Logitech is now envisioning a future where business meetings and video conference calls can be conducted through mobile devices without having to squeeze participants shoulder to shoulder to fit everybody in. That’s according to the company’s Director of Product Strategy, Simon Dudley, who says Logitech could feasibly release a series of webcams or accessories within the next few years with the goal of making video conference more efficient over mobile platforms. Dudley goes on to say that the biggest driving factor in that is the rapidly improving processing power and the growing inclusion of USB Type-C ports in modern mobile devices. The camera technology Dudley is referring to would be similar to Logitech’s upcoming MeetUp technologies. For the unfamiliar, MeetUp features wide-angle cameras and dedicated mic and speaker systems that allow for a smaller space to be used when conducting a video conference.
Dudley also points out that mobile solutions would almost certainly not replace more expensive, TV-based boardroom setups that Logitech currently sells. However, in many modern work environments, high-ranking executives are not the only employees that need access to video conferencing in order to conduct work operations. Laptops provide one possible solution and so do several mobile applications but, in both cases, the range of the cameras, microphones, and speakers is usually not up to the task. Participants are forced to squeeze in around a small screen and it is nearly impossible to include more than a few people in the conference itself. That not only makes the technology difficult to use in many cases but also presents problems because of how unprofessional it tends to look. That relegates the current solutions to either personal use or use by very small groups.
With that said, Dudley points to the inclusion of USB Type-C on modern flagships as a key aspect that could make accessories work. That’s thanks to the substantially higher data transfer rate of the ports and to their standardized nature – which makes it easier to design one or two products that work well with many different mobile devices. It will also hinge, of course, on a continuation of current trends in processing power and battery technology. In fact, Dudley says those two aspects of mobile technology are already very close to being where they would need to be to run the MeetUp platform as it currently stands – putting the timeline at around “three to five years.”