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Polycom RealPresence Group Series

Polycom RealPresence Group Series

Overview

What is Polycom RealPresence Group Series?

The Polycom RealPresence Group Series is a video conferencing codec that connects to a standards-based video conferencing infrastructure to allow users to make video conference calls. There are three products in the series – RealPresence Group 300, RealPresence Group 500,…

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

The Polycom RealPresence Group Series is widely used by global companies to facilitate effective communication across multiple locations. …
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Great for meetings

9 out of 10
February 12, 2020
Incentivized
We use the Polycom RealPresence Group Series to participate in conference calls. We use Microsoft Teams to create and host the meetings. …
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Go for it

9 out of 10
January 26, 2018
Incentivized
My company uses the Group Series to teleconference with our remote offices and third-party companies using Skype for Business as the …
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Pricing

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What is Polycom RealPresence Group Series?

The Polycom RealPresence Group Series is a video conferencing codec that connects to a standards-based video conferencing infrastructure to allow users to make video conference calls. There are three products in the series – RealPresence Group 300, RealPresence Group 500, and RealPresence Group…

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  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

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Product Demos

Demo Polycom RealPresence Group Series Design Elements

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Demo Polycom RealPresence Group Series 1080p60 Experiences

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Demo Polycom RealPresence Group Series 1080p60 Experiences

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Polycom RealPresence Group Series -india 022 66886616 /76

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Demo Polycom RealPresence Group Series

YouTube

Demo Polycom RealPresence Group Series 1080p60 Experiences

YouTube
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Product Details

What is Polycom RealPresence Group Series?

The Polycom RealPresence Group Series is a video conferencing codec that connects to a standards-based video conferencing infrastructure to allow users to make video conference calls. There are three products in the series – RealPresence Group 300, RealPresence Group 500, and RealPresence Group 700. It is certified to use with Office 365 and Skype for Business.

Polycom RealPresence Group Series Technical Details

Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(56)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

The Polycom RealPresence Group Series is widely used by global companies to facilitate effective communication across multiple locations. Users emphasize its versatility, as it can connect to various cloud services and function as both a stand-alone H.323 and SIP system. This flexibility allows it to be utilized in conference rooms of varying sizes, accommodating small 2-person rooms to large lobbies for company-wide meetings.

Customers highlight the value of the system in reducing the need for travel, as it enables remote access from other locations, fostering collaboration and saving costs. It serves multiple purposes, such as group video conferences, online training sessions, and educational seminars held outside of the workplace. By standardizing conferencing software and hardware, the system allows direct connections between meeting rooms equipped with these devices.

Reviewers praise the high-quality audio and video performance of the RealPresence Group Series, making it particularly suitable for high-priority and high-traffic conference rooms. Integration with Microsoft Teams and ceiling microphones further enhances the meeting experience while minimizing the necessity for extensive travel. The system has proven indispensable for engineers collaborating globally, tackling the costly problem of constant travel.

Another significant use case involves connecting different business units, functional groups, and teams worldwide for effective collaboration. Furthermore, it brings a sense of togetherness by enabling participation in conference calls and enhancing meeting experiences. Users appreciate its HD video quality, superb sound quality, and compatibility with various cloud services.

In addition to being deployed in board meeting rooms due to its low cost compared to other endpoint options when participating in meetings with Lifesize and Cisco conference systems, the Polycom RealPresence Group Series finds broad utilization within companies for basic audio and web meetings. Moreover, it facilitates HD video conferences for site-to-site or external board meetings while helping organizations phase out external conferencing products and leverage their internal investment.

Departments such as IT and marketing benefit from the system, allowing for efficient meetings and visual connections with participants. The ability to conduct calls globally, reduce the need for travel, and enable face-to-face communications is highly valued. The system is also being evaluated by users for recommendations to end-users and customers, with a strong emphasis on ease of use and setup.

Companies appreciate the implementation of the Group Series solution without significant cost or time investment, enabling productive teleconferences with remote offices and third-party companies. Moreover, it serves as a vital tool for connecting associates between geographically distributed home offices and branch offices, enabling productive meetings without the need for travel. Within the IT department, the system is widely used for video conferences and conference calls, enhancing collaboration and communication.

Users have found the Polycom RealPresence Group Series to be cost-effective and reliable. By utilizing this system, companies can evaluate its cost effectiveness and determine if it aligns with their budgetary needs. It offers a low-cost endpoint solution for participating in meetings with other conference systems, providing an accessible option for companies looking to enhance their meeting capabilities.

Overall, the Polycom RealPresence Group Series has proven to be a valuable tool for global companies. Its ability to connect multiple locations and facilitate effective communication has made it a popular choice for routine meetings, collaborations, and educational sessions. With its high-quality audio and video performance, versatility in connecting to various cloud services, and seamless integration with Microsoft Teams, it is a practical solution that reduces travel costs and enhances meeting experiences. Whether it's connecting different business units or enabling efficient meetings within departments, the RealPresence Group Series continues to deliver reliable and cost-effective communication solutions.

