Equipping a modern meeting room

When we fitted out the 2nd Space rooms, we asked the same question at every decision: what is it that actually derails a meeting? The answers were surprisingly down to earth — meetings do not fail for want of the latest conference system, they fail over a missing HDMI cable, stuttering Wi-Fi, an uncomfortable chair and stuffy air. In this article we go through what really counts as basic equipment in a meeting room today, what is a pleasant extra, and what to look out for whether you are fitting out your own office or choosing a room to hire.

The screen: the centre of the room

A large, clearly visible screen is no longer an extra; it is a basic requirement. In practice a 55-inch screen is the ideal size for rooms of four to six people: big enough for presentations, for going through spreadsheets together and for video calls, and still readable from the far end of the room.

Simple connection matters just as much. An HDMI cable left ready to hand, which puts any laptop on screen within seconds, is worth more in practice than the most expensive conference system that needs installing and configuring. Wireless solutions look impressive, but they depend on the manufacturer and are prone to failure — a cable always works, with every machine. That is why each of our three rooms has a 55-inch TV with an HDMI cable left ready.

Internet that is stable, and genuinely fast

In the age of hybrid meetings, reliable internet is a room's most critical piece of infrastructure. And what counts here is not the bandwidth promised on paper, but whether the connection stays smooth with several laptops, several video calls and a screen share all running at once. All our rooms have Wi-Fi running at 1000 Mbps, free of charge — comfortably enough for several simultaneous video conferences.

Acoustics and quiet: the equipment you cannot see

Not even the best microphone helps in an echoing room full of traffic noise. A good meeting room does two things at once: no distracting noise gets in from outside, and no confidential conversation gets out. You can plan for this deliberately when fitting a room out — fabrics, curtains and upholstered furniture improve the acoustics considerably.

This was a priority when we chose our rooms: all three look onto the street and are bathed in natural light — yet they are surprisingly quiet. In the New York room, for instance, double curtains soften the sounds from outside while light pours in through the two street-facing windows. Anyone who has sat in a windowless, strip-lit internal meeting room knows exactly how much difference this makes: with natural light, a team is still fresher at the end of a two-hour workshop.

Comfort in the service of concentration

Alongside the technology, physical comfort matters just as much. Comfortable, well-supporting chairs, a table of the right size, air conditioning and good ventilation — these are not luxuries. In a longer discussion they decide whether the participants are paying attention to the subject or to their backs. That is why, besides the classic meeting-table layout (Washington and London), we also offer a living-room-style space with wing-back armchairs (New York) — because a coaching conversation is served by a different seating arrangement than a contract negotiation.

The extras people remember

A whiteboard and marker pens: drawing something out together is still one of the most effective thinking tools there is, so it is standard in every one of our rooms. A lockable cupboard: if a team is coming back over several days, it helps to know that equipment can be left safely. A computer to hire: if someone arrives without a machine, that can be arranged too.

And then there are the small touches of hospitality: coffee from the Jura machine, thirty kinds of tea, cordials and chilled still water come with every booking at no extra charge. It does not sound like a strategic question, and yet these are the details guests remember — a well-equipped meeting room does not only work faultlessly, it also looks after the people in it.

The right room for the job: three layouts, three genres

Equipment alone is not enough — the layout has to suit the occasion, and few people think this through when choosing a room. The classic meeting room organised around a table is a space for structured work: contract discussions, status meetings, interviews. That arrangement is represented here by Washington (14 m², a solid wooden table, six high-backed swivel chairs) and London (16 m², up to six people) — both built for concentrated work over documents.

The less formal genres — coaching, mentoring, creative brainstorming, filming video content — call for a different space: our New York room (26 m²) is therefore built not around a meeting table but around high-backed wing chairs and a sofa, with the feel of a living room. The same technology (55-inch TV, HDMI), an entirely different dynamic: someone sitting in an armchair speaks more openly than someone sitting across a table from you.

So before choosing a room, it is worth taking a minute to think: what genre is this meeting? If decisions have to be made over documents, you need a table; if people need to open up, you need an armchair. All three spaces can be explored in our gallery, in photographs and in a 3D virtual tour — so you can see which one suits the occasion before you book.

A checklist for choosing a room

Next time you choose a room — whether you are fitting out your own or hiring one — it is worth running through this list. Is there a clearly visible screen of at least 55 inches? Is there an HDMI connection left ready that works with anyone's laptop? Can the Wi-Fi carry several simultaneous video calls? Is the space quiet, and does it get natural light? Are the chairs still comfortable after two hours? Is there a whiteboard, and are there marker pens? Is the room air-conditioned? And finally: do guests get coffee, tea and water? If the answer to any of these is “no”, that gap will sooner or later take its revenge during an important meeting.

Your own office, or a room you hire?

Building all of this into your own office and maintaining it is a substantial one-off and monthly cost — and a fully equipped meeting room is especially poor value if it is used for no more than a few hours a week. That is exactly the logic of hiring a room by the hour: the full fit-out is there, but you pay only for the time you actually use. Our hourly rates run between 2,800 and 4,000 HUF depending on the room, and an automatic duration discount applies from four hours — as much as 26–28% on bookings over ten hours.

In summary

The recipe for a modern meeting room is simpler than you might think: a large screen with a simple connection, genuinely fast internet, good acoustics, comfortable seating, natural light — and a few thoughtful touches for your guests. If you would like to see how that looks in practice, take a look at the photographs of our rooms and the 3D virtual tour — or book an hour and try it for yourself. The rooms are available every day between 7:00 and 21:00.