Cisco, RHUB and Microsoft – the web conferencing vendors ranked numbers three through five – will have to each step down a rank. BeamYourScreen, formerly ranked number seven, is now available for download in version 4 and brings many enhancements. Just as with the release of version 3 last year, when the tool climbed from rank 18 to 6, the developers once again have done a great job in actually improving the software.
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HD video and our top-ranking online meeting solutions
Citrix, Adobe and Cisco: Three of the biggest online meeting solutions vendors have now integrated video functionality into their solutions. We checked them out and here is what we found:
All three tools offer not only video but rather HD video. And yes, the quality is very impressive. Citrix GoToMeeting limits the number of webcam participants to 6 unlike Cisco WebEx which allows up to 500 participants or Adobe Connect 8 where you have no restrictions at all. But as always bigger isn’t necessarily better. One downside of a video conference with let us say 20 participants is that you will need a lot of bandwidth to really get that HD quality. And with every new participant that joins the webcams on display just get smaller and smaller. Now we haven’t tried it with 20 participants ourselves but it probably is hard to see who is actually speaking.
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BeamYourScreen evaluation on hold
BeamYourScreen version 4 went live today as planned. However, we haven’t updated our ranking yet. We have tested the tool and formed our verdict but when we double checked the also new website today we noticed that there currently is no pricing info on display. We contacted BeamYourScreen and were told that the information will be included on the site shortly.
Since we regard openly available pricing information on vendors’ websites as a crucial point in our evaluations we will wait with updating our ranking until it is fully displayed on the BeamYourScreen site.
BeamYourScreen Version 4 coming out tomorrow
Along with other users we have been doing some beta testing of BeamYourScreen’s new version 4, which will be released tomorrow. You will find the software for download on BeamYourScreen’s then also new website.
Our tests have yielded results that will have an impact on our ranking of web conferencing solutions. As soon as the new version is out and running we will update the ranking accordingly.
How video functionality weighs into our ranking
Video has been in use privately for quite some time but has been ridiculously slow in regards of becoming really useful for business online collaboration. Now that an increasing number of employees who need to attend or host online meetings either have a mobile computing device with a built-in camera or an external webcam plugged in, web conferencing vendors feel the time has come to integrate video into their solutions. And since internet connections are getting faster and faster why not go to HD while they are at it?
Now where does this leave us and our ranking of online meeting tools? Well, first of all there will be no shift of focus. We will not rank a tool higher just because it makes it possible for you to wave into a camera. The focus will remain on functionalities that enable and/or enhance online collaboration. Desktop screen sharing and the document- and information-centric joint working with applications really is the key to all online collaboration technologies.
So far we had only figured in video at the margin, giving a tool a minor increase in overall score if it enabled video. But this yes/no logic really does not reflect this specific functionality well enough anymore. If a vendor offers video in his software we want to know the following:
- Can you scale the videos? It is really annoying if you have huge heads staring at you while you try to read text on a presentation that is displayed in a corner of the screen. Users should be able to move cameras and re-size them to their liking.
- How does a tool handle the enormous amount of data being streamed? The software must be backed up by a powerful server infrastructure that can handle all data upstreams and downstreams. Regardless of the number of participants or the single participants’ internet connection the tool must deliver video without compromising the overall quality of the online meeting.
- Are voice and video connected? If two or three people are in a conference it is fairly easy to identify the speaker. But if you have six participants in a conference and are discussing a document that is being displayed you do not want to be stuck having to check whose lips are moving. So the current speaker should be highlighted by the tool.
- Are voice and video not only connected but in sync? You don’t want to be talking and see that on the screen your lips are moving a second later than when you are actually forming the words.
We will consider these options – and potentially more we might consider useful – in our future tests and make sure that video has a greater influence on overall score than it currently has. Video can really enhance an online meeting if it is integrated into the software wisely. Video functionality must seamlessly fit into the tool and really offer the users an additional advantage. It is all about user friendliness and if video doesn’t enhance the usability of a web conferencing solution it shouldn’t be integrated in the first place.
Video is becoming an integral part of web conferencing solutions
We at Online Meeting Tools Review have treated video conferencing as a side aspect so far. But there currently is a trend in the online collaboration market to include high quality video into well structured web conferencing tools, opening up many new possibilities for holding online meetings.
