Volume 10, Issue 4 — February 28, 2014
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Editorial Editorial Editorial Editorial Editorial Editorial
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Industry News Audio Projection Control & Signal Processing
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Will Veronica Mars Save the Custom Install Market?
By Gary Kayye rAVe Founder
Everyone who’s ever been to CEDIA EXPO loves it.
And, what’s not to love? It’s basically a big-boy toy fair. The biggest TVs debut at CEDIA. 3D debuted at CEDIA. 4K resolution TVs debuted at CEDIA. Wireless audio was first shown at CEDIA. Wireless HDMI — you guessed it: CEDIA.
But, the HomeAV market, in recent years, has suffered. First, there was Best Buy. Then, Amazon.com. Then, showrooming — the act of going to a store to get educated on what is available and how to use it and then check the prices, only to turn around and walk out and shop online for the best price.
And, now, companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft have sucked away entire segments of the market by encouraging us to watch TV on our phones, share music freely, wirelessly send stuff from our tablets and PCs to any room int he house with a $29 dongle or a $99 set-top box and now we can watch ANY TV show or ANY movie we want without ever buying it.
All that happened, by the way, during a recession — so you know what thats done to every segment of AV. Well, double the loss and you have the HomeV market. High-end homebuyers just aren’t spending money on home luxuries like they used to.
Sure, there was the claim by some AV publications that “Staycations” (at-home vacations where people spent money upgrading their home luxuries instead of spending money on elaborate vacations) would be the trend so the HomeAV market wouldn’t feel the recession. Wrong! Didn’t happen.
Instead, the market turned down. In fact, attendance at the best HomeAV show in the world (CEDIA) has been flat — at best — over the past five years. Bummer.
But, the return of a hugely popular TV series and its debut on the big-screen could end up being the springboard for an AV future that could turn, forever. And, we could see rapid growth.
That series: Veronica Mars.
Veronica Mars was on the CW network (UPN was its debut network) from 2004 to 2007 and featured Kristen Bell as Veronica Mars, a student-detective in the fictional town of Neptune, California.
Well, the series is coming back, sort of. It will make its theatrical debut on March 14th and it will be THE FIRST major studio release that debuts in the movie theater on the exact same day as it does in fans’ homes via iTunes, Amazon, etc. Yes, there have been independent movie releases that have tried this, but NEVER has one of the Top 6 studios done it. Thanks to a unique deal masterminded by Warner Bros. Studios, the movie will show up in AMC, Regal and Cinemark theaters and on the Internet at the same time. So, take your pick — watch it at home or go to the theater. And, the series had about 3 million live viewers an episode when it originally aired and is said to have had just short of 10 million watchers via streaming since it was cancelled back in 2007.
So, what’s this have to do with the HomeAV market?
Well, if this does well, look for many, many more studios to do the same thing — release movies in a theater and on DVD or streaming simultaneously. This is not a trivial thing, but is doable and the entire process of distributing movies can also benefit from this beta-test move by Warner Bros. You see, what’s interesting is that Warner Bros is actually “renting” the theaters that the movie will debut in — so as to get around the normal 8-10 week screening time and revenue share that studios usually have with exhibition houses. It’s a novel idea and it shows forward thinking on the part of the studio. So, the theater chain gets a guaranteed payout (no matter how many people actually attend the movie) and the studio gets to simultaneously release the movie for at-home viewing.
And, as far as the HomeVA market goes, this can only be good for the future. When people see that you can watch a movie in your home on the same day as it debuts in a theater, people will re-think their investments at home. You see, seeing a movie for the second time is perfectly fine on your 45″, 55″ or even 60″ HDTV. But, seeing all your first-run movies that way; nah. People will want to build mini-theaters or screening rooms, again, to get that theater-like experience.
Won’t they? Leave a Comment
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Does Your Company Require A Service Department?
By Lee Distad rAVe Columnist
Speaking broadly, there are two kinds of residential AV companies: There are the ones that have been in business for a decade or more, and there are the new companies, just started, most of whom fold in their first three years.
With the latter group, eventually the company reaches the point where there are dozens, perhaps even hundreds of legacy systems installed in homes in your market.
If your company is in that situation, congratulations! The upside of being in that position is the number of potential upgrade projects available to you, either with the original client, or with new owners who’ve bought the house and want you to make some changes.
However, the downside is that the more installations you have around town, the greater the number of phone calls your likely to field from clients who need a service call of some sort.
