Category: News

 

“The Eagle has landed. That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Those were the first words spoken by Neil Armstrong following the moon landing on 21^st July 1969. The sentences – which have gone down in history – were heard around the globe thanks to a headset from communications company Poly (formerly Plantronics and Polycom), a momentous achievement the company celebrated at an event to mark the 50^thanniversary of the moon landing.

Held at The Science Museum in London, the event provided the perfect showcase for a replica of the Plantronics MS50 headset used in the Snoopy cap which is now on display at a special exhibition in the Exploring Space Gallery.

Poly’s role in space successes

Paul Clark, senior VP at Poly, gave an insight into the company’s innovation story and their involvement in the first moon landing as they look at the future of comms.

“The Apollo 11 landing was not only a momentous event in space history, but a pivotal moment for Poly,” he said. “Through our focus on research and development we are developing world-leading communication technologies that power human connection and collaboration — ideal for those who also carry out their own mission-critical tasks in their daily lives.”

Many technological challenges had to be addressed leading up to the mission to the moon. Never before had humans communicated or collaborated from so far a distance.

“Technology enabled that human connection during the first moon landing when those first words were transmitted back to Earth,” Clark added. “This was sorely tested a few years later during the Apollo 13 space mission with the words ‘Houston, we have a problem.’ A life or death situation that became testament to the power of crisp, clear communications, enabling dispersed groups to come together to solve complex problems.”

Poly has made a significant contribution to the technology that has enabled that crisp, clear and natural communication. The company’s headsets are used in many applications outside of aviation – mission critical, military, emergency services, police, customer services, marketing – with the products moving from mission critical to business critical applications.

“Poly was also the first headset manufacturer to join the Bluetooth consortium when it was launched. Yann Cheri, the inventor or Bluetooth was actually a Poly employee,” he said.

Mission-critical communications and extensive R&D

“Our unique heritage in mission-critical communication has laid the foundation for the technology we bring to market today. Poly’s focus on innovation is empowering people across the world by creating amazing ways for them to hear, see, work and collaborate in today’s increasingly digital world,” Amy Barzdukas, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Poly said, taking to the stage.

The Plantronics MS50 headset was initially supplied to commercial airline pilots in 1962 before being implanted into an astronaut’s helmet by Pacific Plantronics (now Plantronics Inc.). It took only 11 days for the team and NASA to create a working microphone design, including noise-cancelling features, and it was used throughout the Gemini, Apollo and Skylab missions.

The Plantronics MS50 commercial aviation headset has been used by pilots for over 40 years and, with approval by the Federal Aviation Administration, a modified version was developed for air-traffic controllers. Since then, Poly has developed a full range of consumer and business communication products and its headsets, desk phones, and audio and video conferencing solutions are used worldwide.

Poly believes introducing high-end video and audio into small huddle spaces is important. Poly’s Brian Phillips tells Zoe Mutter how its latest release – Poly Studio – optimises collaboration in the working environments of enterprises of any size and with varying budgets.

The open office arrived with so much promise, with goals of improving spontaneous collaboration and enabling deeper connections with colleagues. However, the reality is that it’s also loud and full of distractions, which is impacting business efficiency, according to Brian Phillips, senior manager, product marketing. group solutions, Poly. “As a result, today’s open office spaces have started to see an explosion of smaller meeting spaces and huddle rooms as enterprises realise the value of spontaneous, creative environments that enhance close collaboration in small teams.

“Huddle rooms are gaining in popularity, but out of an estimated 32 million huddle rooms globally, only 2% include solutions for video conferencing. There is a huge opportunity for organisations to bring high-end audio and video into the small meeting space, increasing productivity and enabling a better use of limited and expensive office space.”

Poly Studio plug-and-play video bar has been introduced to meet this demand for HD audio and video capabilities in smaller spaces, creating a productive environment that does not require a sizeable installation of technology. Designed with the modern office in mind, it aims to transform small meeting spaces into collaborative huddle rooms that offer the power of a large conference room. Workers can hear, see, work and collaborate at the touch of a button and connect from multiple video platforms, including Microsoft Teams, Skype for Business, GoToMeeting and Cisco Webex.

Video features include a 4K resolution and 5x electronic zoom camera and automatic group framing that focuses on speaking participants, adjusting the view if people enter and leave the room so everyone talking can be seen clearly. Intelligent features such as Poly NoiseBlock and Acoustic fence technologies can automatically mute and remove distracting background noises and other unwanted sounds to improve call quality.