Audio and Video Quality: Reviewers have consistently praised the audio and video quality of the Polycom RealPresence Group Series. Many users have described the audio quality as astounding and excellent, while also highlighting the sharpness, clarity, and high resolution of the video.

Versatility: The versatility of the Polycom RealPresence Group Series has been a standout feature for users. They appreciate being able to integrate the system with other applications, allowing for seamless online to phone interactions and easy sharing of computer content with participants at remote locations.

Ease of Use: Users find the Polycom RealPresence Group Series to be extremely user-friendly. They value its simplistic design and how easily it operates without any difficulties. The intuitive user interface, attractive touch panel option, and overall ease in running meetings are highly appreciated by reviewers.

Difficult to find unified solution: Several users have expressed difficulty in finding a unified solution to manage all Polycom RealPresence devices, making company-wide changes cumbersome. This lack of a centralized management system can lead to inefficiencies and increased time spent on device management.

Trouble pairing devices: Many reviewers have mentioned having trouble pairing their RealPresence device with a Polycom conference phone and getting them to work together. This issue can result in frustration and delays when trying to set up and use the system for conferences or meetings.

Interface not always intuitive: Some users have found the interface of the Polycom RealPresence system to be good but not always intuitive. They may struggle with navigating through different features or understanding how certain functions work. This lack of intuitiveness can hinder user experience and require additional time for training or troubleshooting.

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-4 of 4)
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Score 6 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
The Polycom RealPresence Group Series codecs were used as part of our outgoing Video Managed Service. Enabled collaboration for staff in meeting rooms over video conferencing. Where it was used it faciliated meetings with colleagues both internal and external and saved time on traveling nationally but crucially with international contacts including suppliers.
  • Solid codecs, well built and robust
  • Video and audio quality is very good including the microphones
  • Codecs are reliable, as long as users don't interfere with the cabling.
  • The UI is fairly dated compared to what's available on the market
  • Codecs require a fair bit of config before they are able to be used
  • Remote control is fiddly
If you're always working in the Polycom ecosystem then the Group Series codecs are reliable and the quality of the camera and microphones are extremely good. However, the system relies heavily on either having onsite server technology and/or cloud based bridging capability. In addition, the peripherals like cameras and microphones are quite expensive. Maintenance and support costs also make the ongoing investment a costly one.
  • The codecs whilst refreshed from older HDX ones have not really evolved in a significant fashion over the years. Everything feels like an add-on which requires multiple devices to be purchased for a fuller experience.
  • Reliablity has been good so long term the HW pays for itself however the maintenance and support costs continue to be a less attractive ongoing ROI.
  • Increasing server capacity is expensive and eventually you are forced to upgrade to a newer model. Turns into a balance of the here and now versus future proofing to a specific point.
Polycom Group Series was very good for what it used to do for its time, however newer technology that provides a more simpler method to configure, join and host video conference meetings has come in the form of Zoom and [Microsoft] Teams which is hard to go back from and therefore means the Polycom codecs of yesteryear are rapidly becoming phased out. The Polycom Trio is a more forward thinking technology which can be configured for the likes of Teams, Zoom and Zoom Phone and with the Poly Studio X range of codecs, this is ultimately the way forward.
The directory is slightly dated and unless you have a Skype for Business integration license, dialing users into a call is difficult. The Group Series Remote whilst minimalistic is actually more difficult to use than the previous HDX remote. Having to recharge the battery on the group series remote is both annoying and difficult as if you do not keep on top of it, you will be faced with a situation where the remote is not working and then have to try and find another one. Not ideal if you need to start a video call (assuming auto join has not been enabled in the admin portal).
The support and maintenance is only as good as your own helpdesk. First line is your own IT department and they need to be fully versed in using the systems and configuring them. Beyond this, Polycom's 2nd/3rd line support is good but by that time you will have wasted a long time insofar as your system will be down. The RMA process is good for maintenance support codecs but again, you're paying for this on an annual basis.
Curt Sminkey | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Being a global company, it's important to be able to communicate effectively - more so than just a Microsoft Teams meeting. Polycom RealPresense Group Series allows our groups to sit in a conference room and speak with other conference rooms as if it was one large meeting. Generally, these are used by departments spread out across multiple locations to have routine meetings to make sure everyone is on the same page. In a previous company, they were used so much that when our HQ was moved into a new building, the RealPresense devices more than doubled because we didn't have enough room. They were in anything from a small 2-person conference room to a large lobby where company-wide meetings would take place and accessed remotely by other locations.
  • The audio and video quality can not be matched.
  • For the most part, they are rather simplistic in their use and just work. People don't usually have a hard time operating them
  • They are rather versatile in that we have been able to integrate them with other applications
  • They are certainly not cheap.
  • I've struggled to come across any unified solution to manage all of our Polycom RealPresence devices instead of using the web interface of each one. It makes company-wide changes rather cumbersome
  • This might be an old issue but we had a really hard time pairing the RealPresence device with a Polycom conference phone and have them work together
While expensive, you can't compare the cost and time of people flying all over the globe to have in-person meetings when 95% of the time they can be done between a RealPresense.... even more so in today's post-pandemic world. You just get such a better video and audio experience than a Teams meeting.

