Pro-Systems journalist Chanelle Ellaya caught up with some of the South African attendees at ISE 2014 to get their perspective on this year’s show. Here’s what they had to say.

Phil Lord (Christie)

Overall the show was very positive for Christie – The booth was extremely busy all three days of the show and we were made aware of some new interesting project opportunities in Africa. Also we met a number of potential new partners in East and West Africa. There was a strong attendance from South Africa, including a number of Christie partners and integrators.

I was so busy I did not manage to get off the Christie stand so cannot comment on new trends or products. However, Christie did officially launch these products:

• BRIO

• VIVE Audio solutions

• Q Series DLP projectors

• New 46′, 55′, 65′ & 84′ Flat panels

• High frame rate 4K DLP projector (D4K25 & D4K35)

Jason Johnstone (Electrosonic)

Every year the show seems to be busier than the last, so as you can imagine 51 000 or so people in only three days is not a bad turn out. Every year there are buzz words or something that is almost like the theme of the show and this year was no different with the big one being 4K. All the big players were pushing their 4K products. There was nothing revolutionary at the show and a lot of companies were offering the same types of solutions. However, we did see many innovative products to simplify Pro AV solutions.

The show is always great for networking and finding new business opportunities, in that regard it never disappoints.

One of the trends that caught my eye was be the outdoor LED screen market. I was amazed to see just how many companies offered these solutions, all Asian it would seem, and just how small the LED pitch has become on some of these screens. Another technology which is growing is HDBaseT; big manufacturers like Panasonic are now adding HDBaseT inputs to their devices making integration in Pro AV even easier.

Kevin McMillan Craig (Converged Connectivity)

The show is always very well organised, well advertised and publicised, and I really enjoy the benefits of attending. I doubt that any show can actually compare to the scope offered by ISE and the opportunities to meet manufacturers and distributors at the top of the AV Technology game. The best part about ISE is its ideal location in Europe, great city to be in, transport and hotels are readily available and the overall ambiance of the expo is friendly.

The bits that caught my eye the most were the 4G revolution from Crestron and the HD IP streaming from Kramer. Biamp Launched the new Tesira product range and this is proving to be a game changer in the Audio Video Bridging market. In my market space, the convergence of IP/IT and AV are closer than ever and these three manufacturers are streets ahead. There are other companies out there, however it is these three companies that are driving the movement and establishing protocols that others follow. In addition, Kramer and Crestron offer the widest product range of complementary components, end-to-end solutions that work well together. The other companies seemed to be “more-of-the-same’ in my market space. Same; just newer.

Ofer Lapid (Gearhouse)

ISE is not the ideal expo to attend if you are looking from a rental perspective; it is more geared towards system integrators. However, I was there and looked at various new technologies, particularly from the viewpoint of servicing convention centres like Sandton Convention Centre and Cape Town Convention Centre, where we are in-house suppliers.

I was fascinated by the advancements in interactive smart boards more than anything else. Otherwise, ISE is always a good opportunity for me to meet suppliers, rub shoulders with other industry players and visit our familiar suppliers like Panasonic, AV Stumpfl, Christie, Lighthouse and other LED suppliers. Of course the latest buzz word is K4, but to me it seems to be a little early to bring K4 to the SA market. It will take a little time for it to get here and thank God for that short respite for the pocket. Other than that I attended the InAVation Awards and in my humble opinion systems integrators still have a bit to learn about putting a proper live show together. The bottom line from me is that Europe is much more interesting in summer than in the freezing winter months.

Malcolm Finlay (Penmac)

Once again this exhibition was overwhelming to say the least. If you are in any way connected or interested in the Audio Visual world, there are more suppliers and solutions exhibited than one can cope with.

The big trend this year has to be 4K video. It seemed everyone was creating it, capturing it and delivering it. While we may not immediately feel there is a need for this quality yet, it does indicate a future trend we will undoubtedly be obliged to comply with. This in turn will obviously have huge implications on delivery channels and content creators.

Dataton launched WATCHNET which integrates with WATCHOUT to allow simple personal tablet integration for show control without the need for complex programming. The functionality of WATCHPAX has also now been extended to increased capability and the possibility of two video output streams per solid-state device.

Eugene Coetzee (Electrosonic)

This year it was clear that the show was a great success as a record number of visitors was achieved. There were more South African companies visiting the show than in 2013. ISE has become such an important show for us and South Africa. We enjoy the opportunity to ’WOW’ our integrators showing them the product offering from Crestron, Kramer, Elite, NEC and other products. It is the one place where they can view the vast range of products and solutions on offer, and this is an eye opener.
Attending these trade shows is also an important opportunity to network with our suppliers to strengthen ties and relationships.

4K was probably the biggest new trend at ISE. 4K signage was visible on many manufacturers’ booths. You can already see LCD display manufacturers pushing 4K displays into our homes, so 4K is the next big thing and it’s here.

Gavin Olivier (Digital Fabric)

As usual very good. Its gets a bit bigger each year and in so doing becomes a bit harder to navigate in just three days. The quality of product remains very high which makes it an important visit for any serious AV person. For us Saffers it’s a way better option than Infocomm for reasons of cost, time zone and travel time.

We went across with the intention of investigating the progress made in LED and Laser projection. Sadly, the LED products are lagging behind in anything much bigger than 3 000ANSI, but there are some interesting hybrid-laser products around the corner. Of course the phrase “we do 4K’ was the most used this year with everything from digital signage players to transmission gear to every conceivable type of display device trying to squeeze onto the podium for attention. Having said that, there were some amazing images to be seen, most memorably Christie Digital’s 4K rearpro onto a Stewart high gloss screen and a selection of LED displays with sub 2mm pixel pitch. The age of “pixel-less’ displays is fast becoming a reality in Pro-AV.

