor As with many shows, the in-person CEDIA Expo was […]

5 Things to Expect at CEDIA Expo 2022

Doing the Right Thing Is Easy

Since I start off columns with a quote more often than not, I begin to feel like it’s expected of me. So let’s lead off with this one, it’s one of my favorites: Salvador Dali said “[Everything] is either easy or impossible.” Normally when I bust that aphorism out, it’s in reference to having the […]

Doing the Right Thing Is Easy