Getting started with digital signage should be as easy as possible, but with so many different types of screens & media players, it’s hard to know where to start. That’s why we’ve written a short guide on our recommendations, based on our software and supported features!
It’s important to note is that every digital signage CMS is different, and as such, requires different types of hardware. We’ve endeavoured to make digital signage accessible for as many people as possible, but minimum (and recommended) requirements still exist!
Why Hardware Specifications Matter
Digital signage is for everyone, but not everybody has a technical/IT background, so they might not understand why hardware specifications are important to understand. That’s totally understandable, and it’s why we’ve written this handy guide!
There are two types of hardware specifications (specs), the minimum specs, and the recommended specs. To put it simply, the minimum specs are the absolute base-level equipment that is needed to get content on the screen, and recommended specs are what is suggested to get access to all features.
There are four core reasons why understanding hardware specs (and their differences) are important:
By ensuring you get the correct hardware, the CMS guarantees that the software will run as expected and display content. In some cases, you may only need the minimum specified hardware to display your content.
Avoid running into any bugs or unintended behaviour. Software, including Doohly, is designed to run on specific hardware. Using untested hardware will potentially result in users experiencing these bugs and unintended behaviour.
Ensure you get the experience you want and expect - you likely started using a piece of software for a specific purpose/feature, and it’s important to make sure the hardware you’re buying is able to support it!
Because buying hardware can be expensive and time-consuming - the last thing anyone wants is to purchase incorrect hardware and have to go through a refund process. Or worse, spending more time and money installing hardware that turns out to be unsupported that can’t be refunded/returned.
Now that we understand a bit more about the general reasoning behind minimum and recommended specs, let’s dive into Doohly specific hardware recommendations.
Doohly Minimum Specs
Windows/Linux:
Component | Recommendation |
Operating System | Windows 10/Ubuntu 20.04.0 |
RAM | 4GB |
Storage | 32GB |
CPU | Intel Atom |
Internet Connection | Wi-Fi |
Android:
Component | Recommendation |
Operating System | Android 7.1.2 |
RAM | 4GB |
Storage | 32GB |
CPU | Rockchip RK3288 |
Internet Connection | Wi-Fi |
Doohly Recommended Specs
Windows/Linux:
Component | Recommendation |
Operating System | Windows 10/Ubuntu 20.04.0 |
RAM | 8GB |
Storage | 128GB |
CPU | Intel Core i5 |
Internet Connection | Dedicated Ethernet/Mobile Data |
Android:
Component | Recommendation |
Operating System | Android `12 |
RAM | 8GB |
Storage | 128GB |
CPU | Rockchip RK3588 |
Internet Connection | Dedicated Ethernet/Mobile Data |
Differences In Performance
When it comes to the difference in performance between the minimum and recommended specs, there are a few things to keep an eye out for.
Your average viewer is going to notice when videos slow down, audio is out of sync, and videos “feel” wrong. This is not ideal and can negatively impact the high-quality branding appeal of digital signage.
That’s just the audience/viewer side, as a user you will notice some differences in performance too. The biggest is access to all the features of the software. Media players below the minimum specifications won’t be able to make use of things like programmatic advertising or Dynamic Content Optimisation (DCO/HTML packages).
It’s also worth noting that if you try to force media players to perform these tasks, the devices will be overworked, deteriorate, and break down a lot quicker.
If you’re still wondering, are the differences in the performance that noticeable to the average viewer, the answer is yes!
What About Screens/Displays?
Display/screen recommendations aren’t as straightforward as other hardware recommendations, especially for digital signage. Every environment and type of digital signage installation will have different requirements.
That’s why we’re not going to give a specific make and model recommendation, but what we can do is help you understand what to look for. Large-scale sites, like digital roadside billboards, are their own domain, and we won’t be commenting on them here either.
This section is purely for small-scale installations such as retail, shopping centres and hospitality.
When choosing a digital signage screen/display, there are a few key features/components to keep in mind: resolution, bitrate and screen type (LCD, LED) are probably the most important to consider.
These things are important to consider as they will impact your media player buying decision. For example, if you want to play super high-quality 4K, high bitrate content, you’ll need to get a media player capable of it. The opposite is true as well, if you plan on only showing 1080p images, there is no need to waste money on a display with all the bells and whistles.
Hardware Acceleration
Hardware acceleration is an included feature of the Doohly CMS and is only available on Windows & Linux media players. What is hardware acceleration though?
It’s a feature that allows the media player to offload and speed up specific tasks (computations) that would otherwise be performed by the software running on a general-purpose CPU - dedicating more resources to displaying digital signage content.
By enabling hardware acceleration, things like choppy/laggy videos and slow-changing creatives can be reduced. This is generally recommended for users who are using devices that have integrated graphics cards.
Hardware acceleration doesn’t always have the desired effect as not all media players support it. It’s still a great option to try if you do run into playback issues, especially if using 4K content or high bitrate content.
Final Notes
Digital signage encapsulates a large range of environments, such as roadside billboards, retail shopping centres, and hospitality businesses. This means that there unfortunately isn’t a one-size fits all recommendation for screens or devices.
This guide is intended to help you get started on the right track with device and screen selection. It is recommended that you do some of your own research and take your environment and situation into account when purchasing hardware and screens.
In saying all of the above, we have done our best to develop our CMS solution for as many devices as possible.
Interested in reading more about how to get started in the DOOH industry? Be sure to check out our guide.
If you’re interested in trying out Doohly, reach out to our sales team for more information on getting started!