Now, on the one hand, system remote monitoring has come a long way, and anything you’ve installed in the past couple of years is fairly easy to monitor and troubleshoot remotely, and less likely to require you to roll a truck to someone’s home. On the other hand, taking care of those service issues takes the time of someone on your staff, whether it’s a tech or a programmer, or even perhaps the boss himself. Time, as you know, is money.
If you look outside of the residential AV channel it’s worth noting that commercial channel integrators, both AV and security (not to mention the firms that do both) employ techs who only do service calls. Installers install, and service techs service.
So is there a lesson to be learned here? What are the pros and cons of maintaining dedicated service techs for residential AV integration?
The primary advantage is specialization: Having techs who only troubleshoot allows for greater efficiency. Projects that are underway don’t have to be sidelined to pull techs from an install to deal with a crisis at a finished installation. General Contractors and homeowners get upset when the installers don’t show up on a jobsite as originally scheduled.
This benefit cuts both ways, incidentally: If the troubleshooting guys hop on to a new project prior in the final stages and take care of the shakedown and troubleshooting of the system, that frees up the installers to move on to the next job.
One the downside, companies will often have two issues that make dedicated service techs a challenge to implement. The first is basic manpower: Most residential AV firms, even well-established ones like we’re talking about, are small businesses with a staff of anywhere from three to 12 people.
Assuming that the company is kept busy with new projects, it’s tough to dedicate one or more technicians to the service role.
Second, good troubleshooters are hard to find.
It’s safe to say that almost every technician in AV has been trained as an installer, and not as a service tech, which is a completely different job description, and skill set, not to mention mental outlooks.
If as a manager you find a tech who’s a wizard at both, hire that person. Now!
It’s also worth mentioning that a big part of the reason why commercial integrators maintain a service staff is because it’s commonplace for them to have Recurring Monthly Revenue coming their way through service contracts that pay the salaries of their service team.
Without RMR, a service team is an expense, and doesn’t contribute directly to a company’s top line revenue.
Now, you can argue that service techs contribute indirectly to increasing revenue by improving the company’s efficiency by letting the installers focus on installing, but your accountant may not buy that.
Regardless, if you have the manpower to implement a service tech or two, and the challenges be overcome, it might prove to be a profitable decision. Leave a Comment
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Gaming Taxonomy: What Type of Gamer Is Your Client?
By Matt Cooper Lead Designer
In my last article I got pretty specific with theater customizations that not every theater gaming client would need. This month I’ll dial it back in a and give a broader field guide to identify the particular genus and species of your gamer client. This will give you an edge on design recommendations, as well as building a bit of trust and camaraderie with the clients.
Platforms
A platform is broadly just the device you choose to play your games. There are three major categories: mobile, dedicated handheld, PC and console. Of course as things progress, there is significant bleed-over within the platforms. For instance, the Sony Vita and Nintendo Wii-U handhelds can be played through a console on the big screen — BYOD for home. And, mobile tablets and phones can act as thin-clients for larger computers doing remote processing like Sony PlayStation Now and the OnLive cloud service. Steam’s console platform (like Lee wrote about in this column) is attempting to entice PC gamers into the living room with essentially a compact, big screen friendly PC. Platforms are really all just a type of consumer hardware, so you’ll never make any money selling the equipment itself — it would be more of a convenience service you could provide by purchasing and integrating it for the customer.
Almost all mobile games fall into the casual and arcade category. Games like Candy Crunch Saga, Temple Run, Plants vs. Zombies are all examples of casual games (which are worth billions in revenue). With tablet and smart-phone games, you can show clients how to project their small displays in the theater system. Apple’s iOS devices and Airplay work well. Some games that use tilt as an input work well for this. For most casual games, looking down to see where you should touch is impractical. One exciting addition to IOS is handheld external game controllers. For years, Apple turned up their collective noses at buttons for game control — but without tactile feedback, using a touchscreen as a controller is a frustrating and second-class experience. Now with iOS 7, Logitech as a few other manufactures have come up with physical handheld and shell controller that will really change the mobile gaming market.
Somewhat related are dedicated handhelds, such as the popular Nintendo 3DS and (less popular) Sony Vita. They don’t relate much to home theater gaming – except for the ability for the Vita either play on a big screen, or conversely play PS4 games on the small-screen.
