HP introduces SkyRoom

By siliconindia   |   Wednesday, 23 September 2009, 22:10 IST   |    2 Comments
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HP introduces SkyRoom
California: HP established a new category in videoconferencing with the introduction of HP SkyRoom - affordable, high-definition videoconferencing software that offers live, real-time collaboration for instant face-to-face meetings with no subscription fees. HP SkyRoom is based on video and image communication technology developed in HP Labs, the company's central research arm. Elements of this technology were used by NASA's Mars rovers to transfer high resolution images back to earth. HP SkyRoom is the only videoconferencing tool to offer real-time collaboration for up to four people over a standard business network for $149 - less than the cost of round-trip airfare from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Until now, companies have had few options for videoconferencing - expensive enterprise telepresence systems or Internet freeware tools that strip out the subtleties of human interactions and don't allow for the sharing of rich media content such as video and computer-aided design manipulation. SkyRoom will be included as a standard feature 'at no cost' on select HP business desktop and mobile workstations and for free for a trial period on many upcoming HP premium business PCs and notebooks. HP SkyRoom can be used on workstations or PCs from Dell, Lenovo or Sun that meet minimum technology requirements. Companies now have the power to change the economics of travel and reduce their carbon footprint while preserving the value of personal human interaction. "Finally, video meetings with genuine eye contact and natural human interaction are as easy as starting an instant messaging connection. It takes business productivity and collaboration to a completely new level when we can connect people around the world in a day via HP SkyRoom and let them get home to family dinner and bedtime stories - without the wear and tear of travel," said Jim Zafarana, Vice President and General Manager, Workstations, HP. Using HP SkyRoom is as easy as beginning an instant message conversation. Users simply click a contact to connect, which quickly initiates a live SkyRoom session. Another click shares the desktop or rich media content and participants are instantly collaborating. During an HP SkyRoom session, information is transferred at a rate of four times faster than the blink of an eye. HP SkyRoom is available worldwide pre installed at no cost on the HP Z800, Z600, Z400 and xw4600 workstations. Select premium business PCs and notebooks due out from HP in the coming months will include a 90-day trial of HP SkyRoom, which will be available for purchase thereafter. Customers using current HP workstations, desktops, notebooks or non-HP systems can purchase HP SkyRoom for $149 at HP's website.

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