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Welcome to another edition of rAVe! Today, we report on a couple of TV innovations – Samsung with its USA Today RSS information feed and Sony, which is marketing its 11-inch OLED. It looks like this year will be full of innovation! Thanks to Jeff Zemanek, who is the focus of Five Minutes With CEDIA this issue. It’s an excellent read. Enjoy the issue! –Gary Kayye, CTS
Feature Article Series How did you get started in this industry? I was the hobbyist who would make cassette recordings for my friends. I loved music and my stereo, and decided to get into the business as a salesperson at an audio specialty store called Carlin Audio. A few years later I became a store manager for Stereo Lab, both of these stores are located in Cincinnati. During this time, at Stereo Lab I saw the need for custom installation services and a new opportunity began. Who in the industry has been your biggest influence? How and why? Three people come to mind; Jim Pearce, the owner of Stereo Lab for giving me my chance and education in this industry; Tom Doherty for founding CEDIA and mentoring me all along the way; and Rick Schuett for introducing lighting control to the CEDIA channel and hiring me to be a part of it. Describe some of your most memorable moments in the industry. I remember listening to Rob Gerhardt teach a class in 1992 at the Lowes Anatole and talking about $300,000 systems! It blew my mind, but by 1994 we were doing them too. Thanks to Rob for opening my mind to the possibilities. As president of CEDIA in 1995, speaking at the banquet to 500 people, I was a little nervous, but I remember thinking what a great industry we were becoming. Going to Australia in 1995 to kick off the first international chapter and seeing the enthusiasm of the people. In 1996, we moved EXPO to the Dallas Convention Center from the Infomart. I happened to be the EXPO Chair and I remember going around the show floor before the show had started and being amazed by what we had become. What do you think was the greatest advance, event or trend in our industry in the last five years? What trends will affect custom integrators in the next two years? Lighting control and electronic window systems will become the norm and you will be expected to provide it. There will be more and more people getting into this business; differentiate and brand yourself. What are three things that custom integration companies need to do to prepare for the next two years? Continue to improve your knowledge base. You will always be able to charge for your intellectual property…make sure that you do. Jeff Zemanek joined Lutron in 1998 as an A/V Specialist and earned the company’s "Largest Percent Sales Increas" award. He was promoted to district supervisor in 1999, was named regional manager in 2000 and national sales manager in 2002. An active member of CEDIA and PARA, Zemanek served on CEDIA’s board of directors from 1993 through 1997, was the organization's 1994-1995 president and has chaired several CEDIA committees and councils, including CEDIA EXPO chair in 1996. Zemanek was re-elected to the board again in 2005 and is presently in his second two year term. A 27-year industry veteran, Zemanek was owner and president of Viewings Audio/Video Automation from 1988 to 1996 and was named Monster Cable’s "Most Monsterous Custom Installer" in 1993 and 1994.
CEDIA University Upcoming Events CEDIA University constantly strives to keep residential electronic systems contractors knowledgeable, productive, and competent, but now CEDIA has taken its education to the next level. May is a busy for CEDIA — here are some of CEDIA University’s educational events that are in store for you this month… CU On the Road Home Theater Audio Boot Camp Electronic Systems Technician Advanced Boot Camp Custom Home Theater – Delivering the Cinema Experience The Art & Science of Loudspeakers in Rooms Home Networks Fundamentals Electronic Systems Technician Basic Residential Boot Camp Residential Retrofit Installation Workshop Visit www.cedia.org/education for more information.
It’s EXPO Time! Can you believe it – it’s CEDIA EXPO time again. The excitement is mounting as CEDIA prepares to host its annual CEDIA EXPO at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, Co – September 3-7, 2008! Online registration opens June 2, 8:00 a.m. (Pacific), and early bird registration ends July 16 at 5:00 p.m. (Pacific). CEDIA EXPO gives you a competitive edge with better education, networking with industry peers, product knowledge, technical skill, contacts, and much more. Be sure to check www.cedia.org/expo for your CEDIA EXPO 2008 details!
