The latest web and video-conferencing options provide a real alternative to face-to-face meetings, says Mark Prigg
The growth of broadband and the emergence of high-definition video has given video-conferencing a new lease of life. Once written off as difficult-to-use, unreliable technology, it has now progressed to the stage where the best systems can, at the touch of a button, recreate life-size, high-definition versions of an entire meeting room, making you really feel as if the other participants are there.
While the high-end systems have improved to a near virtual-reality experience, at the lower end, instant messaging and services such as Skype have also enjoyed a rise in popularity. According to a recent Skype-commissioned survey of 1,200 small and medium-sized firms, 41 per cent of them are now using instant messaging as an alternative to traditional meetings, while 49 per cent are planning to increase their use of video-conferencing in the next year.
There has also been an increase in the number of audio conference calls, and a recent study by BT shed some light on why many workers prefer them. It found that more than 68 per cent of those surveyed had dialled into a conference call wearing their pyjamas, while, worryingly, 20 per cent admitted they didn’t bother with clothes at all.
There is a huge number of options for communicating with customers and suppliers using these new technologies. While many choices will be dictated by budget, it seems that almost every business relationship will now, at some point, rely on a video- or web-conferencing link, or at the very least instant messaging.
One of the biggest problems with messaging services is getting permission from your IT department to install them – however, there are some work-arounds, such as services like meebo.com, which let you access instant messaging services through a normal web browser. As the cost savings from video- and web-conferencing become more and more obvious to IT directors, you may find them as standard on every corporate system sooner rather than later.
Citrix go to meeting
US$49 per month | citrix.co.uk, gotomeeting.com
Citrix has carved a niche for itself with innovative, easy-to-use products, and Go To Meeting is no exception. At first glance it looks fairly basic, but don’t be fooled by the simple interface – this is a powerful way to run voice meetings.
Essentially, it’s an online administration system for voice conferences. Once you’ve set up a meeting, you can invite others to join either by using their computer or calling in via traditional phones. The interface is slick and easy to understand right from the start. As administrator, you have complete control over the meeting, and can invite or kick off members from within the software. When I tried the system via a broadband connection, audio was incredibly clear, even when showing a complex presentation at the same time.
Users can also see either all or part of the presenters’ screen (the administrator can choose which members are allowed to present), allowing Powerpoint and other presentations to be given and seen easily by the group.
While Citrix faces stiff competition from the likes of Skype, this is a well thought-out corporate product that could easily live up to its billing of reducing the need for face-to-face meetings. It’s really worth a look.
PROS Web software can be installed on any machine
CONS Relatively high price
Skype
Free | skype.com
Skype has enjoyed an incredible rise to its current position as the de-facto choice for many small and medium-sized firms, and with good reason. It’s a simple system that goes far beyond the instant messaging rivals here, and gives even the high-end video and video-conferencing systems a run for their money.
At its most basic, Skype allows free voice calls and text chats with other users. Video calls are also available, and quality is excellent – with a decent broadband connection, high-definition video is possible, and images look great even when blown up to full screen.
Everything is organised via a clean, well thought-out interface, with none of the cluttered, ad-ridden looks of some competitors. Setting up conferences is simple, although video conferences are limited to two participants.
The key to Skype’s success is in its billing. Calls to users, be they voice or video, are free. However, with a service called Skype Out, it is also possible to call landlines, and often far more cheaply than by other methods. This has proved hugely successful, and for many firms could seriously reduce the cost of calling customers who haven’t yet made the leap to online communications. It’s also possible to use Skype from a lot of different devices, even mobile phones.
Skype really is the benchmark for online voice services. While as a video-conferencing system for corporates it is lacking, for most small firms it is a superb way to communicate while keeping costs down.
PROS Available on everything from mobile phones to TVs
CONS Limited participants in a video chat
Skype Panasonic TV
Price To be confirmed | panasonic.com
Skype has led to a revolution in online communications, and TV makers have been quick to spot the potential for low-cost video-conferencing systems using it. Panasonic is the first out of the gate with its new range of big-screen TVs with a high-definition video camera option.
The wide-angle video camera fits on top of the TV, allowing a broad field of vision (it’s designed to show a room rather than the small face we’re more used to with Skype on laptops). Control is via a traditional TV remote, although Panasonic’s is, thankfully, well thought-out and easy to use Skype with.
Overall, this is a great experience, and while Panasonic (and LG, which is also developing Skype TVs) is initially aiming the products at the home, it’s likely more than a few will end up in boardrooms around the world.
PROS Incredibly simple to set up and use
CONS Using a remote limits usefulness
Yahoo Messenger
Free | uk.messenger.yahoo.com
Yahoo’s Messenger is the arch-rival to Microsoft’s (see right). Thanks to a relatively recent deal, users of each product can now send messages to one another, but the two are still at war.
Messenger has a slightly less garish feel than Microsoft’s product, although has the same annoyances – jumping icons, ads and a host of added “features” to distract you. However, there are some useful ones, such as the ability to add “widgets” for things like Ebay auctions, so you can keep an eye on them from Messenger’s main window.
Video chat features are also available but, overall, the product has the same pros and cons as Microsoft’s – ultimately it’s more for keeping in touch with friends or close colleagues than for doing business.
PROS Useful “plug-ins” available
CONS Consumer focus, garish design
Polycom ATX 300
Price on application | polycom.com
Polycom describes this as “immersive telepresence” rather than video-conferencing, and despite the hideous marketing overtones, it’s a description that works well. This is a system designed to make you feel as if the other participants are in the room. They are displayed on a series of large, high-definition displays, in life size. The effect is extraordinary, and you really do get a sense that they are there with you.