PC gamers are a different breed and attracted to PC gaming for a couple reasons. PCs are almost endlessly upgradable. While consoles are frozen in place for up to five years — a PC can be on the bleeding edge of technology for as much money as you are willing to bleed out of your bank account. This can lead to a particular smugness on their part during Internet flame wars. The other big difference comes from the extra control from using a keyboard and mouse. The keyboard gives you hundreds of possible saved shortcuts and a mouse enables pixel perfect twitch aiming. The big downfall also comes from the keyboard and mouse when it comes to big-screen gaming. Even with some kind laptop stand, sitting in a recliner is terrible with a keyboard and mouse. As I mentioned earlier, Valve’s Steam solution to this was to create a more compact PC with a standardized operating system and a controller with two touch pads that could better mimic a mouse. This doesn’t really help with several genres of games that people love on PCs, such as real time strategy games and massive multi-player games (like World of Warcraft). My solution to this problem for you, the HomeAV integrator is to put a desk in the middle of the theater. I know this sounds crazy, but hear me out. PC gamers spend significantly more money on their setup than the equivalent console gamer. If you think you’ve successfully identified a hard-core PC gamer — that person absolutely would love to have a comfortable desk, seat and an amazing projector that envelopes the view in a wall-sized image. There’s no reason you can’t also have comfortable theater chairs arranged in the room as well — but float this idea out there. In future posts, I am going to mockup what this might look like so you can better pitch the idea to clients.
Console gamers are familiar territory for theater gaming. It really lends itself to lounging in comfy chairs staring at a large screen. The trick as I’ve mentioned in my last article, is adding value beyond plugging in a console into a switcher. One of the keys to this is keeping the hardware organized and providing custom integration where possible. I’m a big believer in adding touches like charging cradles for controllers into furniture near the seating. One interesting thing to note about the PC vs. console gamers is that they can’t play multi-player games across those two systems. Gamepads lack the precision of a mouse, and matching players across the two platforms would be unfair and a major technical headache for developers.
In my next column, I’ll go into the types of games available, which isn’t directly tied to the physical design of the theater additions, but will help you bond with and understand your client better and may help you give better suggestions that will lead to future sales. Leave a Comment
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rAVe RUMORS: Best Buy to Dump AudioVisions?
By Gary Kayye rAVe Founder
We have an inside source that tells us that Best Buy is about to “dump” California-based integrator AudioVisions. AudioVisions was acquired by Best Buy in 2006 for around $7 Million and was supposed to represent the company’s foray into high-end custom HomeAV custom integration.
However, apparently, after owning the company for nearly seven years, Best Buy is selling the company back to the original founders for less than $2 Million, according to our source. This deal is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
AudioVisions is here. Leave a Comment
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Famous Last Words
By Joel Rollins rAVe Columnist
Each year at this time, I am alerted to the coming of spring by that special fragrance that’s in the air, by those sounds that indicate the coming of a new season.
In our business, that fragrance is the smell of shrink wrap and packing peanuts, and it harkens the coming of new technologies that will change the way we do business.The sounds are the voices of the currently dominant players who are loudly and proudly denying that such changes are possible.
I can always tell which new technologies will be successful by listening to the naysayers, denying the usefulness or necessity of the new tech. And there’s no better way to determine which “big boys” are about to get their comeuppance.
There are a number of ways that the big players use to deny that they can be upstaged or displaced. Let’s take a brief and nostalgic look at a few of them:
Denying Product Necessity
Market leaders tend to rely on this one when faced with a new product, service or technology that they don’t have in their arsenal. It’s an excuse for complacency (or a way to hide the panic they are feeling internally). The best example I can think of currently is RIM, which brought us the Blackberry (or “Crackberry”). When faced with the onslaught of the iPhone, the company’s co-CEO actually said: “There may be 300,000 apps for the iPhone and iPad, but the only app you really need is the browser.” — Jim Balsillie, November 2010
There is no better industry for this kind of dismissal by the big players. Take a look at some of the other gems from the past that remind us to take these statements with a grain of salt – or to look at investing in their competition:
- “I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” — Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943
- “There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.” — Ken Olson, president, chairman & founder of Digital Equipment Co, 1977
- “640K ought to be enough for anybody.” — Bill Gates, 1981
- “Apple is already dead.” — Nathan Myhrvold, former Microsoft CTO, 1997
Dismissing the Issues
Another great sign of a big player that’s begging to be taken down a peg is for them to deny issues surrounding their own product, even among the truly great players. Here’s an instructive example from the 800-pound gorilla of software:
- “Two years from now, spam will be solved.” –Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, 2004
And one from a huge company they helped to displace:
- “Almost all of the many predictions now being made about 1996 hinge on the Internet’s continuing exponential growth. But I predict the Internet will soon go spectacularly supernova and in 1996 catastrophically collapse.” — Robert Metcalfe, founder of 3Com, 1995
Can’t Be Done
Another way the big guns, and the market in general, blind themselves to possibilities is the “It isn’t technically feasible” or “the market won’t buy it” approach. It’s been used in our market to deny everything from the coming of digital video to the possibility of today’s high definition streaming, but the best examples I can think of are these:
- “In today’s regulatory environment, it’s virtually impossible to violate rules… it’s impossible for a violation to go undetected, and certainly not for a considerable period of time.” –Investment guru and current federal prisoner Bernard Madoff, Oct. 27, 2007
- “The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a “C,” the idea must be feasible.” — A Yale University management professor in response to a paper from his student, Fred Smith, which proposed reliable overnight delivery service. Smith went on to found Federal Express Corp.
