Plan and prepare for Dynamics 365 Connected Spaces in 2021 release wave 2
Important
This content is archived and is not being updated. For the latest documentation, go to What's new in Dynamics 365 Connected Spaces Preview. For the latest release plans, go to Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform release plans.
Important
The 2021 release wave 2 plan covers all new functionalities planned to be delivered to market from October 2021 to March 2022. In this article, you'll find the product overview and what's new and planned for Dynamics 365 Connected Spaces.
Overview
Dynamics 365 Connected Spaces (previously Dynamics 365 Connected Store) is a turnkey software as a service (SaaS) solution that gathers and analyzes observational signals from physical spaces.
Connected Spaces brings together computer vision and AI to help transform the operational experience. By using data from video cameras, Connected Spaces delivers real-time actionable analytics that can make operations more efficient, improve customer experiences, and bridge the physical and digital divide by offering benefits that are traditionally available only in online spaces.
Connected Spaces achieves this by using the following hybrid approach:
Intelligent edge: A managed on-premises gateway that converts camera streams into observational data sent to the cloud.
Intelligent cloud: A multitenant SaaS solution that correlates observational signals from the edge to provide an analytics dashboard.
Prebuilt AI models: Out-of-the-box and ready to use AI models that apply computer vision and AI to a physical space.
Updates to Dynamics 365 Connected Spaces 2021 release wave 2
Investment areas
Store analytics
Connected Spaces provides store analytics and trend information for business decision-makers and store supervisors. Store analytics includes:
Shopper analytics: Understand foot traffic patterns for a particular store.
Display effectiveness: Understand display effectiveness and engagement across all store displays.
Queue management: Keep on top of cashier queue lengths and dwell times to make better real-time staffing decisions.
Redesigned and improved web experience
The Connected Spaces user interface has been updated to be a web-based experience.
The improved experience provides the following benefits for store managers:
- Configure cameras and draw camera skill zones: You can use the web app on larger screens, which makes it easier to configure cameras and draw camera skill zones.
- Dashboards: Get just the data view that you need by filtering by date, skill type, or skill name.
- Improved navigation: The new left navigation provides access to cameras, camera skills, analytics, and settings with a single click.
- Accessibility: Improved accessibility makes Connected Spaces easier for all users across supported browsers.
To learn more about the entire set of capabilities being delivered during this release wave, check out the release plan for Dynamics 365 Connected Spaces below:
For application administrators
User-impacting features to the user experience enabled automatically
User-impacting features should be reviewed by application administrators. This facilitates release change management and enables successful onboarding of new capabilities released to market. For the complete list, look for all features tagged "Users, automatically" in the release plan.
Features that must be enabled by application administrators
This release wave contains features that must be enabled or configured by administrators, makers, or business analysts to be available for their users. For the complete list, look for all features tagged "Users by admins, makers, or analysts" in the release plan.
Get the most out of Connected Spaces
| Helpful links | Description |
|---|---|
| Release plan | View all capabilities included in the release. |
| Product updates | Stay up to date on latest product updates. |
| Release calendar | Know important release milestones. |
| Licensing | Improve your understanding of how to license Connected Spaces. |
| Product documentation | Find documentation for Connected Spaces. |
| User community | Engage with Connected Spaces experts and peers in the community. |
| Upcoming events | Find and register for in-person and online events. |
| Product trials | Get started with Connected Spaces. |