Logitech MeetUp
A classy videoconferencing solution with great image quality and future-proof 4K streaming capabilities
SCORE ✪✪✪✪✪ PRICE £670 exc VAT from pcpro.link/279meetup
There’s no doubt that 4K video conferencing (VC) will be the norm sooner or later, and Logitech aims to be one of the first in the queue for your business. Having already launched its 4K Brio personal webcam earlier this year, it’s now released the MeetUp, designed to bring Ultra HD quality to mid-sized offices and huddle rooms.
At 400mm wide, the big sound bar can be attached to a wall with the supplied bracket, placed underneath a TV or monitor on its integrated stand, or fitted on top using the optional mounting bracket.
In the centre sits the Logitech camera, with its 4K Ultra HD sensor and a lens that boasts a massive 120° field of view. It sits in a motorised carrier, allowing you to pan, tilt and zoom in using the supplied remote control (a full horizontal sweep takes around seven seconds), as well as adjusting the volume, making or ending voice calls and activating Bluetooth. There’s a zoom control too, but this is strictly digital, so pulling in for a closer look won’t actually add any more detail to the scene.
At the back of the unit there’s a port for the external power supply and a USB-C port for connection to a PC or Mac running your videoconferencing app. Annoyingly, though, Logitech provides a USB 2 cable in the box, which only has enough bandwidth to support videoconferencing in 1080p mode: the manual bluntly states that you’ll need to source your own USB 3 cable if you plan on using 4K streaming.
For testing, we installed the MeetUp on a Windows 10 host; the required drivers were automatically installed when we connected it, and Logitech’s handy Camera Settings utility allowed us to check the camera feed to aid positioning, choose standard or widescreen modes, and tweak contrast, brightness and colour balance.
The MeetUp can also be remotely controlled with Logitech’s ConferenceCam Soft Remote app for Android and iOS. We tested the latter on our iPad and found it worked very well: it successfully scanned the network, spotted the Windows host PC with the camera attached, connected to it and opened up a soft replica of the RC handset.
We also tested the MeetUp on a MacBook Pro, and again had no problems: the macOS version of Logitech’s Camera Setting utility provides all the same features as the Windows one.
We found Skype meetings easy to set up and WebEx had no problems, either – but we weren’t able to take full advantage of the MeetUp’s camera
“The lens boasts a massive 120° field of view and sits in a motorised carrier, allowing you to pan, tilt and zoom in using the supplied remote”
because, like all current VC services, these platforms only support video streaming at resolutions up to 1080p. Even so, our participants all agreed that video quality was sharp and clear with great contrast and natural-looking colour balance. We had no problem using pan and tilt operations from the handset and iOS app during the conference.
Audio was good, too: the MeetUp speaker performed well and easily covered our 6.5m-long conference room. It’s capable of far higher volume levels than Logitech’s portable ConferenceCam Connect, but it lacks any decent bass and sounded quite shrill at times.
The three omnidirectional mics also worked very well; callers said they could hear us clearly even at the maximum 2.4m range. For larger rooms, Logitech offers an optional speaker/mic extension unit, with a 6m cable, that plugs into a dedicated port on the MeetUp. Until the major VC services start supporting 4K streaming, SMBs will find it difficult to justify the £670 asking price for the MeetUp. Even once 4K is supported, you’ll need to ask whether the extra resolution is worth the bandwidth requirements, estimated at 15 to 25Mbits/sec.
Still, the MeetUp is a lot cheaper than proprietary systems such as Cisco’s Spark Room Kit which starts at nearly three grand. It also offers excellent image quality at 1080p and is very easy to use, making this a viable and highly future-proof VC solution.
SPECIFICATIONS
Logitech lens 120° FoV supports 4K Ultra HD (3,840 x 2,160/30fps) 1,080p HD (1,920 x 1,080/30fps) motorised pan/tilt 5x digital zoom triple omni-directional mics speaker Bluetooth USB 3 (USB-C) RF remote control external PSU 5m USB 2 cable 400 x 85 x 104mm (WDH) 1.04kg 2yr limited warranty. Options: Expansion mic, £234 TV mount, £92 (both exc VAT)