So, when looking for new technologies to watch, watch for the denials by their competitors. When the leaders spend time and effort to deny the possibility of new competition, or new technologies, they point the way for the market.
Is this a conscious decision on their part? A delaying action? Possibly, but in my opinion, there’s another reason, and I leave you with one final quote:
“You have attributed conditions to villainy that simply result from stupidity.” ― Robert A. Heinlein, The Green Hills of Earth Leave a Comment
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Everything is Becoming Software (And That’s a Good Thing)
By Christopher Jaynes CTO and Founder, Mersive
I recently had an interesting conversation with someone in the product design space at a university that I wanted to share — and get your thoughts about. He asked, “You used to be a professor — should my students take computer science even if they don’t want to be programmers?” My answer probably won’t surprise you…
Software will have a revolutionary impact on just about every industry sometime in the near future — so yes, regardless of the career you want to take — if you want to be a leader in your field — you must be at least familiar with computer science and software design.
We have already seen the impact that software has had on finance (micro-trading and artificial intelligence), manufacturing and supply chain management (cybernetics/robotics and automated process control) and the more obvious impact on workforce mobility, communications and education. Even the way you schedule and use a taxi is being revolutionized by software. The same will happen to other industries. Such as how your food is delivered, how advertisers ensure you learn about their products, how cars operate, how cities and buildings interact with you AND each other. And my favorite, how you collaborate with others.
Once software is truly integrated into an industry two things happen:
- Specialized hardware and processes are replaced with commodity components and interchangeable parts.
- The traditional constraints imposed by the use models we have become accustomed to fade away.
For example, I no longer have to pre-schedule a ride to the airport and know the address of my starting point. Instead, I can open an app on my phone and request a cab on demand. I listen to my music on a plane from a device that is smaller than a credit card and has my entire library of music. The device itself matters far less than it once did and I no longer have constraints centered around hardware platforms (what CDs should I bring with me on the flight, etc.).
So yes, to answer the question, computer science should be a fundamental part of anyone’s education. In the past, we all had to learn basic principles of science regardless of where you wanted to take your education — dissecting frogs and studying the periodic table. Going forward, all students should be exposed to how database queries work, the protocol stack that drives the Internet and how programming languages are turned into machine code. This will make our next generation of workers better equipped to deal with how their particular disciplines will be transformed by software.
Specifically in the AV space — folks who embrace software will win. So next time you have a chance to take a TCP/IP course at a trade show, or see how to write a software script to control AV hardware, I wouldn’t pass it up.
So now I ask you, should students take computer science even if they don’t want to be programmers? Leave a Comment
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Texas Instruments Unveils Smallest HD DLP Pico ChipsetToday at Mobile World Congress, Texas Instruments released the 0.3” HD Tilt & Roll Pixel (TRP) DLP Pico chipset, its smallest, most power-efficient micro-mirror array. This chipset can generate high-definition (HD) displays from compact electronics, including tablets, smartphones, accessories, wearable displays, augmented reality displays, interactive surface computing, digital signage and control panels.
The new 0.3” HD TRP chipset leverages TI’s proprietary TRP DLP architecture and adaptive IntelliBrightT suite of algorithms to deliver higher brightness and lower power consumption than previous DLP Pico chipset architectures. Additionally, the chipset’s fast switching speeds of up to thousands of times per second enables the smallest true-color RGB engines with 120-Hz video performance. TI says it’s actively working with leading developers and manufacturers to bring products to market in 2014 that incorporate the 0.3” HD TRP chipset, in order to encourage end-product development.
