Hardware & Compatibility

Yes. In many cases, your existing television can be used for digital signage.

If your TV runs Android TV, you can simply install the Imagine Player and connect it to your account. If it doesn't, an affordable Android media player can easily transform almost any TV into a fully managed digital signage display.

While consumer TVs are perfectly suitable for many businesses, organisations displaying content for long hours every day should consider commercial displays, which are specifically designed for continuous operation.

If you're unsure whether your existing TV is compatible, our team is happy to advise you before you make any purchases.

Although they may look similar, commercial displays are designed specifically for business use.

Consumer televisions are built for a few hours of viewing each day, whereas commercial displays are engineered to operate for 16, 18 or even 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Commercial displays typically offer:

• Longer operating life
• Higher reliability
• Brighter panels
• Better heat management
• Landscape and portrait installation
• Professional warranties
• Integrated scheduling features
• Slimmer bezels
• Higher quality components

For businesses where the screen is business-critical, commercial displays provide a worthwhile long-term investment.

Imagine supports a wide variety of Android-powered devices.

These include:

• Android TVs
• Android media players
• Android commercial displays
• Android tablets (for selected applications)

We recommend modern Android devices that provide sufficient processing power for smooth video playback and future software updates.

If you're purchasing new hardware, we'll gladly recommend tested devices that deliver the best performance.

Yes.

Imagine has been designed to work exceptionally well with Android TV.

Once the Imagine Player has been installed, your television connects securely to your online account and can be managed remotely like any other digital signage display.

Android TV offers an affordable and simple entry point for many businesses looking to deploy digital signage.

Absolutely.

Android media players remain one of the most popular digital signage solutions because they're cost-effective, powerful and easy to replace if required.

They also allow businesses to upgrade existing televisions without replacing the entire display.

Imagine works seamlessly with supported Android media players, giving you enterprise-level digital signage at an affordable price.

Yes.

Imagine is fully compatible with Windows-based media players and mini PCs.

Windows is often chosen where businesses require:

• High-resolution video playback
• Interactive applications
• Specialist software
• Large video walls
• Advanced processing power

Our Windows Player provides the same remote management capabilities as our Android platform.

Yes.

Imagine supports LG webOS commercial displays, allowing businesses to eliminate the need for an external media player.

The Imagine Player runs directly on supported LG commercial screens, simplifying installation while reducing hardware costs and cable clutter.

This creates a clean, reliable and professional installation.

Imagine can integrate with Samsung commercial display solutions depending on the operating system and deployment requirements.

Because Samsung offers several different digital signage platforms, we recommend contacting our team so we can advise the most suitable solution for your particular hardware.

Some Fire TV devices can be used for digital signage, although they are generally designed for home entertainment rather than commercial environments.

For long-term reliability, remote management and ongoing support, we typically recommend Android-based commercial hardware that has been thoroughly tested with Imagine.

Yes.

Tablets are ideal for:

• Reception welcome screens
• Product catalogues
• Visitor registration
• Room booking displays
• Interactive kiosks
• Small promotional displays

Imagine supports tablet deployments where appropriate, making them an excellent option for businesses with limited space.

Yes, but probably less than you think.

The internet is used to:

• Download new content
• Receive schedules
• Report screen health
• Synchronise with your account
• Send screenshots and monitoring information

Once media has been downloaded, it is stored locally on the player.

This means your screen continues playing even if your internet connection is temporarily unavailable.

Digital signage generally requires very little bandwidth.

For most businesses, a standard broadband connection is more than sufficient.

The amount of data used depends largely on how often content changes and the size of the files being uploaded.

Once content has been downloaded, very little ongoing bandwidth is required.

One of the biggest misconceptions about cloud-based digital signage is that screens immediately stop working if the internet connection is lost.

Fortunately, that's not how Imagine works.

Every piece of scheduled content is stored locally on the player.

If the internet connection drops, the screen simply continues playing the downloaded content exactly as scheduled.

When the connection returns, the player automatically checks for updates and downloads any new content that has been published.

Absolutely.

Whether your screens are located in one office, across South Africa or around the world, they all appear within the same management dashboard.

You can organise displays by:

• Region
• Country
• Store
• Branch
• Department
• Franchise group
• Client
• Custom groups

This makes managing large digital signage networks simple and highly scalable.

No.

Imagine has been designed to scale with your business.

Whether you're operating one reception screen or thousands of displays across multiple countries, the platform grows with you.

Many enterprise customers manage hundreds of screens from a single account without compromising performance.

Yes.

Imagine fully supports both portrait and landscape displays.

Many retailers choose portrait screens for window displays and wayfinding, while landscape remains the preferred orientation for menu boards, promotional displays and corporate communications.

You can even mix portrait and landscape screens within the same account.

Yes.

Many commercial displays support automatic power scheduling.

This allows screens to switch on before opening time and switch off after trading hours without requiring staff intervention.

Power scheduling helps reduce electricity costs while extending the lifespan of your displays.

The right screen size depends on where it will be installed and how far away people will be viewing it.

As a general guide:

• 32–43 inches – Reception areas, offices and smaller retail spaces
• 49–55 inches – Retail stores, restaurants and waiting areas
• 65–75 inches – Large entrances, showrooms and conference spaces
• 86 inches and above – High-impact feature displays and shopping centers

If you are unsure which size is best, our team can help with real-life renders and recommend the ideal display based on your environment, viewing distance and budget.

Yes.

Imagine offers a complete end-to-end digital signage solution.

In addition to our software platform, we can supply:

• Commercial displays
• Android media players
• Professional mounting brackets
• Mobile display stands
• Outdoor displays
• LED displays
• Interactive touchscreens
• Installation services
• Network configuration
• Ongoing support

This means you have a single partner managing your entire digital signage project from planning and installation through to long-term support.

Every business is different.

A coffee shop has very different requirements to a shopping centre, corporate office or national retail chain.

Rather than recommending the same hardware to everyone, we take the time to understand your objectives, environment, operating hours and budget before suggesting the most suitable solution.

Our goal is to recommend hardware that provides the best long-term value, reliability and performance for your specific application—not simply the most expensive option.