At one time, frequent video communications, online learning, and compact hardware design were ambitious audio visual innovations that were hard for people to imagine. Today, they’re top priorities for business, educational, and religious spaces of all types, and are critical to how people interact in those spaces.
We’ve collected a list of new audio visual (AV) ideas to test based on the audio visual industry trends we see gaining a lot of traction today — and that we think will become essential to how we connect with one another in the years to come.
5 Audio Visual Ideas Inspired By Industry Trends
As you dive into your next audio visual project, consider implementing the following AV trends, whether you're upgrading an existing space or designing a new space from scratch.
1. Automation And Touchless Environments
COVID-19 has accelerated the desire for automation and touchless environments from a nice-to-have to a must-have. Not only do these ideas make operating equipment easier to use, but they also minimize the amount that people come into contact with shared surfaces.
For example, imagine walking into a conference room. Instead of flipping a light switch, an occupancy sensor detects your arrival and turns the lights on for you. Behind the scenes, that same sensor chooses the optimal lighting settings, room temperature, and window shade angle.
Since the room knows you’re there, the projector automatically turns on, and the projection screen automatically drops, reducing the amount of work you have to do to set up for a presentation.
Today, many spaces are equipped with remote controls and touch panels to perform these operations. Moving forward, we’ll see more environments where people can walk into a space, plug in their laptops, and simply get to work.
2. Remote Control And Remote Management
These days, many commercial spaces want to minimize the number of people in one room at a time, as well as the amount of staff that needs to be on-site at all.
We’re seeing an increase in demand for remote management software that allows one person, or a small group of people, to log into a remote system and review the status of a set of classrooms or meeting spaces.
For example, imagine a primary school environment where there often isn’t a large technical team to take care of maintenance requests. Instead of one person moving between several classrooms to troubleshoot problems or perform routine maintenance, they can see the status of all devices and classrooms online and troubleshoot from there. They can control the devices remotely, turn them on and off, and more.
3. Service And Maintenance
Much like frequently changing the oil in your car saves you money on automobile maintenance, regularly maintaining AV systems does the same in the long run.
As more commercial spaces look for ways to save, there’s been an increasing demand for AV integrators to handle service and maintenance in order to maximize the lifespan of AV products.
With these types of service or maintenance contracts, integrators are routinely on-site for maintenance, which minimizes the amount of equipment failures or needs for upgrade, ultimately saving commercial spaces a lot of money.
4. Live Streaming
As more people look to tune into events from home, we’re seeing an increased need for equipment that supports live streaming, especially in religious spaces.
For example, many churches have recently upgraded equipment to include Tricaster production systems, cameras, and microphones that allow them to broadcast sermons on popular platforms like Facebook and YouTube.
5. Video Walls
In many commercial spaces, there’s often a need for a large video display. In past years, many spaces have opted for projection screens as opposed to large LCD displays or video walls, solely because the cost was much lower.
Now, the price of video walls is similar to a projection screen, and the benefits almost always outweigh the slightly higher cost.
One major benefit is that video walls aren’t as affected by ambient or artificial light, whereas the clarity of a projector depends on the light in the room. In addition, TVs and displays can have a higher resolution and offer a better user experience than a projector.
Test These AV Trends With The Help Of An Integrator
Integrating these AV trends into your commercial space will likely require the expertise of an AV integrator — an experienced group of professionals that will help you select the best equipment for your space, as well as ideate the best design for your installation.
Aspen Custom Electronics is a group of certified AV professionals with extensive experience designing and implementing AV systems for commercial spaces of all types. Contact us to start brainstorming how you can implement some of these trends in your commercial space.
