HC&G Magazine
June 2004 Issue
 

Low cost videoconferencing has been a long-held dream of many, especially Hamptonites looking to extend their weekend stays out east while staying in touch with offices back in New York City. To date, however, most home videoconferencing systems have either been too expensive or not technologically advanced enough to merit serious attention. (One over hyped system from a few years ago promised "crystal clear" pictures, when noted in tiny print that it broadcast at only six to eight frames a second-versus the standard 30 frames a second of broadcast TV- making even the calmest individual appear rather herky-jerky.) , A small start-up company hopes to change that. TeleFone TV Network, based in Manhattan, has developed a product called TeVue that offers videoconferencing using existing TVs or computer monitors at a relatively minimal cost. Here's how it works: a small camera provided by TeVue attaches to your monitor and sends full-frame video over the Internet to an office or home that's also equipped with the TeVue system. (A high-speed Internet connection is required to use the service, but no computer is necessary.) A picture-in-picture feature allows you to see yourself while you're talking, as well as the party you're talking to. The cost: $49.95 per month for each location set up with TeVue. , "It's like being there with the other person.  Everybody who sees it finds reasons why they want to use it," says Todd Klein, CEO of TeleFone TV Network. "In the past, products like this have been sold by large corporations to communicate internally with each other, and the cost was justified by how much plane fare can be saved. Now, the cost can be justified by how much taxi fare is saved not going across town for a meeting:  Although Klein sees business users as likely early adopters of his system (it can interface with corporate systems running on the H323 networking standard), TeVue is designed to be simple enough for home use. "Someone might want to use it to call up their dog and keep him company while they're away from their apartment," he says. Additional user-friendly features include popping up the phone number of incoming callers on the TV screen, and a privacy button so that you can be heard but not seen.  Klein says the company has just started publicizing TeVue; its on display in the kitchen of the HC&G Idea House (ABOVE) in Water Mill. "It's going to change the world in the next five years”, Klein says.  And while that may be a bit of an overstatement, its definitely worth a look.

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