Polycom RealPresence Group Series

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

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

RealPresence Debut, a unique build and easy to fit in any small meeting room

RealPresence Group 500 with Eagle eye director makes your video interaction more interactive with autofocus

Support IP & SIP-based dial-in and support most of the major meeting platforms currently being used in the world.

Compatible with Crestron and other AV controllers.

GUI interface should be easier to use while dialing in, especially in RealPresence Debut.

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.

The sound quality is excellent

The images are sharp and crisp

We needed to interact with the networking staff who were intent on using Cisco products, and this slowed down implementation.

Though it was easy to train users to operate the equipment those who were not trained frequently had difficulty starting up a meeting without assistance

Make conference calls

Display clear pictures

Setting up meetings can take a bit to register

The initial setup was very cumbersome

HD resolution at low bandwidth.

Sound quality.

Microphone compatibility.

Physical interface standards.

Ease of Use

High quality video

Remote control of the Polycom RealPresence Group series panel is very buggy.

Additional license cost for integration with Teams.

It's fairly straightforward to deploy.

Good integration with Polycom® SoundStation® IP 7000 phone to achieve high-quality audio coverage in the room without installing a more complex ceiling microphone's solution.

Integration with other solutions, such as Skype or Teams, requires additional licenses.

We ended up using it only for meetings between conference rooms, not with individual users.

Polycom RealPresence Group Series allows for seamless online to phone interactions. Staff are able to listen to voicemail on their phone or through their email, which is especially important when they are out of the office.

Polycom RealPresence Group Series allows us to determine the availability of our staff, by syncing calendars and showing availability through the online messaging feature and the screen on the phone itself.

Polycom RealPresence Group Series allows us to easily set up and conduct phone and video based conference calls, with minimal interference or dropped calls.

The only issue that we have experienced with Polycom RealPresence Group Series is the speed dial functionality. When attempting to use the speed dial buttons, the system occasionally sends a call through the computer system, not the phone. While the computer call option is valuable, not everyone can answer calls that way and we have had to do a manual lookup of an extension and call back when that happens.

Provides high-quality video and audio during conferences.

Enables the sharing of computer content from one site to the far end participants.

Easily used in integrated Crestron-controlled rooms.

Screen layout options can be somewhat limited, particularly when sharing content.

There have been occasional issues when connecting directly with Cisco endpoints within our environment.

Polycom are still a high-end videoconferencing manufacturer and it shows. The build quality is very high, with quality components provided. In the current environment where 'huddle-room' systems are taking over and are a mix of solutions from multiple manufacturers, you can tell the difference when you open the box and get dedicated hardware that is designed to work as a single package.

The audio quality is very good. May sound like an odd thing to consider audio quality before video quality, but if the sound is poor, it doesn't matter how good the video is - you wont stay in the meeting.

Great video from the dedicated cameras. The image quality is high and the camera is silent when it moves to presets.

Interface is good, but not always intuitive. For regular users, everything they need is instantly available.

Not 1080 out of the box, though the hardware supports it. Need a license to activate.

Amazing audio

Simple setup

Easy for users to understand

Many options for room sizing

The ability to share camera feed and content simultaneously

More layout options

Sales team at Polycom is engaged and wants to sell.

End support is pretty good compared to tech companies and is represented locally thru VARS.

Once installed, updated and debugged the platform is stable.

Install was a bit fast with a tech that was not the best, this lead to a round of support issues, fixes, and training.

Much of the internal learning was on our own with trial and error, and the Outlook integration was not really 100% (abandoned that as users could not understand and remember the shortcomings when meetings changed. Moved to reservation-less.

Stability was better after a major upgrade(only 1 year old) and a better Polycom tech.

The clarity of the video is a strength.

Support is strong with Polycom.

The units will integrate with Skype which will help us in the future.

The user interface/remote could be more intuitive.

The EagleEye Director is good, but the tracking needs refinement.

I would like to see more on-line self support.

Video quality is good.

Switching the video across several users seem to work well

It is hard to use/set up. One has to be fairly tech savvy and it still sometimes doesn't work right. Should work more like FaceTime in Apple - which is intuitive and easy to use.

Ability to select on your screen where the video boxes go within the container would be useful.

Haven't tried it but sharing a screen doesn't seem as intuitive as say WebEx.

All in one hardware integration. Touch panel, codec, SS DSP, Mics with Clink all work well together, this reduces the need for custom programming and saves money.

The Polycom Provisioning service for the groups reduces human error during setup of codec's as well as consistency for UI/settings.

The new SNMP for Group Series has a much better structure that allows for deep monitoring.

Previously an issue with Global Directory dialing, the RPTouch would try to dial display name string vs ext. This was fixed recently.

Skype for Business integration does not work well. We currently are implementing Pexip to handle Skype.

Complicated wiring for Clink extension. Clink connection also easy to put in upside-down. This broke one of our HDXs in the past.

The actual video signalling and quality are great.

There is a ton of flexibility in configuration, although several options are missing, as compared to the HDX series.

The platform is solid...we rarely have failures.

The global direction access is garbage. Six remote button pushes to access such a frequently used feature? And not even an API command to jump directly to it?

Both scheduled and dynamic provisioning should be supported from RPRM.

Really, still a separate license for 1080p? It is mainstream now, not a value add.

The sound quality is astounding.

The image quality is clear and sharp.

I would like to be able to call directly to any point accessible through the internet.

I would like to be able to remotely control the devices at the far end.

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.

Ease of use

Global Management

Just works

Treo integration

Director and producer both need advanced settings for setup. Not enough options for frame setup.

Easy to use interface

Detail on upcoming meetings on screen

Option of a touch panel makes meetings easy to run

Can't use touch panel and remote on the same system

Call order placement is an issue

Slow user interface

Easy and attractive interface

Integrates well with a control system

Very easy to manage via web

Better integration with Cisco CUCM

Adding audio calls can sometimes be tricky when dial tones are needed

Put labels on the new remotes so people know which buttons do what

Strong for medium to large group meetings where 2-5 associates are connecting from up to 5 sites

Able to see the reaction of associates and better engage the audience in the content of the meeting

Improves the ability to understand/communicate when connecting associates with different native languages

The main issue is the reliability of connection performance - particularly when attempting to share content and video simultaneously.

It's difficult to use the whiteboard function.

The ability to easily connect to non-polycom devices/platforms - unfortunately often associates are not at a site with a polycom device/connection or from outside the organization.

Great video quality

Great audio quality

None at this time.