Archive for category: Podcast

On this episode of LED Talk, host Tyler Kern was joined by Jon Lewis, Lead Consultant and Sales Representative at PixelFLEX, and Chris Clark, Director of Media, Southside Baptist Church to discuss the ins and outs of LED in the house of worship.

Clark, for context, described why his Southside Baptist Church decided to move their screens to LEDs, and what the advantages have been. One advantage: LEDs do not have the same glare issues Southside’s old monitors did, which make the screens easier to view when stage lights are on during services.

Lewis described the process PixelFlex goes through when working with churches on their needs.
“Finding out how they are currently exporting video and how they are currently putting content together,” Lewis said, are key findings PixelFLEX goes through with churches on needs assessment. “How big a screen do you need, how are you going to push content, and how intricate can you get,” are all important considerations.

Clark detailed his fantastic experience working with Lewis and PixelFLEX on Southside’s needs.
“Start to finish the whole process and working with John and PixelFLEX was as good as it could possibly be,” he said.

A key point, Clark mentioned, is his church budgeted out their needs and then worked with Lewis and PixelFLEX on the project and timing. For Lewis, his suggestion is houses of worship should start their conversations prior to when they want to make their purchase, so the deliverables are ready when they need them.
Lewis provided examples throughout the discussion of various uses for LED in churches, and the types of request he and his team receive. In the end, Clark’s satisfaction with the move to LED, left him with nothing but praise, and suggested other houses of worship should look into making the switch.

Digital LED displays are transforming corporate workspaces, creating a positive ripple effect that disseminates throughout the companies workforce and into its clientele. “Digital is now,” said David Venus, CMO of PixelFLEX. On this episode of LEDTalk, host Tyler Kern sat down with Venus & guest Jeff Peden, director of marketing at Dalton Agency, to discuss how new video display technology elevates the corporate space.

Gone are the days of slapping a big-screen TV on the wall and calling it audiovisual technology. Today, companies are looking to stand out from the crowd by displaying their unique brand identity in new ways. One way to exhibit company values, missions, and workflow is by using innovative new LED screens to create a visionary data center, drawing in clients and drawing together employees.

Venus and Peden encourage companies to “think outside the rectangle.” That is, think beyond a TV screen and dream up an immersive AV experience. PixelFLEX’s strategy for designing and implementing LED technology in a workspace is to hone in on content.

By highlighting a company’s intention and purpose, an AV space can feel purposeful and intuitive, serving to please both client and employee. Though AV digital technology is “on-trend,” Peden asserted that this new and exciting trend is “not going away any time soon.”

As the overall marketplace shifts toward the experiential, corporate facilities will follow suit, crafting their own AV experience that elevates their brand and sets them apart on the global stage.

On today’s episode of PixelFLEX’s LEDTalk , Tony Green, VP of Business Development for Snap Install, and David Venus, Chief Marketing Officer for PixelFLEX, give insight on the direction of the display industry and the roadblocks that are making the market struggle. The two also dive into how pertinent the choices are that companies make regarding their digital signage, and how not only the tech but the content is what makes digital displays succeed.

Proper training of installers and integrators is very important; both Venus and Green stress that understanding the ins and outs of the product beyond the install is crucial, and the bare minimum expectation from clients. Too many times have they seen display deals go south because the integrators don’t know the technology like the back of their hand. Ideally, situations that arise on job sites are handled without the need to call tech support. The added advantage is that customers get the peace of mind that they are going to have a product that supports their need.

LED tile design is another big factor in the success of a company’s digital signage, but each installation brings new unique challenges. “LED gives so much creative freedom, at times, you can find yourself in a predicament of how you are going to effectively mount your display to your surface,” Venus said.

It is these types of potential issues that, if aware of at the outset, are better dealt with when they arise. The biggest takeaway is it that it’s all about service and communication. Green and Venus recommend being upfront with the customer from the beginning and for partner companies to be in communication with the customer, and each other, so that the proper result of technology, application and content is accomplished.

The LED industry is currently a $5 billion worldwide industry, with the Americas region recently crossing the $1 billion mark. With this much money being invested into displays, how does that relate to higher quality and increased price points? Are we still buying things from China, or is it possible to manufacture these components in the United States? How do we find the right balance, both in terms of getting the components we need at the correct quality, while still meeting the customer’s needs and price points?

On today’s LEDTalk, we sit down with Jon Lewis, director of operations for PixelFLEX, for a discussion about the LED industry as a whole. To Lewis, this is a “good time to be in LED” because of increased quality options; it is no longer “the wild wild west” of LED where people were figuring things out just a few years ago.

For starters, Lewis points out that although higher density pixel pitch products are more available and stable, they are not for everyone.

“If you’re trying to put church worship lyrics on a 16 foot screen, and the audience is 45 feet away, you don’t need a 1.5 resolution at 4K,” Lewis said.

He compares display overkill to sitting at the front row of an IMAX theatre, it just gets to a point where peripheral vision is unusable. It is just too much. Lewis points out that by triangulating the client’s needs (screen size, how far away the audience is, and the type of content) on the first phone call, a lot of those issues can be stopped. He also addresses the Chinese marketplaces, specifically sites like AliBaba, and the difference between ordering from U.S.-based versus Chinese companies.

At the end of the day, “97 percent of components are produced in China”, so most of the time people are receiving Chinese components, which can lead to communication problems, as well as time zone issues when it comes to warranty repairs.

Lewis speaks more about the cultural difference, as well as his recent trip to China, and some compliance issues as well, all on today’s LEDTalk.