“No matter where people are or what device they are using, workers can connect to any voice call or video meeting with ease, regardless of the different video and collaboration tools customers, partners and other organisations use, for ultimate productivity,” says Phillips. “Our customers are seeing the value in bringing a richer, more immersive experience to their huddle rooms and centralised manageability is enabling them to expand video to new spaces they hadn’t thought possible.”

Poly plans to add new capabilities to Studio through software updates as well as release complementary future solutions to enhance the room experience and enable IT to capture analytics that measure the use and effectiveness of their rooms to further optimise their investment in collaboration technology. The company is already developing the technologies with new integrations such as Google Voice and Alexa for Business that open up possibilities such as voice activation of tasks and AI setting up the call for a meeting.

LONG BEACH, Calif., May 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Epson, the number one projector manufacturer in the world¹ today, announced its most advanced 4K home theater projector to date – the Pro Cinema 6050UB 4K PRO-UHD^®2 – designed to deliver an immersive 4K experience. Engineered for the discerning home theater enthusiast, the Pro Cinema 6050UB offers 2,600 lumens of equal color and white brightness³, HDR10⁴, and Epson UltraBlack™ technology to display incredible brightness, color accuracy, and image detail in both bright and dark scenes. Leveraging a full 10-bit color output, along with cutting-edge digital technology, advanced lens capabilities and HDR support, the new Pro Cinema 6050UB delivers detailed, crystal-clear images with an incredible range of color to faithfully display content the way it was meant to be seen.

“Setting the bar with color precision and delivery of immersive 4K content, the Epson Pro Cinema 6050UB offers a level of performance that challenges comparable projectors currently available on the market,” said Rodrigo Catalan, senior product manager, Projectors, Epson America. “Equipped with proprietary processors for resolution enhancement, HDR, and image processing, the Pro Cinema 6050UB delivers life-like detail in every scene for an unforgettable home theater viewing experience.”

Powered by Epson’s 4K PRO-UHD² resolution enhancement technology, an advanced, high performance optical engine that generates high color and white brightness, color accuracy, and dramatic contrast with HDR10⁴, the Pro Cinema 6050UB fully supports 4K HDR content at a full 60Hz for outstanding display of the latest 4K HDR content and next-generation gaming hardware. In addition, by offering a dynamic contrast ratio up to 1,200,000:1, a wide color gamut displaying the entire DCI-P3 color space⁵, and Epson’s proprietary 15-element glass VRX projection lens designed for zero light leakage, the Pro Cinema 6050UB delivers truly professional-level projection performance.

More About the Pro Cinema 6050UB
Without sacrificing brightness or color, the Pro Cinema 6050UB offers exceptional installation flexibility with a wide lens shift of up to ±96 percent on the vertical axis and up to ±47 percent on the horizontal axis. For extremely accurate color reproduction, the new projector features low Delta E and includes ISF-certified calibration tools. Plus, with Epson’s advanced 3-chip, 3LCD technology, the projectors display images free from any distracting rainbow effect or white segments. The Pro Cinema 6050UB includes a robust set of features designed to deliver a powerful 4K experience:

• 4K PRO-UHD² Projection Technology – A new type of 4K home theater experience utilizing advanced processing technologies for resolution enhancement, color, and image processing – resulting in an exceptional 4K home theater experience
• True 3-Chip Projector Design – Advanced 3LCD technology displays 100 percent of the RGB color signal for every frame. This ensures outstanding color gamut while maintaining excellent brightness, without any “rainbowing” or “color brightness” issues typical of other projector technologies
• Unique S2 Pixel-Shift Processor² – Advanced pixel-shifting processor precisely controls three individual high-definition LCD chips. This new type of resolution enhancement technology results in an exceptionally sharp 4K visual experience
• Precise H2 HDR Processor – Full 10-bit HDR⁴ color processing accepting 100 percent of the HDR source information to faithfully reproduce HDR content for an exceptional visual performance
• Powerful ZX Digital Imaging Processor – Realtime 12-bit analog-to-digital video processing for smooth tonal transitions, while helping to eliminate banding, blocking, and other compression artifacts from the final visual performance. This powerful processor faithfully reproduces the source material the way it was intended to be shown
• Outstanding Brightness – Capable of displaying 4K content at an incredible 2,600 lumens for both color and white brightness³. This not only provides for a wider performance envelope but allows for an exceptional HDR performance
• Epson UltraBlack™ Technology – Epson created a Proprietary Compensation Filter that is designed to control the polarization of light itself. This allows Epson to suppress any light leakage within the signal, producing an outstanding Dynamic Contrast ratio of 1,200,000:1
• Precision HDR Adjustment – Realtime HDR curve adjustment allowing for 16-steps of control to fine-tune the HDR performance – regardless of the content
• Extreme Color Gamut – One of the first commercially available home theater projectors capable of displaying the full three-dimensional DCI-P3⁵ color space. This extreme color performance is 50 percent wider than typical Rec. 709 projectors and allows for a truly professional-level of color accuracy
• Epson VRX Lens Technology – Designed for zero light leakage, all Epson VRX Lenses utilize a proprietary 15-element precision glass structure for outstanding image clarity and edge-to-edge focus uniformity
• 3-Axis Motorized Lens – After installation, you can shift the lens up to 96 percent up or down on the vertical axis and up to 47 percent left or right on the horizontal axis. You can also set the zoom and focus, then store all the settings in one of ten lens memory presets
• HDMI 2.0 Support – Fully compatible with virtually all color formats, depths, and spaces while simultaneously supporting 4K HDR content at a full 60 Hz. This allows for outstanding compatibility with the latest 4K HDR content and next-generation gaming hardware

