Zoom, the video conferencing app that everyone uses, wants to make remote work even easier The company today announced Zoom for Home, a new category of software experiences and hardware devices that support remote work use cases With it comes the first Zoom for Home device, the DTEN ME, which seamlessly connects users to Zoom meetings

As Jeff Smith, head of Zoom Rooms, explained to Tom's Guide, "Our goal is to enable people in all environments to have the best Zoom experience"

The coronavirus outbreak closed offices and forced many to telecommute Smith says, "I think we all recognize that hybrid and remote work is our new normal for who knows how long, but it's a very challenging environment and new to many workers"

Remote work may permanently become the new normal for some workers: in a recent IBM survey, 81% of respondents said they would like to continue working remotely at least some of the time More than half, 61%, want remote work to be their primary way of working

However, Smith noted that many remote workers face limitations with equipment at home

"Telecommuting can be very challenging for people who don't have the technical knowledge to set up a high-performance workstation themselves I often hear from clients, "Is there anything I can send someone to ensure a great collaboration experience at home?"

That's where Zoom for Home and DTEN ME come in The company has been working on home solutions since before the pandemic, and its Zoom for Home software is available for free with all Zoom Meeting licenses, including Basic

For hardware, Zoom has partnered with DTEN to develop a 27-inch device with three built-in wide-angle cameras for high-resolution video, an eight-microphone array for clear audio in meetings and phone calls, interactive screen sharing, whiteboarding, annotation, and ultra-responsive touch for idea generation display, and a 27-inch device The device is ready to use right out of the box It can also be set up to be managed remotely by the IT department through an administrator portal or self-managed by workers

"This is a purpose-built collaboration device It's personalized for the user" You can sync calendars, contacts, and favorites So you can have a speed dial or a set list as well as search the corporate directory"

When DTEN ME is launched, upcoming meetings are displayed on the home screen and can be joined with a single touch You can also create meetings, make phone calls, and use the whiteboard function (which works just like a regular whiteboard, except that you can save it for later use)

"And when I'm away from my desk, I can lock it so my two-year-old doesn't come out and make a call when I'm not there," Smith noted

"All of these things are very important when you're working from home"

And there is more to Zoom for Home Smith and his team are already working on a roadmap of new and additional features Personalization is definitely something we're going to build on" phone features, more advanced phone features for phone power users," he said" Whiteboarding is certainly an area of focus for my team and how we can make it a much more powerful and connected experience"