It was back in 1999 when Analog Way first debuted its seamless switching technology with the introduction of the Graphic Switcher at the NAB. Recognized by the professional audio/video industry as a groundbreaking development, the Paris-based company has cultivated a solid reputation for producing quality switchers, scalers, computer and video interfaces, DAs and custom cables that can be found in boardrooms, control rooms, houses of worship, healthcare facilities, broadcasting studios and government institutions across the globe.
Analog Way's latest product line, the iX Series, is comprised of three devices-the CentriX, NatiX and EventiX-the latter facilitates horizontal and vertical soft edge-blending presentations. "Clients have become more demanding," observed Paul Schoukroun, the company's vice president of sales and marketing. "For inputs, for example, there is no standard; there is an entire range of formats for computers or video systems that exist now in our system that didn't before. In addition to that, we wanted to introduce a soft edge-blending solution that was easier to use."
Schoukroun noted that the main challenge behind the development of the iX Series was offering new features while making it simple to operate. "Our product is designed to feed video projectors, and several years ago the vast majority of video projectors were XGA. Now, it's SXGA, which offers higher frequency, higher definition and higher quality," he said.
Additionally, the Analog Way product development team was focused on price. This goal, Schoukroun said, was reflective of the difference between the presentation market-for which the EventiX was created-and the installation world, for which the CentriX was intended. "When you are a rental and staging company, cost is important, but they are buying a system that they are going to rent, so their main job is to find customers that want to rent it," he said. "The installation world is completely different: When you are installing a new system, it's more difficult to achieve that return on investment quickly."
Included in that affordable purchase price is the ability to upgrade an Analog Way Centrix, Natix and EventiX units via the internet.
