NewTek has added features to its NewTek Connect Spark converters and NewTek NDI PTZ camera that can be added to existing devices via a software upgrade.
Connect Spark converts SDI and HDMI signals into NDI sources to be shared over a standard Ethernet networks either wired or wirelessly. The NewTek PTZ NDI camera delivers video, audio, tally, PTZ control, and power over one Ethernet cable. Both devices work existing software applications that support NDI including CombiTech VidBlaster, Livestream Studio, OBS, Splitmedia Labs XSplit, Streamstar, StudioCoast vMix, Telestream Gameshow, Telestream Wirecast and NewTek TriCaster. NewTek Connect Spark delivers video to desktop video applications including Google Hangouts, GoToMeeting, Skype, Skype for Business, WebEx and Zoom.
Multi-camera virtual PTZ capability, multicast support, ability to connect across networks, LTC time code support and improved audio have been added to Connect Spark. Virtual PTZ capability allows users to determine areas of interest within the entire video frame, zoom in, save those areas as presets, and then transition between them smoothly like a PTZ camera. It is suitable for live video game streamers, corporate, educational and individual content creators. Users can also assign the same source to multiple switcher inputs with different views to switch between virtual cameras without using extra network bandwidth for each view. This functionality works with all NDI applications that support PTZ without any change. The NewTek PTZ NDI camera is updated with multicast support and enhanced picture quality.
Other features include multicast mode to allow one Connect Spark NDI source to be viewed by many destinations without setting up multiple point-to-point connections. Users can turn on multicast mode via the Connect Spark’s configuration web page. It is also now possible to find Connect Spark devices on other networks via IP address and add them to the list of visible sources using NDI Access Manager, an application available from NewTek. Additionally, Connect Spark now supports time code stamps on the video frames via LTC time code connected to Connect Spark’s audio input with automatic detection of all settings. Any NDI-enabled application can then access the time code information to enable precision syncing of multiple NDI streams.
Connect Spark is also a wireless video recorder. It supports either a Micro SD card or will record to a USB drive connected to one of the USB ports. This gives users the ability to ISO-record all of their cameras in a production for fixes in post or to provide backups for other recordings.