ClickShare summer release: video bar and app enhancements, service and registration flows and much more
8 min read
Collaboration is easy like a breeze this summer thanks to the latest ClickShare releases! With this update, we are easing IT managers' lives and enhancing meeting experiences for all participants, in room and online.
What´s new?
- ClickShare Bar Pro dual display support, stereo speakers, setting controls and Miracast content sharing
- Desktop App enhancements: presets for a customized App experience and seamless updates
- Accessible support flow in XMS Cloud, ClickShare Base Unit registration via iPads and quick fixes for your registration mishaps
- The ClickShare Button now enabling Microsoft Teams to collect usage data in Clickshare-powered rooms, providing IT managers insights into room and device utilization, occupancy levels, device inventory, etc.
Enhanced end-user experience
ClickShare Bar controls at your fingertips
This summer, we´re enabling instant control over your video conferencing environment without interrupting the flow of your meetings. The new control panel for the ClickShare Video Bar can be accessed directly from your ClickShare Desktop App or simply by pressing on the ClickShare Button. Controls include:
- Framing options. Easily switch between Group framing, Speaker framing and Composition view, and tailor your video to suit the meeting’s needs. Whether you’re presenting solo or as a group, the framing options ensure that everyone is in the shot and properly centered.
- Camera direction. Adjust the camera direction to the left or to the right to capture the exact angle for perfect visibility.
- Zoom control. Close-ups are now clearer than ever. Focus on important details or expand the view, the choice is yours!
- Volume control. Adjust the volume directly from the control panel to ensure that every participant can hear clearly, accommodating for varying room sizes and participant needs.
More content sharing flexibility with Miracast
Miracast is a wireless technology that lets you mirror your laptop screen on the room display without a Wi-Fi connection required.
The new Miracast feature on the ClickShare Video Bar makes sharing content from your device more flexible than ever.
With support for AirPlay, Google Chromecast, and now Miracast, the ClickShare Video Bar ensures that everyone can share their ideas in the way they find most convenient.
IT admin experience
Action required: update your ClickShare Windows driver
Thanks to the ClickShare Windows Driver, users who don’t have the ClickShare App installed on their laptop don’t need to manually start the Button App each time they plug in a Button.
To maintain the seamless and automatic functionality of the ClickShare Button App, please update the ClickShare Windows Driver to the latest version, 1.24. Starting with the next release in autumn, the 1.24 will be a mandatory requirement.
Deploy preset Desktop App user experiences
To enhance how organizations deploy and manage the ClickShare App across company devices, we are introducing preset user experiences through Microsoft Installer (MSI). This approach allows IT managers to streamline the deployment process, ensuring that every employee has the right tools for their needs.
We have made available three different presets:
Preset 1: Basic Button
With this preset, the user connects via the ClickShare Button while the ClickShare Desktop App interface is not visible; it runs entirely in the background, unless the user deliberately searches and accesses it.
Supported capabilities
Users can:
- share their desktops seamlessly during meetings.
- join video conferences and use room peripherals via the Button
- upon accessing the Desktop App, users can screen cast their desktop or specific windows, enhancing the flexibility of screen sharing.
Preset 2: Smart Button
This option operates similarly to the Preset 1 but with the addition of Smart Meeting Flows, (our intent-based features for a better meeting flow) which guide users through the meeting process, making hybrid meetings easy to start and stress-free.
Preset 3: Smart App
This preset offers the full App Experience, no ClickShare Button required (unless you want to, of course)!
Join your video conference, connect to the meeting room equipment thanks to PresentSense and share both local and remote content—via the Desktop App.
Seamless App update
Updates are important, but even more important is the flow of your meeting.
Now you can choose to postpone ClickShare Desktop App updates until after your meeting is finished. This means no more interruptions for immediate restarts while you’re in the middle of presenting or conferencing.
Better control with the LocalView disable option
With this update, you now can enable more privacy and better control over what's shared on the screen with ClickShare!
IT admins can easily disable the local view functionality with a simple toggle switch or checkbox within both the ClickShare web interface and XMS Cloud management platform.
This means users connected to the ClickShare Base Unit will no longer see the shared content on their laptops through the ClickShare App.
Why is this important? Disabling local view prevents the other meeting participants from seeing that shared content on their laptops, reducing the risk of unauthorized screenshots or unwelcome viewing.
We understand that quick and efficient support is crucial when you encounter hurdles.
That's why, with the summer release, we've streamlined the service flow in XMS Cloud to make getting help easier and faster than ever.
Help is now just a few clicks away from multiple places in the platform: the top menu, the specific base unit, a selection of base units or a system event.
Improvements in registration flow
Quick fixes for your registration mishaps
We've all been there: you register a ClickShare base unit and accidentally select the wrong tenant. In the past, this meant the unit got stuck in a waiting list, and there was no way to easily fix your mistake.
This update allows you to remove the base unit from the waiting list or assign it to the correct tenant. No more waiting around for this to be corrected!
Simplified, QR-based registration now also via iOS tablets
At the beginning of this year, we simplified the registration process of ClickShare units by introducing the QR-code based registration. This summer, we are opening it to iOS tablet.
You can now use your iOS tablet to register your ClickShare unit by simply scanning the QR code displayed.
This addition not only expands the compatibility of our registration process but also leverages the convenience of mobile technology to streamline device setup.
Insights from Clickshare-enabled rooms in the Microsoft Teams Pro Management Portal
In February, Barco and ClickShare entered a formal agreement that enables more ease of management for IT managers and better meeting experiences for the end users through its Microsoft integration.
Through this agreement, ClickShare devices enable usage data through Microsoft’s Teams Rooms Pro Management Portal. And with this new release, we are expanding these capacities to the ClickShare Button.
The ClickShare Button now enables Microsoft Teams to collect usage data in Clickshare-powered rooms and organize this data per room in the Teams Rooms Pro Management Portal.
Up to this release, ClickShare Buttons would display in the Portal as one single device, regardless of their number.
Now, each ClickShare Button will be identified in a unique way, be linked to the meeting room it is placed in and be displayed separately in the Pro Portal.
This will offer IT managers richer insights into room and device utilization, occupancy levels, device inventory, and more.
How to update your devices?
ClickShare consists of different components: Base Units, Buttons, Apps and the XMS Cloud management platform. Make sure each component is updated to guarantee the best experience.
- Base Unit firmware can be installed via the auto-update functionality or it can be manually updated via the ClickShare Configurator.
- Buttons update automatically via Wi-Fi.
- ClickShare Desktop App. We recommended manually downloading and installing the latest version to ensure the App automatically updates to future releases. Once installed, an auto-update function will keep the App up to date. Do you want to enable wireless conferencing via the App? Be sure to download the MSI installer.
- iOS and Android App are updated according to your mobile device settings.
- XMS Cloud updates run automatically while XMS Virtual Edge can be updated manually.