George Washington University's School of Business Presents the Latest Video Wall Technology

The George Washington University enhanced its School of Business with a new state-of-the-art audio visual system. The plan was to create an impressive showpiece in the facility's atrium lobby. Supported by GWU Associate Craig Linebaugh and the Academic Technologies Department's Assistance Vice President, PB Garrett, Robert Hines, Manager for AT Support Services explained, "The Business School atrium is a collaborative environment, a common area for students as well as the passing public. The university wanted a high impact display system that would engage students and passersby in the University venue."

The George Washington University School of Business showpiece lobby captivates students and public viewers with its two multi-screen video walls powered by RGB Spectrum's MediaWall® processors.

To devise a captivating display system, the University enlisted the services of audio/video technology integration specialists, The Whitlock Group, in Alexandria, Virginia. According to Randy Stewart, Director of Engineering for The Whitlock Group, "The objective was to create a versatile display medium that could present an extensive variety of live and pre-recorded video as well as computer-generated visuals. The design team conceived of two video walls comprised of 2 x 2 displays. RGB Spectrum's MediaWall controller was selected as the video wall processor. The MediaWall was an easy choice. It delivers the full capability and real time performance the project required at a lower cost than other systems."

Content on the two video walls is dynamic and varied, designed to be informative and entertaining. Viewers can watch television news, sporting events, financial information, closed circuit university broadcasts, pre-recorded videos, and information on University curriculum, events, activities, and programs.

The MediaWall processors support up to six video and six computer sources. Video sources include high definition and standard video over-the-air television broadcasts, HD DVD players, and VCRs. Computer inputs include PowerPoint presentations, digital signage, and video teleconferencing.

Each MediaWall controller merges the visuals and outputs them to four Clarity Margay 50-inch rear-projection displays at their native 1280 x 720 pixel resolution. Up to twelve separate images can be displayed on each video wall simultaneously. Any image can also be displayed across the entire wall.

Operators use an AMX touch screen controller to remotely select content for viewing and display configurations. The MediaWall provides limitless display alternatives, giving operators complete flexibility to create any arrangement desired. Pre-programmed display arrangements can be implemented at the touch of a button. The MediaWall processors allow operators to choose image sources, resize, move, zoom, and pan images with click and drag simplicity. Features include custom borders, window titling, on-screen digital clock, and colored and shaded backgrounds.

Stewart concluded, "The MediaWall system operates 24/7. It is a rock solid, reliable product. Its combination of exceptional performance, signal versatility, expandability, ease of use, and low price point make MediaWall the best value in the video wall market."

Hines commented, "The MediaWall system is indeed impressive. The system has received rave reviews from visitors and students. Image quality is superb."

Casio LampFree Projectors

Casio LampFree™ Projectors use a Hybrid Laser/Led Light Source that lasts up to 20,000 Hours,Giving You Crisp Clear Images and Rich Colors for years of maintenance free operation.

Up until now, any projector brighter than 2000 lumens has required a high pressure mercury lamp. Casio has announced what it says is the world’s first data projectors capable of delivering up to 4000 lumens in a well lit room that tick the green box by doing away with the use of mercury.

The Green Slim projectors light source uses blue light emitted by a blue laser, green light converted from blue laser light using a fluorescent element, and light emitted by a red LED through a DLP chip. The resulting light means a room no longer needs to be darkened for data projection, with Casio stating that the hybrid LED, laser and fluorescent light source improves the purity of color compared to traditional mercury lamps.

Maximum brightness is possible in eight seconds, with no cool down required, and an auto-correct function does away with vertical distortion should the projector be nudged. Energy efficiency is big on the agenda with Casio promoting the life of the lightsource to be approximately 20,000 hours – almost ten times that of conventional Casio projectors

http://www.casioprojector.com/

The Enright Company Roadshows Are Back

Join us for one of our biannual roadshows coming your way again this fall.

Sept 19 – Cerritos Sheraton (LA/OC line)
Oct 9 – Doubletree Burlingame (SFO)
Nov 6 – Fiesta Inn, Tempe (Phoenix) AZ
All are 10AM-3PM

Two (2) hour sessions of Vaddio Easy USB Training will also be held at 10AM and 1PM featuring the hottest new technology in USB enabled cameras and audio. This course offers .5 RU credits for InfoComm CTS. Free of charge, experts from Vaddio will explain the world of cameras and accessories which plug directly in the PC and utilize soft codecs.

Full details here.

Vaddio says: We Are Not a Videoconferencing Company

A funny thing has happened to Vaddio ever since we announced our EasyUSB products, people have started to call us a video conferencing company. We first started hearing it in Vegas at the "Future of Video Conferencing" seminar that Elliot Gold has done for years. Since then it has gone from a couple of comments to a daily occurrence. In fact, Sally Blank, our international channel manager, was in Australia at a show with our local distributor and the local Polycom rep called her a competitor and wanted her to compare specs. She was dumbfounded and didn't even know how to address such a crazy idea that Vaddio could be a video conferencing vendor. Well I am here to tell you that "We are not a Video Conferencing Company" Damn It!!! We have been called all kinds of sleazy, low down, nasty, dirty things over the course of Vaddio's history, but a video conferencing manufacturer? Come on now, everyone knows that we are that cute little camera company in Minnesota that makes cameras and camera control systems. We believe in Peace & Love and a healthy serving of granola every day and as a result we play well with all manufacturers of PTZ cameras systems. Our PTZ cameras are designed be used with any video conferencing system and we LOVE them all equally.