Pro-Systems journalist Chanelle Ellaya caught up with some of the South African attendees at ISE 2014 to get their perspective on this year’s show. Here’s what they had to say.

Phil Lord (Christie)

Overall the show was very positive for Christie – The booth was extremely busy all three days of the show and we were made aware of some new interesting project opportunities in Africa. Also we met a number of potential new partners in East and West Africa. There was a strong attendance from South Africa, including a number of Christie partners and integrators.

I was so busy I did not manage to get off the Christie stand so cannot comment on new trends or products. However, Christie did officially launch these products:

• BRIO

• VIVE Audio solutions

• Q Series DLP projectors

• New 46′, 55′, 65′ & 84′ Flat panels

• High frame rate 4K DLP projector (D4K25 & D4K35)

Jason Johnstone (Electrosonic)

Every year the show seems to be busier than the last, so as you can imagine 51 000 or so people in only three days is not a bad turn out. Every year there are buzz words or something that is almost like the theme of the show and this year was no different with the big one being 4K. All the big players were pushing their 4K products. There was nothing revolutionary at the show and a lot of companies were offering the same types of solutions. However, we did see many innovative products to simplify Pro AV solutions.

The show is always great for networking and finding new business opportunities, in that regard it never disappoints.

One of the trends that caught my eye was be the outdoor LED screen market. I was amazed to see just how many companies offered these solutions, all Asian it would seem, and just how small the LED pitch has become on some of these screens. Another technology which is growing is HDBaseT; big manufacturers like Panasonic are now adding HDBaseT inputs to their devices making integration in Pro AV even easier.

Kevin McMillan Craig (Converged Connectivity)

The show is always very well organised, well advertised and publicised, and I really enjoy the benefits of attending. I doubt that any show can actually compare to the scope offered by ISE and the opportunities to meet manufacturers and distributors at the top of the AV Technology game. The best part about ISE is its ideal location in Europe, great city to be in, transport and hotels are readily available and the overall ambiance of the expo is friendly.

The bits that caught my eye the most were the 4G revolution from Crestron and the HD IP streaming from Kramer. Biamp Launched the new Tesira product range and this is proving to be a game changer in the Audio Video Bridging market. In my market space, the convergence of IP/IT and AV are closer than ever and these three manufacturers are streets ahead. There are other companies out there, however it is these three companies that are driving the movement and establishing protocols that others follow. In addition, Kramer and Crestron offer the widest product range of complementary components, end-to-end solutions that work well together. The other companies seemed to be “more-of-the-same’ in my market space. Same; just newer.

Ofer Lapid (Gearhouse)

ISE is not the ideal expo to attend if you are looking from a rental perspective; it is more geared towards system integrators. However, I was there and looked at various new technologies, particularly from the viewpoint of servicing convention centres like Sandton Convention Centre and Cape Town Convention Centre, where we are in-house suppliers.

I was fascinated by the advancements in interactive smart boards more than anything else. Otherwise, ISE is always a good opportunity for me to meet suppliers, rub shoulders with other industry players and visit our familiar suppliers like Panasonic, AV Stumpfl, Christie, Lighthouse and other LED suppliers. Of course the latest buzz word is K4, but to me it seems to be a little early to bring K4 to the SA market. It will take a little time for it to get here and thank God for that short respite for the pocket. Other than that I attended the InAVation Awards and in my humble opinion systems integrators still have a bit to learn about putting a proper live show together. The bottom line from me is that Europe is much more interesting in summer than in the freezing winter months.

Malcolm Finlay (Penmac)

Once again this exhibition was overwhelming to say the least. If you are in any way connected or interested in the Audio Visual world, there are more suppliers and solutions exhibited than one can cope with.

The big trend this year has to be 4K video. It seemed everyone was creating it, capturing it and delivering it. While we may not immediately feel there is a need for this quality yet, it does indicate a future trend we will undoubtedly be obliged to comply with. This in turn will obviously have huge implications on delivery channels and content creators.

Dataton launched WATCHNET which integrates with WATCHOUT to allow simple personal tablet integration for show control without the need for complex programming. The functionality of WATCHPAX has also now been extended to increased capability and the possibility of two video output streams per solid-state device.

Eugene Coetzee (Electrosonic)

This year it was clear that the show was a great success as a record number of visitors was achieved. There were more South African companies visiting the show than in 2013. ISE has become such an important show for us and South Africa. We enjoy the opportunity to ’WOW’ our integrators showing them the product offering from Crestron, Kramer, Elite, NEC and other products. It is the one place where they can view the vast range of products and solutions on offer, and this is an eye opener.
Attending these trade shows is also an important opportunity to network with our suppliers to strengthen ties and relationships.

4K was probably the biggest new trend at ISE. 4K signage was visible on many manufacturers’ booths. You can already see LCD display manufacturers pushing 4K displays into our homes, so 4K is the next big thing and it’s here.

Gavin Olivier (Digital Fabric)

As usual very good. Its gets a bit bigger each year and in so doing becomes a bit harder to navigate in just three days. The quality of product remains very high which makes it an important visit for any serious AV person. For us Saffers it’s a way better option than Infocomm for reasons of cost, time zone and travel time.

We went across with the intention of investigating the progress made in LED and Laser projection. Sadly, the LED products are lagging behind in anything much bigger than 3 000ANSI, but there are some interesting hybrid-laser products around the corner. Of course the phrase “we do 4K’ was the most used this year with everything from digital signage players to transmission gear to every conceivable type of display device trying to squeeze onto the podium for attention. Having said that, there were some amazing images to be seen, most memorably Christie Digital’s 4K rearpro onto a Stewart high gloss screen and a selection of LED displays with sub 2mm pixel pitch. The age of “pixel-less’ displays is fast becoming a reality in Pro-AV.