It’s safe to say that the way we meet, interact, and collaborate with each other is changing at a rapid pace. Meetings are becoming increasingly less structured, and more frequent, with a demand for more immersive, and engaging solutions like rich video, quality audio, and screen sharing services. In a world where the old-fashioned conference room is becoming less cost-efficient (and necessary) huddle rooms are leading the way for the digital workforce.
I had an opportunity to visit Avaya’s R&D centre this year, where I was able to explore their new huddle room solution in person. The CU-360 Collaboration Unit is a fantastic and unique answer to the changing needs of the modern workforce. It offers a simple and affordable way to create the intuitive meetings modern enterprises need.
The Rise of the Huddle Room
Before we explore the features and possibilities of the CU-360 Collaboration Unit in further depth, let’s quickly discuss why a huddle room offering is so important for Avaya right now. Huddle rooms are the small workspaces designed to accommodate agile groups of innovative workers. The solutions available today come equipped with everything you need for a meeting, including video, audio, and display system technology.
Unlike larger conference rooms which can be difficult to set up, and expensive to run, huddle rooms are all about agility and productivity in a fast-paced environment. They bring people together through instant interactive moments, allowing for projects to be completed faster, and ideas to be discussed with remote workers around the world – all without huge investments in commercial real estate.
In simple terms, the huddle room is the answer for customers who want to remove their focus away from the “large conference room” and start focusing on the benefits that smaller spaces can bring. Avaya revealed their huddle room service this year, and it will be shipping out from the third quarter of 2018.
What You Can Expect from the CU-360
As I mentioned above, I was actually lucky enough to get a first-hand chance to explore the Avaya CU-360 Collaboration Unit myself during my visit to the Avaya R&D centre. From a basic perspective, this nifty and nimble device is simply a compact solution that contains everything you need for immersive video conferencing and collaboration. Essentially, it’s like a mobile huddle room – something you can take with you throughout the enterprise to turn any room into an instant huddle environment.
Though the CU-360 is designed to be compact and easy to use, that doesn’t mean that it’s missing out on any essential features. In fact, the camera is incredible, with 4k wide-angle lens and a 1080p performance for cleaner interactions. The whole system provides teams with the support they need to connect to remote workers and set up instant video conferences within a matter of moments. It’s basically the ultimate on-the-go conference setup.
In a digital world driven by the concept of agility, the CU-360 is all about jumping into action fast. It gives you the interoperability, utility and security you need to start launching brainstorming and team meetings in no time. Plus, because the system incorporates an Android OS, you don’t need a PC to get it up and running. That’s something that you don’t see every day from meeting room environments.
Features include:
- Bluetooth connectivity and HDMI connections
- 24-language immersive user interface
- API for endpoint control
- Fantastic microphone array
- Embedded encryption
- 1080p video resolution
- 4K camera sensor
- IPv4 and IPv6 simultaneous support
… and much more.
What Makes the CU-360 So Special?
The ease-of-installation and usability of the CU-360 make it a great solution for workgroups of any shape and size, in just about any enterprise environment. With the Avaya Collaboration Unit, you get:
- Affordability: Stop worrying about having to pay for large conference room set-ups. With the CU-360 you can get everything from 1080p video output to a 4K camera sensor without having to make a huge initial investment. Plus, since you can take the system anywhere, you’re not tied to using a single room. You can integrate with Avaya Equinox, Aura, and IP Office, or you can set your system up independently – depending on what you need
- Smart Collaboration: If you need to go beyond the standard video chat, Avaya has you covered with wireless application and screen sharing through their “Screen Link” offering. You can get a fantastic high-resolution presentation without any cables whatsoever
- Cloud integration: As mentioned above, the CU-360 Collaboration Unit works naturally with cloud solutions like Avaya Equinox so that you can maintain a productive collaboration experience for your entire workforce. There are also integrations available with things like Google Apps, Office 365, Dropbox, and Salesforce too
- Simplicity: It’s hard to embrace any new technology in an enterprise if it’s not easy to use. One of the main attractive features of the CU-360 is how simple it is to set up. The system simply rests on your meeting room display, with Bluetooth peripheral connectivity set up and an integrated microphone array to get rid of all those pesky cables
- Security: The Avaya CU-360 Collaboration Unit also comes with the security you need to ensure that you’re performing with peace of mind. It’s totally-standards based and designed to give all your team members the same reliable Collab experience, wherever they are, no matter which device they’re using
CU-360 Integrates with Avaya Equinox
Of course, one particularly compelling feature of the CU-360 Collaboration suite is the fact that it works seamlessly with the Avaya Equinox collaboration solution. This ensures that team members all have the same exceptional communication experience in your business network.
Recently, Avaya announced a host of additional updates to their Equinox system, which already has a strong reputation for offering seamless communication services across browsers, devices and applications alike. The updated Equinox comes with new features for conferencing and collaboration, as well as a “top of mind” home screen, where users can organise information about their day and enjoy access to one-touch messaging, calling, and video conferencing.
The latest Equinox updates, combined with the CU-360 product has given Avaya a fantastic way to go to market with something simple, agile and accessible for the enterprise. As collaboration becomes increasingly important, Avaya is designing new experiences for the workforce of today, and tomorrow. For more information, take a look at the Avaya CU-360 homepage.