ISE to Expand ISE announced that, due to high demand for space, they will re-organize the next show. Rather than trying to add to Halls 6 and 7 of Amsterdam’s RAI Convention Center, they plan to move to Halls 9, 10 and 11, in the front of the building and closer to the train station. These will be connected to the existing Halls 1-5 via a walkway. In addition, the two ‘wings’ of the show will be further connected by conference and seminar rooms – bringing the additional benefit of a more integrated education and exhibition space. Integrated Systems Europe will be held February 3-9 in Amsterdam. For more information, go to http://www.iseurope.org/2008/home.php
CEDIA Adds 22 New e-Learning Courses CEDIA announced they will soon have 22 new e-learning courses available by webinar. You can take the courses right from your home or office, and each course is derived from the content of the instructor-led courses, with some additional materials added to facilitate the online medium. A final course assessment consisting of 10 to 20 questions has been added to reinforce the course objectives and understanding of the material. You have 30 days to complete the course, during which time you can stop and restart at will. But after 30 days you will have to re-register. Introductory pricing is a bargain: $97 member / $147 non-member (per 3.0 CEU course) For more information, go to http://www.cedia.net/education/index.php
NEC Marketing Home Media Server NEC has a new home media server, a sort of DVR-PC combo product that can record live TV and stream live and recorded programs to displays around the home as well as to PCs. It also provides remote viewing from portable devices (ala Slingplayer). So far, it has been released only in Japan. We’ll let you know when it makes it to the U.S. The IDG News report says the Lui has dual terrestrial HDTV tuners and a single HDTV satellite tuner. One model has an integrated Blu-ray drive and a terabyte of storage (capable of 120 hours of terrestrial programming). IDG says the lower-end model has a 500 GB drive and a regular old DVD player. The high-end model reportedly sells or $3,753. For the rest of the story go to http://www.pcworld.com
Iomega Announces External Multimedia Drive for Home Entertainment The new ScreenPlay HD Multimedia Drive from Iomega is a portable external hard drive (nice, at just 2 pounds and 7x2x5”, you can tuck it under you arm and take your movies, photos and music over to a friend’s house!). This has 500GB capacity or up to 750 hours of video. The ScreenPlay HD Multimedia Drive comes with a remote control for navigation, and includes both HDMI and component video outputs. Video connection options include the HDMI, component and composite video, and SCART (RGB). Audio connection options include composite RCA and coaxial S/PDIF outputs. PC transfers use the USB 2.0 interface. USB, composite video, and component video cables are included. Using the HDMI or component outputs, the user can choose video settings from 480i/480p/720p/1080i (720p and 1080i are achieved through upscaling). Supported media formats include MP3, AC3 (Dolby(R) Digital Encoding), WAV, WMA, MPEG-1, MPEG-2 (AVI/VOB), MPEG-4 (AVI/DiVX 3.11, 4.x, 5.x/XViD) and JPEG. The Iomega ScreenPlay HD Multimedia Drive USB 2.0/AV 500GB is now available in the Americas for MSRP $209.95. For more information, go to http://www.iomega.com
New Wireless Keypad From Universal Goes on the Wall or With the User Universal Remote Control’s new KP-900 is a wireless keypad that can be mounted with a bracket and four screws. The company says it can be mounted on any surface, including brick, sheetrock and plaster. The device can also be removed for handheld use as an IR or RF remote. Also, it has built-in magnets so it can be stuck to metal surfaces, such as a refrigerator. It is powered with four AAA batteries, so no need to dock it. And even with the batteries, it weighs just eight ounces. Universal says that dealer feedback resulted in a feature that lets the keypad coexist with conventional in-wall volume controls. Users might be confused about which control to use to adjust volume; often, an in-wall dial serves as the master volume control for a particular room, so adjusting volume on the keypad can lead to some sticky sound level situations. To eliminate this confusion for the user, the KP-900 ships with the three center keys in its top row empty, and three sets of keycaps are included: one for volume control (Volume Up, Mute, Volume Down), one for transport control (Seek-, Shuffle, Seek+), and one blank set. The installer can implement the KP-900 with no volume control option, although the user can still use the KP-900 to turn the system on or off, select a song or source, or access previously unused features their components might already possess, like second zone outputs. The KP-900 requires professional installation (and Universal emphasizes this!), and you can use the free, downloadable Windows-based URC software on any PC that has a USB port. The list price of the KP-900 is $499. It is available now in white, black and light almond. For more information, go to http://www.universalremote.com/product_detail.php?model=136
New Samsung LCD HDTVs Feature RSS Feeds Samsung has some great features in the newly-announced Series 6 650 and Series 7 750 LCD HDTVs. Probably the coolest of those features is InfoLink, which is an RSS feed powered by USA Today and giving the customer an adjustable overlay with news, sports, weather, stocks and entertainment. They can access these features without interrupting the current television program, too. These TVs also offer a design improvement over traditional black bezel. The Touch of Color feature is made with dual-injection technology to embed color with material rather than paint or dye. Samsung says the resulting bezel mimics a sunset with red and black gradation. Finally, there is a USB port so users can port in their own media. The Series 7 750 LCD HDTVs will be available in May of 2008 in the following sizes: 39.9, 45.9, and 52 inches. The Series 6 Full HD LCD TVs began shipping in March, with sizes of 19, 22, 31.5, 39.9, 45.9 and 52.2 inches. For more information, you can look at the 46-inch at http://www.samsung.com
