Logitech Tap IP in Graphite

This was the missing piece to get a Logitech Rally Bar Mini working flawlessly with Google Meet via CollabOS. It's a nice to have, but necessary for this configuration and well worth it to level up the user experience.

This device is super slick with an attractive and easy to understand user interface. We love how we don’t even need to use a computer for our conference calls anymore.This device integrates seamlessly with our Logitech rally kit and is a fancy addition to its setup that truly frees us from dragging extra hardware into the conference room.The whole kit is fast, reliable, looks great, and is easy to use. Responsiveness and sound/mic quality is excellent.Keep in mind, however, that if you want to connect it to your rally plus setup, you’ll need a NUC as well. And you can’t just buy any NUC; you need one provisioned with MS Teams Rooms. I searched for ages to get instructions on doing that myself and finally had to give up, return this unit, and buy another one that came with a NUC that had been preconfigured.

Teams has not gotten to the point of being as user friendly as other like-minded selections like Google Meet or Zoom. Instead of offering an application-based solution, where you can apply it to a workstation or a tablet of your choosing, Teams only allows very specific pieces of hardware to be used with Teams Rooms. Meaning the setup of a board room or specific meeting room in your company. Not only do they find ways to charge you for a few different licenses for ONE solution, but they then REQUIRE you to buy into their specifically selected hardware options for a Teams room. One of them, oddly, is this terrible device. The Tap IP was RECENTLY authorized by Microsoft and Teams to be able to use for Teams rooms....but guess what? IT DOESN'T WORK! Not unless you specifically buy the entire package issued specifically from Logitech. So if you want to use a Tap IP with one of the other solutions, NOPE it won't work. Even if it is all authorized and approved hardware.So the question is why. Well, here's why: Although similar products LIKE ZOOM allow you to open an app added to a device and sign into it, thereby sycing with another piece of hardware like a computer or tablet with the same login, the TAP IP DOESN'T! Nope, it will make you think you can, but it CAN'T! How it works is that it uses it's own OS called CollabOS which you HAVE to sign into and you HAVE to have a PC with the SAME OS or else this tap ip will NOT work no matter what you do! To make something like this is ONLY to get your money. Because while this price point of $600 is better than the wired Tap Touch which is over $1000, it will ONLY work with a CollabOS PC, and only if that device is one of many 2 options in the entire world that are authenticated and approved by Teams.So, in closing, I know your business wants you to setup Teams Rooms, why else would you be looking at this. Our business wanted us to convert perfectly working Zoom Rooms into Teams rooms simply because it's a new shiny thing. But please know that Microsoft is trying to gauge as much money from you as possible, and if you want this solution to work, you will need to pay $3k - $10k per Teams Room if you want to use it. Not including all the licensing.I know you won't be able to say no to your Corporate higher-ups, but do try to dissuade them from using this until Microsoft allows this setup in a simpler way. This is an awful solution that will be outdated in less than a year, and I encourage anyone not to buy into any of this teams room stuff. It is a poorly planned (but monetarily brilliant) solution from microsoft.