Telepresence system takes aim at the low end

Tandberg is announcing what it calls an instant telepresence system and a new video phone, both of which attempt to make high-quality videoconferencing accessible to more employees.

The system is an alternative to full-room telepresence systems that include three screens, multiple cameras, ceiling-mounted speakers and coordinated furniture and wall colors to give the impression that parties projected life-size on the screens are actually sitting across the table. The T1 system lacks the uniformity of background that true telepresence has, but it does provide the same image and sound quality. (Compare Collaboration products.)

While the T1 system could be used by an individual, it is more likely to be installed in small conference rooms, says Ira Weinstein, an analyst with Wainhouse Research. "It provides a telepresence experience but in a controlled environment," he says.

The T1 comes packaged in a unit with the camera and screen mounted on top and a coder decoder and audio gear in the base.

"They’ve taken out the heavy lifting of integration," Weinstein says. The T1 will compete with Cisco’s Telepresence 500
system, he says.

The system costs $69,900 per site, and includes a 65-inch screen as well as a new Tandberg codec and a new camera. Initially the system supports up to four sites per conference, but a future software upgrade will boost that number the company says.

The C90 codec supports 1080p resolution and full duplex 20kHz audio. It can bridge to systems with 760p resolution and has multiple audio and video inputs and outputs so it can anchor more comlex and extensive telepresence systems, Tandberg says. By itself, the codec costs $36,900 and is available in the third quarter.

The Precision HD 1080p cameras can be mounted upside down for ceiling installations, and it is mounted that way atop the T1. That configuration brings the lens closer to eye-level of the people it is focused at, making their images appear to be looking remote participants in the eye rather than lower. If the camera is mounted that way, it automatically flips the image so it appears right-side up.

The camera costs $9,300 and is available in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, Tandberg's E20 videophone consists of a standard VoIP phone set with a 10.6-inch, 1280 by 760-pixel screen mounted on it and a DVD-quality 5 megapixel camera mounted on top of the screen.

The system is based on Session Initiation Protocol) SIP and when E20 is available early next year it will be compatible with phones from Avaya, Alcatel, Cisco, Microsoft and Siemens call servers, Tandberg says. The phones will still require manual provisioning with these servers, and Tandberg says it plans to work with the same group of vendors to enable the E20 to work as a native phone rather than a third-party phone.

With the addition of a separate Tandberg Video Communication Server (VCS) -- an existing product -- the phone can communicate with H.323-based devices and calls can pass securely through firewalls.

While the device has desirable functionality, video phones have not caught on well in the United States, Weinstein says. He says they may find use in office cubicles where videoconferencing may be a feature some of the workers need. "It’s a low-cost way to get video into a site," he says.