AVT Question: Please share insights on emerging trends, best practices for creating high-quality content that engages audiences, and choosing the best tools for production.
Thought Leader: Joel Mulpeter, Director of Product Marketing at Crestron Electronics
Is generating high-quality content easier today? Much easier. From our perspective, the biggest leap forward has been the broad adoption and refinement of AV-over-IP technology. Besides a reduction in the sheer amount of cabling that’s needed when you compare it to previous AV content delivery systems, there is a world of other benefits.
The biggest leap forward [in generating high-quality content] has been the broad adoption and refinement of AV-over-IP technology." —Joel Mulpeter, Director of Product Marketing at Crestron Electronics
When we introduced our latest encoder/decoder—the DM-NVX-384—Crestron’s executive vice president of Global Marketing, Brad Hintze, made these observations:
The first benefit of AV-over-IP solutions is scalability. Customers need technology in more spaces and with more sophisticated deployments. They need technology that easily scales to support them. This is true in both growing enterprises and residential, hotel, or marine projects that evolve and expand. Mix in near-zero latency, and it’s easy to see why this technology remains a go-to solution for dealers creating AV systems for everything from enterprise businesses to elegant homes.
It’s easy to build feature sets into these devices, too. For example, we were able to add USB-C connectivity to the device, as modern laptops, smartphones, and tablets all support USB-C. USB-C connectivity can provide a video input and also get USB connectivity peripherals—such as a webcam, speakerphone, or conferencing device—back to a user's laptop.
Multi-input switching in a single box is also a plus. When customers have a bunch of sources at a lectern, podium, and so on, it gives you the ability to switch those sources. (The need for this feature is very common in educational settings, for example.) We also have the ability to support 5K video, which is becoming fairly common with 21:9 and 32:9—super-wide and ultra-wide—displays. Those aspect ratios are becoming more popular in VR headset applications and immersive monitors.