Internet Four Wheel Drive

We’re going to continue looking at some of the solutions that Record My Research offers to our clients looking to do remote research. This week, the Mushroom Networks Portabella 4000i is on the stand.

More Than Four Wheel Drive

The Portabella is a cellular modem, but saying that is a bit like calling a Acura NSX 4-Motor EV just another car. Sure, it connects to the closest cellular tower, be it 3G or 4G, and delivers internet access, but like the Acura, it uses four independent cellular connections, combines them, manages them intelligently and outputs the fastest and most consistent cellular access available in the area. Like the 4 independent motors in the Acura, to tie down the simile.

Streaming More Than One Camera

Like all of the tech that we’ve discussed, the Portabella is the answer to a problem that we’ve encountered on the road. In this case, it is the unreliable nature of venue internet connections.

No matter what kind of event we are recording, from conferences, mock trials, focus groups or even (comparatively) simple dispositions, some form of network connectivity is required. At the very least, we are sending updates to our home office in Albuquerque and to our clients as to what is going on. Usually, this is also coupled with a video stream of the proceedings.

For a single camera setup, the Live U we discussed in an earlier post, is enough. That has a video encoder and cellular modem in a single package. But it will not work for two or more feeds. That’s where the Portabella comes in, along with a multi-camera video encoder.

Keep in mind, that we store and stream the individual feeds from each camera involved in the event. If we have one focused on the jury box, another on the prosecuting table and a final one on the defendant table, then we send all three out at once. More importantly, multiple live streams for the deliberation rooms. We do not attempt to do a live edit of the feeds; inevitably something gets lost or cut too soon. Streaming everything lets our clients decide what they want to look at when they want to look at it, instantly. In real time and independent from what others are watching on the streams.

Part Of The Kit

We bring the Portabella along on any trip that involves multiple cameras. It sits in our protective cases next to a multi-camera streaming video encoder. If our client isn’t interested in a steaming feed or the location internet connection is good, then we don’t fire it up. But it is a back up that we’ve learned we need.