The PolyX50, what is it?

Innovation

July 5, 2021

The PolyX50

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We are increasingly using software such as Teams or Zoom to organise meetings. This is certainly no surprise in a digital Covid era. Video conferencing is becoming increasingly more common. Unfortunately, it can sometimes be difficult to appear professional when the audio and video quality is not optimal. Does this sometimes bother you during important meetings? Fortunately, there is a solution that offers very good video and audio performance and also eliminates cable clutter.

At Cats & Dogs, we put it to the test and tested the PolyX50. The PolyX50 is an all-in-one video conferencing bar and is known for its excellent video and audio quality. This way, you can take video meetings to the next level. Additionally, you don’t need much to make it work. Power and Ethernet or Wi-Fi. A PC and numerous cables are no longer necessary.

With the PolyX50 it is possible to connect two displays. When you have a meeting, you can choose to show the people in the meeting on one screen and the content on the other. In this way, the X50 distinguishes itself from the X30. It is equipped with a microphone that can pick up voices very well, even from a long distance. Is background noise a problem? No problem, with the built-in NoiseBlockAi the background noises are filtered out.

In addition, it has a 4K-quality camera, so that everyone in the meeting can be seen clearly. It is even possible to configure the camera to follow the person that is speaking. In addition, the device has a stylish design that will make the meeting room look even more professional.

We tested the different modes. Teams, Zoom and Poly were powerful interfaces that made it easy for us to start a meeting. The only downside was the absence of the possibility to change the mode from, for example, Teams to Zoom via the display. Currently, it is only possible to change modes through a browser that requires the device to be rebooted. We hope that there will be an update in the future that will resolve this issue. Lastly, a small display console, the TC8, is included. It is a convenient device that can serve as a control console for the PolyX50. It is possible to connect the PolyX50 via LAN or Wi-Fi. The TC8 can only be connected via PoE (Power over Ethernet) and we also recommend using this for user convenience.

Microsoft Teams

A professional meeting via Teams can be set up in no time. Using the admin login, the PolyX50 can switch to the native Teams mode. It is important to use a Teams Conference Room account and not a personal Teams account. The interface looks professional and elegant. Scheduled meetings are automatically displayed clearly and participants can start the meeting immediately when they enter the room as it is always ready for use. No meeting planned? With the useful ‘meet now’ function, this is no problem at all. You can just start a meeting via the PolyX50.

Zoom meeting

As mentioned earlier, the PolyX50 can also be set to zoom mode. Here we saw another practical interface that made it easy to start a meeting. Just enter the room ID and password and we were ready to go. It was also possible to share content via a browser or zoom application, if the person who created the meeting gave permission.

Poly mode

Within this mode, content-sharing was easy with the help of the Polycom Content App. Through this application, multiple people can connect to the PolyX50 and switch screens. With the TC8 you can control the shared screens. This eliminates the hassle of constant changeovers and ensures that everything is always ready.

In conclusion

The audio and video quality of the PolyX50 are of a high standard. This, together with useful tools, forms a device that improves your call quality and experience. For example, the camera that automatically frames the speaker or the display that allows you to quickly invite users.

While the quality is high, we find that the PolyX50 is not made for multi-platform use. Switching platforms (such as from Teams to Zoom) is a tedious process. In addition, it takes about 3-5 minutes before you get on the other platform. Do you only use Teams? Then it’s a convenient device to use when all the settings are in order. If you like to have conversations on both Zoom and Teams, we don’t recommend this device.

Are you wondering if you can make the best use of this device in your organization? Or do you need help setting up the PolyX50? We are happy to help you