Tandberg to Yealink: The Evolution of Video Conferencing

 From Tandberg to Yealink: My 15-Year Journey in the Evolution of Video Conferencing

Over the past fifteen years, I had the privilege of building a company that, in total, sold millions USD worth of video conferencing hardware. But more than the numbers, it was the journey—layered with passion, disruption, innovation, and nostalgia—that truly defined an era.

I still remember the early days—Tandberg and Polycom FX units that were as much a marvel of engineering as they were symbols of status. Watching a Tandberg boot up felt like being part of something ahead of its time. Polycom’s VSX and VFX systems, with their elegant simplicity and complex possibilities, gave us a taste of what collaboration could really mean. Back then, the heartbeat of every deployment was the ISDN. Slowly, we shifted to IP-based systems, and RMX bridges became the silent powerhouses connecting boardrooms across continents.

H.323, SIP, immersive Telepresence—it was more than technology; it was a revolution unfolding before our eyes. Then came the cloud: BlueJeans first, a whiff of things to come. Zoom arrived, and everything changed. It was no longer about rooms—it was about people, devices, access. The evolution was relentless, but beautiful.

Among all these transitions, Polycom stands out like a lighthouse from a different time. After Tandberg’s SX20 faded into the legacy books, it was Polycom that carried the torch. From the classic FX to the beloved VSX, and then the iconic HDX series—each product wasn’t just a SKU, it was a chapter in the story. RealPresence was a world of its own.

And who can forget the CX4000 and CX5000—Polycom’s 360-degree conferencing marvels released in 2015? When no one imagined seeing every corner of a room, they brought that imagination to life. They made conferencing human, immersive, real.

Polycom didn't just sell products. They sold belief. They democratized video conferencing. What was once a luxury became a necessity—and we rode that wave. We built livelihoods, teams, reputations. Polycom was the heart of it all. But like all great stories, theirs too met turbulence. Sold and resold, the brand became a shadow of its glorious past. With HP, the soul was lost. Not their fault. Just time moving on.

Then came Logitech—the disruptor with a plan. Their acquisition of Lifesize, one of the most underrated disruptors of its time, was a masterstroke. Lifesize was, in my view, simply ahead of its time—a beautiful victim of its own brilliance. Logitech took their DNA and built magic.

The Logitech Group system was a boardroom killer. An entry-level hero that made high-quality conferencing as easy as plug and play. It was elegant, effective, and most importantly—affordable. Logitech took the wheel, and we all followed.

But one brand kept lurking—quiet, calculated, consistent: Yealink. I remember my first interaction with them in 2014. Their English manuals needed editing, and I helped. Their product looked like a Polycom knockoff. But they listened. They evolved.

Today, Yealink isn’t copying. It’s leading. From disrupting Cisco’s IP phone dominance to redefining video conferencing hardware, they’ve become the silent killer. Their UVC86 auto-tracking camera is stunning. Their Microsoft Teams-certified Meeting Boards are sleek, powerful, and intuitive. The speed of innovation is breathtaking.

In this new world, it’s ironic. The Americans who defined video conferencing are fading. Cisco killed Tandberg but couldn’t save itself. Polycom, once the king, became a memory. Today, the battlefield belongs to a Swiss disruptor—Logitech—and a Chinese innovator—Yealink. The times have changed.

Even the promising NEAT, a Norwegian gem backed by Zoom, will remain niche. Beautiful, yes. But not the mainstream killers Logitech and Yealink have become.

As we walk into a future of AI-powered rooms, voice-enabled collaboration, and boundary-less communication, let’s not forget where it began. Let’s remember the hum of a Tandberg, the glow of a Polycom HDX, the dream of RealPresence, and the magic of Lifesize.

To the pioneers who built the bridges, and to those continuing to reimagine them—thank you.

Here's to the next fifteen years—and to never forgetting the beautiful chaos of how it all began.

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