The camera decides whether remote participants feel part of a meeting or feel like they are watching it through a window. Nearity makes USB conference cameras and audio devices that plug into a room PC or a laptop and work with any meeting platform – Teams, Zoom, 3CX, Google Meet – without a proprietary room system. This article explains the range, what the features do and how to match a camera to a room.
The camera range
- Huddle-room cameras – a wide-angle 4K camera with a built-in microphone array, for rooms of two to six people. Sits on the display and needs one USB cable.
- Meeting-room cameras – 4K with auto-framing and speaker tracking, for rooms of six to twelve, paired with a separate speakerphone or soundbar.
- PTZ cameras – pan, tilt and optical zoom for boardrooms, training rooms and lecture halls, with presets and tracking. Covered in a separate article.
- All-in-one video bars – camera, microphones and speakers in one unit for rooms that need the simplest possible installation.
The features that matter
Field of view. A small room needs a wide lens (110 to 120 degrees) so that everyone at the table is in frame. A large room needs a narrower lens with zoom so that the far end is not tiny.
Auto-framing. The camera detects the people in the room and crops the picture to include them, adjusting as people join or leave. It is the feature that makes a fixed camera look professional.
Speaker tracking. Using the microphone array, the camera frames whoever is speaking. Valuable in larger rooms; unnecessary in a huddle room.
Resolution and low light. 4K sensors give headroom for cropping; good low-light performance matters in rooms with dimmed lighting for presentations.
Connectivity. USB (UVC standard) means the camera works with any platform and any PC without drivers. Some models add HDMI output for a display.
Matching camera to room
| Room | People | Camera | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phone booth / pod | 1-2 | Laptop webcam or compact USB camera | Headset or laptop |
| Huddle room | 2-6 | Wide-angle 4K with built-in mics | Built-in or a USB speakerphone |
| Meeting room | 6-12 | 4K with auto-framing and tracking | Speakerphone or soundbar; second mic for long tables |
| Boardroom / training | 12+ | PTZ with presets | Ceiling mics or multiple speakerphones, DSP |
Audio is half the room
Remote participants forgive a mediocre picture and do not forgive bad audio. Pair the camera with a speakerphone that has echo cancellation and noise suppression, sized to the table; daisy-chain a second unit for long tables. Nearity’s speakerphones and soundbars are designed to pair with its cameras, and Zen supplies both.
Installation notes
Mount the camera at eye level, above or below the display, centred. Use a powered USB extension or an active cable if the PC is more than three metres away. Set the room PC to boot to the meeting platform, and lock the camera and microphone as the default devices so that the next user does not have to find them. Test from the far end.
Nearity through Zen
Zen Interactive Technologies distributes Nearity in the UAE and GCC, with cameras, speakerphones, soundbars and headsets in stock in Dubai. We can specify a room kit by room size and platform and supply it with the display and mounts. See the Nearity page.