So here is my confusion, everyone knows that a video conferencing manufacturer sells codecs, you know those little black boxes that cost a pile of cash to purchase and then another pile of cash to maintain. The same black boxes that have a planned obsolescence life cycle that started the moment you bought yours and installed it. And don't get me started about integrating the black box because the black box does not play well with others, PERIOD. They would much rather have you use their control systems, their cameras, their microphones, carts, mixers, cables, batteries and any other office products that they can sell you in the room. For years now, since the early days of CLI and PictureTel video conferencing, manufacturers have been telling us that the black boxes rule and the rest of the AV industry should just drool over them. And if we are really lucky and willing to fork over bushels of hard cash they just might make us a dealer providing we pledge our first born child and all control over sales to our customers. Well, if Vaddio really is a video conferencing company then show me the box, you know, that little black Vaddio codec box. I hate to disappoint you but you will not find one. Nope, there is not one to be found anywhere. Ok, I have one disclaimer "I did own a black box in the 70's that I used for rolling papers & a herbal substance but I didn't inhale". Outside of that we are clean, none to be found anywhere. So if we aren't the "Next Big Thing" well then what is? I think it is PC's. Personal Computers, you know those things we all love to hate but heaven help us if they ever go down. Computers are the "Next Big Thing" in AV, they create our content, their networks distribute that content, and we watch that content on them. Broadcasting has seen firsthand what the power of a PC can do to change a industry, from production to post everything, is designed for a PC work flow and what use to be very expensive black boxes are now a software applications running on PCs. So if broadcasting changed to a PC centric world, what's to say that AV doesn't do the same. My friends, I believe that those tail lights that are passing us by right now as we breathe it's green carbon neutral smoke are the PC applications that our customers are running and you know they will not slow down just because we don't understand them.

Since the demise of film and the birth of Power Point our industry has always been driven by the content that our customers adopt and then want to present, Hardware video conferencing which at one time was very complex and difficult at best, is now being replaced by these warm, fuzzy, easy to use soft codecs that happen to be free in a lot of cases. Free has always had a big impact on customer adoption just ask YouTube what free has meant for web based video content. In an interesting parallel between YouTube and soft codecs, the big dig on YouTube early on was that the video quality would never be good enough for corporate America. Go ahead and try to find a US Corporation that is NOT on YouTube these days.

So let's get back to talking about my favorite subject, Vaddio. We have always been a customer focused company that only builds what our customers want to buy. Our customers for the last two years have been asking us for a HD USB PTZ camera that they could use with these new soft codecs. They wanted it to be broadcast quality and have all of the normal inputs and outputs and control capabilities that a professional AV product would have. So we did just that, we built an HD USB PTZ camera that they integrate into their soft codec room designs. At the same time we were developing the camera we realized that the quality of USB microphones was ok for a desktop but not at all good enough for a room system. This led us to develop a true USB microphone system. Not a speakerphone with a USB jack, but a high quality WideBand echo cancelling microphone system that has discreet microphones and two twenty watt amps to drive whatever speakers the integrator desires for that project. We also upped the ante with the AV Bridge, which was designed for those integrators that REALLY want to integrate. Now the integrator can choose all of the equipment they want to use from any manufacture they like. The AV Bridge takes the Video & Audio outputs of those glorious AV devices of your choosing and encodes them into a USB stream that you can plug into the computer of your choosing. And in addition to AV inputs there is a control port (both RS232 & Ethernet) so you can use your favorite Crestron control system with it as well.

Well, I hope I have pleaded our case that Vaddio is not a video conferencing vendor, but we are still just that cute little camera company in Minnesota that makes cameras and camera control systems.

Casio Lens Calculator Now Available

Now available on our website is the new " CASIO LENS CALCULATOR" application.
The application can be accessed on both casioprojector.com and casio.com on each model page.

Vaddio Introduces Thirteen New Products

Thirteen, count them, thirteen new products introduced to us at the Vaddio national rep sales meeting in Las Vegas last month. Vaddio is a stellar company with real vision. USB cameras, wireless, new versions of AutoTrak and Squiggle. Be sure to ask your rep to update you on all that's new from Vaddio.

Wireless Connection Now Mac Compatible

Effective with the launch of the new slim models  all USB enable CASIO projectors can now be connected wirelessly to both MAC and Window s computers.  Mac users can download "wePresent for Mac" from the CASI O support site or using this link: wePresent.  wePresent does not ship with the USB enable projectors and is compatible with the XJ-A246, XJ-A256, XJ-A146, XJ-M145,XJ-M155, XJ-M1245, XJ-M255, XJ-ST145, XJ-ST155, XJ- H1650 and XJ-H1750. The projector serial number must be  supplied to download the program file. Now Mac Users can enjoy the same wireless connectivity as PC users!