“TI has been a strong and innovative supplier to us,” said Edward Tang, CEO of Avegant. “We are already utilizing the innovative 0.3” HD TRP chipset in our virtual retinal display product, the Avegant Glyph, to beam images directly onto the human eye. We selected this chipset based on its HD image quality, flexibility and power savings.”
“This HD chipset represents a major milestone for DLP; we are achieving two times the number of pixels in a 0.3-inch MEMS device with 30 percent greater optical efficiency and up to 50 percent power savings on a frame-by-frame basis than our previous architectures,” said Frank Moizio, business unit manager of DLP Pico. “This allows developers to create a wider variety of applications and products in smaller form factors than ever before.”
To learn more about the DLP Pico 0.3” HD TRP chipset, go here. Leave a Comment
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Pakedge Debuts New S8Wpde 8-Port Gigabit Switch, Powered by PoEPakedge Device & Software has introduced its new S8Wpde 8-Port gigabit switch, which can be powered by PoE or AC, letting the S8Wpde function in either new and old buildings alike (PoE or not). Plug-and-play features allow this switch to run without any installation of software. The S8Wpde is fully compliant with all network protocols.
With compact dimensions of 7.16″ W x 3.6″ D x 1.4″ H, the S8Wpde takes up only a portion of 1U on a wiring rack. This switch comes with a newly designed flange-mount bracket, providing easier installation than traditional, cradle-type brackets. The S8Wpde features a compact metal housing for maximum durability and easy placement on a flat surface, in a media panel, or mounted on a wall. The S8Wpde requires no fan, allowing it to run silently.
Other features include:
- IEEE 802.3 10BASE-T, IEEE 802.3u 100BASE-TX, IEEE 802.3ab 1000BASE-T, IEEE 802.3x full duplex operation and flow control
- Eight 10/100/1000Mbps RJ-45 gigabit Ethernet ports
- Uplink: Auto MDI/MDI-X (auto crossover)
- Network speed: 10/100/1000Mbps and full/half-duplex mode auto-detection (1000 Mbps for full-duplex only)
- MAC address table: 1K MAC entries
- Buffer memory: 832K bits
- Jumbo Frame: 9K bytes
Here are the details. Leave a Comment
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CEDIA EMEA Region Opens Awards EntriesThe CEDIA Awards recognize and promote high quality system design, installation and integration within the home automation industry. The awards are open to Home Technology Professional (HTP) members across Region 1 (the UK and Europe, Russia and the CIS, the Middle East, Africa, India and Pakistan).
CEDIA has made some significant changes to the scheme this year by announcing two new categories, developing a brand new website and launching a simplified online entry process. This new system allows members to draft, edit and review their entries before submitting the completed entry. Members may submit as many projects as they wish, and in multiple categories. The easy to use system ensures that entrants submit a variety of documentation including the client’s brief, details on the solution installed and the customer’s verdict. Supporting information such as high resolution images, kit lists and schematics also need to be included. The closing date for the awards is Monday 7th April.
The CEDIA Awards 2014 categories are as follows:
- Best Media Room under £15,000
- Best Media Room over £15,000
- Best Home Cinema under £40,000
- Best Home Cinema £40,000 – £100,000
- Best Home Cinema over £100,000
- Best Integrated Home under £100,000
- Best Integrated Home £100,000 – £250,000
- Best Integrated Home over £250,000
- Best Lighting Scheme under £25,000 New
- Best Lighting Scheme over £25,000 New
- Best Yacht Installation
- Best Multiple Scheme for a Property Developer
- Best Dressed Rack
- Best Energy Management Solution
- Best Showroom
- Best Training
Additionally, CEDIA will recognise and celebrate the contribution of individuals to the work of CEDIA, and the development and growth of the residential custom installation industry with its Special Recognition Award. CEDIA members will also be invited to choose their Best Trade Supplier in a special online vote organised as part of the scheme.
CEDIA is holding a ‘CEDIA Region 1 Awards Everything You Need to Know’ webinar on March 6 at 3 p.m. This session will provide members with all the information they need to successfully write an award entry, how to use the online process and tips on how to win. Go here to register.
CEDIA has announced that the awards ceremony will take place on Fri., July 11, 2014. Details on the venue will be revealed later. Leave a Comment
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Sonance Ships New Visual Performance Series VP80R Sonance has finally shipped the long-awaited VP80R Visual Performance Series entry-level one-piece round and square in-wall speaker. Designed using a micro-trim grille that makes the speaker flush with the wall, the VP80R is actually a round speaker that can be finished with either a round or square grille-adapter, depending on the decor of the home and room. The low-profile design makes it appear flush to the wall and Sonance says it placed the woofer forward for better sound. The VP80R are priced at $400 a pair.