Until recently video was basically being used in businesses for the following two scenarios:
Scenario 1: Many larger companies had proprietary high-end conferencing systems installed in dedicated meeting rooms, based on the technology provided by Cisco, Polycom, Tandberg and the likes. These served as a somewhat expensive toy in C-Level meetings spread over various locations and even continents.
Scenario 2: Teams spread over different locations make use of low-end solutions. There are basically two ways for teams to collaborate using video conferencing technology:
- Freeware such as Skype and now also Google+ hangouts are an easy way to connect. The only requirement is that all participants need to have an account for the respective platform before they can start a video conference. With Skype users get some web conferencing functionalities as the tool allows e.g. screen sharing. However, many organizations prohibit users from using tools like Skype, due to security concerns.
- Apple and Microsoft make it possible: Teams can also collaborate via tools that are tied to the respective OS or vendor-based server technologies, such as Apple’s iChat and Microsoft’s Lync and OCS (Office Communication Server). These do work pretty well for video conferencing, however typically only within the organization’s firewall.
Another general restriction to video conferencing used to be the relatively low number of users with webcams. This is becoming less of an issue due to huge increases in mobile devices which usually feature a built-in webcam of some sorts and of course cheap external devices that can be used via plug and play. Privately these have been used for quite some time now and web conferencing vendors are now feeling conditions have changed sufficiently for them to integrate video into their solutions and actually offer customers additional value by doing so.
So with business users having their webcams in place, strong enough internet connections to actually allow HD (High Definition) video streaming it seems that conditions are near perfect for web conferencing vendors to integrate video into their tools. We will give you our take on this trend shortly and we’ll let you know how we will be figuring video functionality into our overall ranking.
Are you currently using a video conferencing solution on a regular basis for business purposes? If so just leave a comment and let us know what solution you are using and how that is working out for you.
Web conferencing helps business travellers sidestep the looming strike of German air traffic controllers
As Deutsche Welle reports, German air traffic controllers are likely to go on a six-hour strike beginning Tuesday at 6 a.m. if it is not called off at the last second.
This strike would cause quite some chaos for all those currently on vacation and of course those who need to travel on business. Just as last year – when that Icelandic volcano that is impossible to pronounce correctly offset travel throughout Europe – business travellers can make the best of their situation and take their meetings online if they cannot make it to their destination.
With a laptop entire presentations can be held and those travelling light with either a tablet or their smart phone with them can at least attend meetings and follow what others are presenting. Check out our ranking of online collaboration tools that will enable business travellers to hold or attend a meeting even if they are stuck at an airport or decide not to travel at all.
RHUB extends services to UK and Europe
RHUB issued a statement the other day that the company plans to extend its reach to the UK and Europe by forming a partnership with Collaboration Technologies Ltd in London. For users this means that sales and support for GoMeetNow will be available in the old world now, too.
Just as Citrix intended with the acquisition of Netviewer, RHUB will be very keen on increasing their share of the European web conferencing market. Read the entire statement here.
Killer Webinars helps you with creating and holding your webinar
We at Online Meeting Tools Review focus on testing the software that allows you to conduct meetings online more or less easily. Webinars are one of the meeting types you can handle with web conferencing software (see our distinction between web conference and webinar).
After visiting our site you should have a good idea of which software to go with. How you best conduct a meeting or a webinar is a whole other business. And this is where sites such as killerwebinars.com come in. You pick the platform you wish to use and they can help you with the rest. From preparing to holding a webinar the site offers many useful tips.
LiveOn shows promise but doesn’t make it into our ranking
The Japanese vendor LiveOn asked us to test their online meeting solution. At the risk of spoiling the suspense: The tool didn’t make it into our ranking.
But let us start at the beginning. The basic functionalities are all there and if we had to choose the scenario this solution is best suited for we’d say it definitely is online meetings planned in advance. Video is the central aspect of the solution, displaying the participant’s webcam streams in the main window. Functionalities such as whiteboard and screen sharing can be added in separate windows.
Now to the shortcomings… The tool runs on Windows only which really is a large restriction as we pointed out earlier – “Mac users are being neglected”. There are neither one-click meetings nor recurring meetings, and you can only enter a meeting room at the time the meeting is scheduled, no earlier. When we started our meeting it took us 8 minutes from clicking “enter room” to actually arriving in the room. Finally, there was no pricing information posted on the website.
User-friendliness and meeting-setup are the two major areas for improvement. The solution shows promise, but currently cannot be considered a serious alternative to the market leaders.