Clever microphone tracking allows the speaker to be heard clearly, while muting other participants, and camera tracking reveals a spooky amount of detail – the raised eyebrow at a deal is clearly visible with this system. The main drawback is price. Polycom doesn’t give out general charges, but expect to budget for rather more than the cost of a Skype headset for this – somewhere above six figures sterling, in fact. Still, for firms that spend a lot on travel between two locations, this is a real alternative to face-to-face meetings.
PROS Incredible quality
CONS High price, relatively inflexible
Microsoft Messenger
Free | microsoft.com
Instant messaging has enjoyed vastly increased use in both the corporate and non-corporate worlds, and Microsoft’s Messenger is one of the most popular pieces of software in the world, boasting a staggering 330 million active users. It’s a simple idea – type in a message and it instantly pops up on your friend’s screen, provided they’ve also downloaded Messenger and you’ve added them as a friend.
Microsoft has expanded this into video chat as well, and it works well, although for corporate meetings there are undoubtedly better options. It has none of the complexity or administration features of something like Citrix Go To Meeting (see previous page). The interface is unashamedly consumer driven, featuring a bewildering array of smiley faces, multicoloured backgrounds and ways to make your friend’s machine emit animal noises. There’s also a healthy dollop of advertising.
Despite this, Microsoft Messenger is, at least for a small, tightly knit group of workers, a great way to keep in touch – but it’s really more for employees to communicate with each other rather than to reach out to customers. For more serious meetings, you will need to look elsewhere.
PROS Good integration with other Microsoft products, straightforward interface
CONS Consumer image, lack of corporate features
Apple iChat
Free | apple.com
Apple’s answer to Microsoft’s and Yahoo’s Messenger products takes the slick, simple design of Apple’s operating system and extends it to chat software, offering text, audio and video, along with a neat screen-sharing application so you can take control of a friend’s Mac, or show them your desktop screen – a great way to show colleagues how to do something.
It’s an elegant solution, and one wishes Microsoft and Yahoo would take some pointers from the clean, uncluttered design. If most of your friends and colleagues use a Mac, it’s worth considering – but, sadly, this is just for Mac users.
PROS Great design and quality – if everyone you know has a Mac
CONS Limited in who you can call
Cisco TelePresence System 500
Price on application | cisco.com
Designed to give executives and senior managers the capabilities of a high-end system at home, Cisco’s product is centred around a 37-inch screen and an array of microphones and speakers. Like Polycom, Cisco has dubbed this a telepresence system rather than a video-conferencing one. Using a single screen, it is an interesting, if expensive, way to take part in high-end virtual meetings without having to buy a fully featured system. Video and audio quality is excellent and, when not in use, the monitor can work as a standard PC display.
For the executive who spends a lot of time working from home, this is an excellent, high-quality way to take part in meetings. One could argue that it is complete overkill, and systems like this will soon be replaced with either a laptop with an HD video camera, or even a Skype-enabled TV. But for now, the superior quality, integration with Cisco’s other systems and ease of use show there is still a market for systems such as this.
PROS Great performance
CONS Advances in web technology could make it obsolete
Cisco Webex
From £30 a month | webex.co.uk
Similar to the Citrix system, Cisco’s Webex take the whole process of arranging conferences into the online world, doing it all via a web interface. As many as 25 people can take part in meetings, with up to six webcams being used. It’s a well laid-out piece of software, with the main frame showing the presentation, and webcam feeds on the side. It’s simple to use and the quality is more than good enough for presentations – although, as with all the software here, it depends on your broadband speed.
Webex is great as a meeting tool, but also has some good features for trainers, allowing up to 1,000 people to connect and watch a training session. The firm also sells a version that can be used for sales calls. You can easily share presentations among participants, and it is available on most platforms, including mobile phones.
While it may not be cheap, Webex is a unique way to manage meetings online, and could save thousands of pounds on calls and travel.
PROS Simple browser-based system
CONS Relatively expensive
HEADSETS AND GADGETS
With headphones and a microphone, the Logitech Premium Notebook Headset (£35) is a good budget way to improve services such as Skype. It improves audio quality considerably, and also makes it far easier to hear what other participants are saying – most laptop speakers simply don’t work well enough for web-conferencing. logitech.com
Bluetooth headsets are another essential tool for web-conferencing, and Jawbone’s US$100 Icon is one of the best-looking out there. It’s also very comfortable, and if you pair it with your laptop rather than your phone, it’s a great way to use software such as Skype. | jawbone.com
If you chat a lot online, a dedicated PC headset such as the Sennheiser PC121 (about £20) is worth investing in, if only because it’s comfortable enough to wear all day. It’s also of a very high quality, and people you are speaking to will definitely notice a difference. However, even though it’s relatively discreet, remember that there really is no fashionable way of wearing headsets, so keeping it on all day probably isn’t the best idea. | sennheiser.co.uk
If you’re using a camera and can’t quite get the position right, the Gorillapod (from £17) is the answer. It’s a weird-looking gadget but works incredibly well. The tripod legs can be wrapped around pretty much anything, and it’s available in sizes ranging from small digital cameras and phones to full-size professional SLRs. | joby.com
Although most new laptops and even monitors now have video cameras built in, for those whose machines don’t, or who want to upgrade, Creative’s Live Cam Optia AF (£70) is a superb piece of kit. Once clipped on and plugged in, the video quality is exceptionally good, and with a two-megapixel sensor and auto-focus, it makes the software reviewed here shine with crystal-clear video images. | creative.com
Mark Prigg is science and technology editor for London’s Evening Standard