Here are all the details. Leave a Comment
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BenQ’s Latest Are Aimed at Home Theaters and Boardrooms with Built-in BYOD Wireless BenQ America just introduced its new MH680 and MH740 projectors, both of which are 1920×1080, 1-chip DLP projectors claiming a lamp life of 6,500 hours.
Designed using the company’s “Colorific” picture system, the MH680 is spec’d at 10,000:1 contrast ratio and 3,000 lumen brightness, while the MH740 features a spec of 11,000:1 contrast ratio and brightness of 4,000 lumens. Both projectors have integrated 10-watt speakers and the ability to display 3D content and are spec’d to project up to 300″ diagonally.
Featuring BenQ’s QPresenter app, the MH680 allows up to four participants (BYOD) to collaborate and share documents, photos and Internet content directly from their handheld devices, PCs or Macs in 2:1 and 4:1 split-screen viewing options, which allows sketching directly onto existing documents, and provides access to content from Dropbox or email via users’ mobile devices. To ensure privacy, QPresenter provides double-layered security through IP address and password authentication.
Both projectors feature SmartEco technology, which BenQ says automatically adjusts lamp power to deliver up to 6,500 and 3,500 hours of lamp life, respectively, and energy savings of up to 80 percent without any compromise in picture-quality. To further reduce power consumption, an “Eco Blank” mode allows users to blank out the screen whenever projection isn’t needed, while a “No Source Detected” mode automatically reduces power consumption to 20 percent when no source has been detected for more than three minutes. With the “Auto Power Off” function, the MH680 and MH740 will automatically shut down when not in use for 30 minutes, providing even more energy savings.
Available now, the MH680 and MH740 projectors retail at $799 and $1,499, respectively and here are all the specs. Leave a Comment
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Savant Systems Intros New Smart Series Line Savant Systems has launched an all-new control system called the Smart Series that lists for $1,599. The hub is something called the Smart Host remote and controller and, according to Savant, it has the capability to control a home theater, music, security, thermostat, lights, energy management, automated shades and more, all from a single app. On its own, it lists for $799.
The Savant Smart Host is the brain of the Savant system, providing high-level automation and control functions, user interface interpretations, system administration and monitoring. User interface (UI) software residing on the host communicates with Savant’s entire line of UIs, including remotes, keypads and mobile devices to on-screen displays using applications such as TrueControl. This communication provides advanced two-way control of components and services commonly found in automation and control environments.
Here are the specs of the new system. Leave a Comment
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For all you REGULAR readers of rAVe HomeAV Edition out there, hopefully you enjoyed another opinion-packed issue!
For those of you NEW to rAVe, you just read how we are — we are 100% opinionated. We not only report the news and new product stories of the high-end HomeAV industry, but we stuff the articles full of our opinions. That may include (but is not limited to) whether or not the product is even worth looking at, challenging the manufacturers on their specifications, calling a marketing-spec bluff and suggesting ways integrators market their products better. But, one thing is for sure, we are NOT a trade publication that gets paid for running editorial or product stories. Traditional trade publications get paid to run product stories — that’s why you see what you see in most of the pubs out there. We are different: we run what we want to run and NO ONE is going to pay us to write anything good (or bad).
Don’t like us, then go away — unsubscribe! Just use the link below.
To send me feedback, don’t reply to this newsletter – instead, write directly to me at gary@ravepubs.com or for editorial ideas: Editor-in-Chief Sara Abrons at sara@ravepubs.com
A little about me: I graduated from Journalism School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (where I am adjunct faculty). I’ve been in the AV-industry since 1987 where I started with Extron and eventually moved to AMX. So, I guess I am an industry veteran (although I don’t think I am that old). I have been an opinionated columnist for a number of industry publications and in the late 1990s I started the widely read KNews eNewsletter (the first in the AV market) and also created the model for and was co-founder of AV Avenue – which is now known as InfoComm IQ. rAVe Publications has been around since 2003, when we launched our original newsletter, rAVe ProAV Edition.
rAVe HomeAV Edition, co-published with CEDIA, launched in February, 2004.
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rAVe HomeAV Edition contains the opinions of the author only and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of other persons or companies or its sponsors. |
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