Sony’s 11-Inch OLED Available at Retail The size is incredibly small – both the 11-inch screen size and the wafer-thin 1/8 depth. But the price is not trivial. $2,500 is a LOT for a TV five times the size, so it’s a bit hard to understand why Sony went to market with this. Unless, of course, the intention is to gain recognition of OLED technology to make it easier to market more reasonable sizes and prices for OLED TVs in the future. And this just might be a great way to show off the “unlimited” viewing angle and sharp images. And to get people to write about OLED technology… Done deal: Consumer Reports wrote about this TV. You can read the article at http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/100/sony-xel-1-our-first-impressions-of-oled-tv/
New 16-Inch Flip Style LCD HDTV Has Dual Hinges for Flipping or Folding Westinghouse Digital came out with a nifty little 16-inch LCD HDTV that can be mounted (and flipped up or down) or placed on a counter. The dual hinges allow both flip and fold, and it also has 180-degree rotation of the front bezel. It comes in a stainless steel finish, and has built-in speakers. MSRP is an affordable $349. For more information, go to http://www.westinghousedigital.com/details.aspx?itemnum=196
New Display Calibration Device From Datacolor Datacolor announced Spyder3TV, a display calibration device that lets you (or savvy users) get specific results when calibrating a display. Spyder3TV is an electronic measurement device that is placed on the front of the TV during the fine-tuning process. You install the accompanying software onto a PC and while the Spyder3TV measures the set’s current configuration and determines its ideal settings, a walkthrough wizard guides you through the process from start to finish. Datacolor says there are comprehensive help screens throughout, with before and after settings that enable comparison of the original and calibrated displays. A printable report is also available once calibration is complete so that the ultimate settings can be reinstalled at any time. You can use Spyder3TV with plasma, RPTV, DLP, LCD, CRT and front projection. To calibrate a set using Spyder3TV, you will need a DVD player, remotes for the TV and DVD player, and desktop or laptop PC (min. Pentium II 800 MHz, 256MB ram, 100MB free hard disk space, and video card with at least 1024 x 768 resolution). The PC must be located near the set, and you will need a free USB port, For more information, go to http://www.datacolor.eu/en/products/home-theater-calibration/spyder3tv/index.html
RocketGUI Goes Nationwide RocketGUI, a control system interface design company that previously only marketed within the Northwest U.S., announced they will market and service companies nationwide. RocketGUI says their design services offer a way for system integrators to differentiate themselves from their competition by offering unique, specialized interfaces to installed control systems. RocketGUI services include custom touch-panel interface design, control system programming, module/interface creation for equipment manufacturers, and control system design consultation. For more information, go to http://www.rocketgui.com/
StereoStone Shipping Fountain Speaker An attractive new outdoor fountain speaker from StereoStone is now shipping. This $599 speaker has 250 watts, is weatherproof (of course), and uses an 8-inch dual voice coil speaker, but mono loudspeaker can be substituted upon request. The Fountain Speaker has a wrought iron look enclosed cage that acts like a stand with a bird bath-type bowl for collecting the running water underneath a center that resembles a leafed pineapple. The water runs up and then over and down the petals of the pineapple leaves and into the collecting bowl at the bottom. For evening viewing, the Fountain Speaker also includes submersible low-voltage lighting. And get this: no assembly is required! For more information, go to http://www.stereostone.com/
Well, that's it for this edition of rAVe! Thank you for spending time with me as we muse the industry's happenings. To continue getting my newsletter, or to sign up a friend, click the link below. To send me feedback, don't reply to this newsletter – instead, write to me at gkayye@kayye.com or for editorial: Denise Harrison at dharrison@kayye.com A little about me: Gary Kayye, CTS, founder of Kayye Consulting. Gary Kayye, an audiovisual veteran and columnist, began the widely-read KNews, a premier industry newsletter, in the late 1990s, and created the model for and was co-founder of AV Avenue – which later became InfoComm IQ. Kayye Consulting is a company that is committed to furthering the interests and success of dealers, manufacturers, and other companies within the professional audiovisual industry. rAVe ProAV Edition was launched in February 2003. rAVe HomeAV Edition, co-sponsored by CEDIA, launched in February, 2004. rAVe Rental [and Staging] launched in November 2007. To read more about my background, our staff, and what we do, go to http://www.kayye.com Copyright 2008 – Kayye Consulting – All rights reserved. For reprint policies, contact Kayye Consulting, 400 Meadowmont Village Circle, Suite 425 – Chapel Hill, NC 27517 – 919/969-7501. Email: dharrison@kayye.com 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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