Barco CX30 Alternative for Medium to Large Video Conference Rooms

  • BenQ
  • 2023-06-06
Barco ClickShare CX30 VS. BenQ InstaShow VS20






There are several leading brands and models for wireless video conferencing solutions and BYOM, or bring your own meetings. They include Barco ClickShare CX30, BenQ InstaShow® VS20, and Mersive Solstice Pod Gen 3. All of them require the use of the Logitech MeetUp All-in-One Video Conference Device and seemingly offer the same benefits. That is, all of them deliver the following:









Wireless access and setup:



You can connect your laptop to video conferencing devices without the hassle and limits of wires and cables thanks to receivers that plug into a USB-A port on your wireless video conferencing solution. 








Meeting equity:


Remote and local attendees get the same chance to participate in video conferences.









Laptop app:



Each brand offers an app you can download to your laptop and use to mirror your device for meeting participants to view.







In small meeting rooms, the aforementioned brands perform almost identically. However, it’s in medium to large video conference rooms that differences emerge. Notably, the InstaShow® VS20 has audiovisual capabilities that are better suited to big meetings, with clearer visuals and sound.  







In this article, we’ll be focusing on a comparison between Barco ClickShare CX30 and BenQ InstaShow® VS20 in medium and large video conference rooms, with both using the Logitech MeetUp all-in-one video conference device. We will explore the differences between them and how they compare in the main areas of concern for businesses and organisations that increasingly depend on hybrid video conferencing. 

Plug and Play Convenience

 

In the modern era, everyone values efficiency and hassle-free meetings. The plug-and-play devices allow you to share your screen in no time, providing full BYOD experience.      







Barco ClickShare CX-30

You would need to install additional software in order to use the plug and play feature or extended screen with ClickShare CX30.





BenQ InstaShow® VS20

InstaShow® VS20 is a plug-and-play device, so all you need to do is to simply plug in the button and start sharing your screen. Additionally, with the native extended screen, you can confidently present while seeing your notes on the laptop.

 

BYOD compatibility

 

Barco ClickShare CX30

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

 

Plug and play

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V

 

Native extended screen

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V

 

Router based Wifi

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V

 

Hardware base

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V (Computer resource free)

Visual Quality on Local Meeting Room Screen







In bigger conference rooms, screen visibility from seats located further away makes a big difference, especially when there are many local participants. 

Barco ClickShare CX-30


Each Barco ClickShare CX30 button works in 1080p with upscaling to 4K.



BenQ InstaShow® VS20

BenQ’s InstaShow® VS20 buttons work in native 4K ultra HD at all times, with no upscaling guesswork. For screen mirroring and wireless presentations you get crisp 4K that’s much clearer and more appealing than the upscaled 1080p of the CX30. Also, InstaShow® VS20 wireless bandwidth support delivers high quality 4K transmission with smooth and stable audiovisual quality.


Input and output resolutions

 

Barco ClickShare CX30

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

 

Video output

Barco ClickShare CX30

Upscaled 4K at 30fps

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Native 4K at 60fps

 

Button input

Barco ClickShare CX30

1080p at 60fps

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Native 4K at 30fps

Button Connectivity



In Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and Bring Your Own Meeting (BYOM), laptops have USB-C connectors and many rely on HDMI.

Barco ClickShare CX-30











Barco’s ClickShare CX30 limits options by only natively connecting to USB-C. If you want to connect a different version of USB or HDMI, an additional adapter is needed, complicating matters if you don’t have switches handy. This could really bring a video conference to a halt if not addressed quickly. 

BenQ InstaShow® VS20


InstaShow® VS20 offers much more universal connectivity out of the box. Buttons come with USB-C by default, and the cable can be replaced with HDMI for maximum convenience. So regardless of which cable you need, VS20 can provide you with the most-suited connectivity.

 

USB-C and HDMI Switchable Interface

USB-C and HDMI Switchable Interface

Expandable Wireless Microphone System






Ideally, all local participants at a video conference should be heard clearly by every attendee, regardless of where they’re seated. This requires good microphone quality, and support for wireless conference microphones is obviously important, because it means participants don’t need to move around the room in order to speak. 

Barco ClickShare CX-30





The Barco ClickShare CX30 relies entirely on the microphone that comes with the Logitech MeetUp platform, and that one has a range of just 4 metres. Because ClickShare CX30 buttons do not have microphones, beyond the MeetUp’s microphone range attendees won’t be heard clearly, or may not be audible at all. To increase the range, you’re expected to purchase and set up additional microphones.

BenQ InstaShow® VS20




The BenQ InstaShow® VS20 system also works with the Logitech MeetUp microphone, but adds to it greatly. Each InstaShow® VS20 button includes its own wireless omnidirectional microphone. The InstaShow® VS20 button is what you connect to your laptop, so it’s right there with you where you sit. You don’t have to be within 4 metres. Each InstaShow® VS20 transmitter (InstaShow® Button) is equipped with an omnidirectional microphone able to pick up voices within 1.5 metres, so you have freedom of movement around the InstaShow® button microphone itself. This solution is also more cost efficient because you get the wireless microphone in the box.


Furthermore, InstaShow® VS20 expandable wireless conference microphone technology supports up to 32 paired microphones, but beyond that, the InstaShow® VS20 button microphone works at up to 20 metres away. That makes for a fairly large video conference with no complex setup or compatibility issues.



That’s immense flexibility compared to Barco’s CX30, which depends exclusively on the microphone that’s inside the Logitech MeetUp system. Effectively, that makes CX30 a huddle space platform unless you purchase a host of wireless microphones at great cost.

Microphone coverage

 

Barco ClickShare CX30

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

 

All-in-one Video Conference Device

Barco ClickShare CX30

Logitech MeetUp

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Logitech MeetUp

 

Logitech MeetUp microphone

Barco ClickShare CX30

4m

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

4m 

 

BYOM Built-in Microphone

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

1.5m/button up to 32 receiver and transmitter buttons with an effective 20m range

You get much wider coverage!

BenQ InstaShow® VS20 expandable wireless microphone system:

InstaShow VS20: 1.5m/button up to 32 receiver and transmitter buttons with effective 20M range

Conclusion: Same Starting Point, Far Bigger Reach








As we’ve seen, while Barco ClickShare and BenQ InstaShow® VS20 seem to be very similar on the surface of things, they’re quite different. Thanks to superior visual fidelity, more convenient connectivity, and better microphone coverage, InstaShow® VS20 offers a better and more comprehensive platform for BYOM video conferences in medium and large rooms. The InstaShow® VS20 ecosystem isn’t just more capable, it’s also more cost efficient and simple to operate, saving you time and money in the immediate and long term, all while costing significantly less than the main competition. 



Here’s an overall comparison table: 

Features

Barco ClickShare CX30

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Features

Plug and play

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V

Features

Native extended screen

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V

Features

Router based Wifi

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Features

Hardware base

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V (Computer resource free)

Features

Video output

Barco ClickShare CX30

4K at 30fps

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Native 4K at 60fps

Features

Button input

Barco ClickShare CX30

1080p at 60fps

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

Native 4k at 30fps

Features

Button connectivity

Barco ClickShare CX30

USB-C

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

USB-C & HDMI

Features

Switchable interface

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

V

Features

BYOM built-in microphone

Barco ClickShare CX30

X

BenQ InstaShow® VS20

1.5m/button up to 32 receiver and transmitter buttons with an effective 20m range