The displays have the ability to show 4K images in a 2×2 configuration and larger using DisplayPort in a daisy-chain fashion.The 49in panel offers 450 cd/m2 brightness, while the 55in screen has 500cd/m2 with native 4K-capable DisplayPort inputs and outputs. When installed in a 2×2 configuration across the four Full HD panels, the result is a single, film-like 4K (4096 x 2160/30p) video image.

 

 

 

The two model range meets the demands of professionals by streamlining the installation process. The new precision video wall mounting system saves time, reducing labour costs. The rigid mount uses an automatic magnet system, eliminating potential alignment inconsistencies.

The display features an ultra narrow bezel-to-bezel distance of just 3.5mm, allowing for near seamless video wall display. This is combined with high resolution IPS (in-plane switching) technology so that the image remains clearly visible even from oblique angles, vital for signage applications. In addition, the 49in display promises improved visibility by combining an anti-glare treatment with a low-reflection coating (AGLR).

Says Enrique Robledo, European Marketing Manager for Panasonic: “Whether it’s for retail, hospitality or transport, these displays have excellent blacks and highlights making them immensely capable at grabbing the attention, while the flexible installation allows you to exploit just about any installation space.”

The display is engineered for 24/7 reliability in either landscape and portrait orientation. The 55in (TH-55LFV8) will be available in August with the 49in (TH-49LFV8) display available in September.

The PT-VZ580 range is aimed at the corporate meeting room and classroom environment.

Panasonic’s high brightness portable projector series is getting a refresh with improvements in connectivity, compatibility and total cost of ownership.

The new PT-VZ580 range is aimed at the corporate meeting room and classroom environment, with enabled models offering intelligent wireless connectivity options.

The six-model series gets a brightness boost to over 5,000 lumens, alongside a more resilient filter that can be washed twice before replacement is needed, effectively doubling its life to around 14,000 hours.

A new plug and share function enables users to take a USB memory stick and wirelessly connect and project content without struggling with network settings. The projector copies all the relevant setup files needed onto the memory stick, before automatically running a tool on the user’s PC to enable straightforward connection.

Additional installation flexibility is also created with a new long reach mode for Digital Link, offering cabling up to 150m and surpassing the limitations of conventional HDMI signals.

“The network capabilities go further than we’ve ever seen with our portable projectors before,” said Thomas Vertommen, European projector product marketing manager at Panasonic. “There’s a new powered USB port on selected models, supporting the use of media sticks like Google’s Chromecast and the Amazon Fire Stick, so there are multiple ways users can get content up on display incredibly quickly.”

Projecta is releasing the Extensa Series, a new large motorised projection screen for medium to large venues with a perfectly flat tab-tensioned projection surface.

The tensioning cable system prevents warping of the surface and ensures an even lateral tension for a flat viewing area. The Extensa series extends the range of Projecta’s award winning tab-tensioned projection screens to a width of 6 metres.

The Extensa is designed for high resolution projection with a perfectly flat surface in combination with the unique HD Progressive projection materials. HD Progressive offers the latest technology in projection surfaces designed for 4K and Ultra HD to maximize the technology of your projector. HD Progressive prevents pixel loss and noise in the image and is formulated to create a surface free of microscopic variances. The result is brilliant light, vibrant color and the best surface for HD, 4K and Ultra HD projection.

Extensa screens can be mounted to the wall or ceiling using three brackets which can be laterally positioned. Custom size options are available for both the case and projection screens surface. In addition the case is available in any desired color for optimal integration into any interior.