We were also able to connect our RealPresence to Teams so that you can join a meeting and choose whether to join it from your desk with Teams or from a conference room with a Real Presence. This solved 2 issues for us in that there's now a simple link on the Real Presence to join a meeting instead of making a direct phone call to another RP device, and for meetings with 1 or 2 people from a site, they can now join this meeting from their desk and free up the conference room for a large meeting.
  • I don't have any firm stats but I can promise there was a decrease in travel costs
  • It gives such a better experience connecting with people at a different site that it's easier to form a relationship. It's not some person on the other end of a phone call - you can see them and hear them.
When I started at one of my jobs, they already have Lifesize VC equipment. It was nice, they worked and they were less expensive. But once we started transitioning things to Polycom it was a night/day difference. Some of our large conference rooms had audio issues that the Lifesize had trouble picking up all the voices in the rooms but that was resolved with Polycom. We also had trouble integrating the Lifesize in with other applications which was the driving force in moving to Polycom.

As far as Teams, I don't consider it a good comparison. I list it because at first, people thought of Teams as a compeditor of Polycom so there was a question of why do we need both.... Teams handles the single-person joining a meeting, Polycom is more for a conference room. I think there's a need for both and they can work together.
We have some very technology-challenged people, but they have no issues getting up a meeting, sharing content, ETC.
I can't say I've needed support more than a handful of times. One was for trying to connect a Polycom Conference phone and a Real Presence together. After a few months, we came to the conclusion it wasn't possible, that was the only frustrating occurance with support. Any other time if we needed to RMA a device, it was very smooth.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use it exclusively for our video conference rooms solution throughout our organization as well as support other campuses and state entities with their own Group Series units. We use Poly Group Series for static rooms as well as an integrated mobile solution for our live production events. Poly Group Series is our preferred equipment including a Poly Clariti infrastructure.
  • Dedicated appliances for video.
  • Quality video.
  • Sound and content integration.
  • Cost
  • Non-proprietary camera options on the GS 500 and 310 units.
  • External audio integration on the GS 310.
Having a dedicated video unit performs much better than virtual solutions. High-quality video.
  • Ongoing maintenance is costly but worth it for risk mitigation.
  • Better quality of video and integration.
  • GS 700 intergration is very flexible with integrated room solutions.
Poly has outlasted other competitor's products. I have reviewed Lifesize as one alternative. Ironically, I was impressed with the overall quality over Poly, however, the product did not last as well as Poly units.
BlueJeans Events (formerly Primetime), BlueJeans Meetings, Zoom
Poly is a very solid product line and outperforms the competition.
I have never had a bad experience with Poly support although you do need to go through a maintenance provider to access Poly support. Poly engineers and support staff are very efficient and knowledgeable.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use it across the enterprise. It enables the ability to have productive meetings without having to travel.
  • Video Conf is the way of the future, and is widely used in all aspects of life for communication without the means of having to travel.
  • Meaningful conversation.
  • Share content in meetings - such as a PowerPoint deck.
  • Enables the traveling persons to give immediate feedback back to "home" on where they are; such as in retail we can see real time what a store condition is or what displays look like.
  • Biggest issue is managing the Video calls via from a Mac OS environment; such as managing the RMX.
  • The inability to connect via from a mobile device.
  • Inability to merge other type of clients into one call without having to purchase expensive equipment to do so; such as Skype for Business or Google Meet.
Its ability to broadcast / join remote clients to meetings.
  • Cost reduction of traveling.
  • Real time presences from a remote location.
  • Ability to have people on Video instead of having them in person when inconvenient.
The video & audio quality is superior.
Retail
2
IT knowledge.
  • Reduce travel.
  • Mtgs with C-Level management.
  • Real time viewing of how our business grows.
  • We host corp town halls and use the equipment for broadcasting to remote locations..
  • Bring teams together and enable to hire remote people for jobs.
  • Off the top of my head I can't think of any more ways since we use it pretty much all over the place.
We love the product and is totally integrated in our company.
They are responsive and very knowledgeable.
They came out (few times) but one time I was directly involved, and mapped out a large conference room and were very thorough throughout the entire process.
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