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Thursday, May 31, 2018
Wednesday, May 30, 2018
NASCAR Champion Bobby Labonte on Cruise Control with Home’s New Automation System
After winning the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Championship in 2000, veteran race car driver Bobby Labonte has been investing in some well-deserved relaxation far from the frenzy of the track. In late 2017, Labonte purchased a 4,000-square foot cabin on over 15 acres of land within a mile of High Point, North Carolina, with the intention of turning it into his tranquil dream home.
Related: Check out another smart home owned by a NASCAR champ
Life of Leisure
With leisure top-of-mind, Labonte wanted his laidback abode to include a simple, centralized means of control that could seamlessly manage audio, video, climate, security, and lighting. During the gut-renovation, Labonte asked Jeff Grissett, co-owner of local integration firm Advanced Tech Systems, Inc. for his suggestion on a home automation system that could do just that. “I recommended that Bobby invest in the ELAN system because it is the easiest-to-use automation system out there,” Grissett says. “I took Bobby to our showroom in Greensboro to demo ELAN, and he was immediately sold. All it takes is a few minutes with the ELAN interface to truly understand how easy it is.”
Automated Lights, AV and Climate
Grissett and his team installed one ELAN gSC10 controller paired with an ELAN S1616A 16×16 Audio Matrix/Amplifier for multi-room audio, and an ELAN EL4KMV88 8×8 HDBaseT Matrix to send video content to all five of the home’s televisions. Advanced Tech Systems integrated the ELAN system with a Lutron system for lighting control and Aprilaire HVAC system for climate control.
Amazon Alexa Takes Charge
“Not only can Bobby and his wife access every system with ELAN touchpanels and remotes, but they can use Amazon Alexa to control their home with voice commands,” Grissett explains. “ELAN’s integration with Alexa really takes ease-of-use to the next level. Our team built over fifty Amazon Alexa event commands through ELAN, including ‘home’ and ‘away’ scenes. When Bobby says, ‘Alexa, I’m going away,’ ELAN will turn the lights, music, and televisions off.”
Near-Invisible Speakers
Labonte also desired high quality audio indoors and outdoors. Advanced Tech Systems installed 14 SpeakerCraft in-ceiling AIM275 Speakers, four AIM LCR5 in-walls paired with Sunfire HRS8 subwoofers in eight rooms of the house, with four SpeakerCraft OE6 speakers on the patio and porch. Together, they provide an immersive yet nearly invisible music listening experience.
“The audio system is really slick. The in-ceiling and in-wall speakers provide the best possible sound quality, but you’d never know they were there unless the sound is on,” Labonte explains. “It is really convenient for us to not have to worry about speakers taking up a lot of space in the room. We can enjoy the rustic nature of the home, but take advantage of modern amenities.”
Rustic Charm and Modern Technology Unite
During the renovation process, Labonte worked with interior designer firm The Decorator’s Edge to seamlessly blend the home’s design with top-of-the-line technology. “Our goal was to turn a cabin into a traditional home and incorporate unique, modern accents,” lead designer Eric Lackey says. “We worked with Jeff Grissett and the Advanced Tech Systems team to position the technology in an unobtrusive way. The end-result is a rustic home in the woods that is equipped with the most advanced smart functionality.”
Protection for AV Gear
The Advanced Tech Systems team backed up the new AV system with a Furman F1500UPS Battery Back-Up with Linear Filtration and Surge Protection in the equipment rack to ensure that the system would run smoothly after the project completed.
“Power protection is so important, and this Furman product includes a UPS power supply for the equipment that requires battery backup,” Grissett adds. “The Furman F1500UPS also includes BlueBOLT functionality that allows for remote system rebooting and self-healing by sensing when the units lose connection to the internet. BlueBOLT is especially convenient in this home, which is off the beaten path and not easy to locate for servicing.”
Elan Provides the Dashboard to Easy Living
Since moving into his dream home, Labonte claims that the ELAN system has far surpassed his expectations of what owning a smart home really means. “I didn’t think it was possible to harness control of every system in the house with one interface,” Labonte says. “ELAN takes separate systems and puts them together. It just makes life easier.”
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The Smart Garden: In Full Bloom Thanks to Innovative Technology
The average American spends about 70 hours a year on lawn and garden care, according to the American Time Use Survey. If you loathe pushing a mower or carting a watering can, those 70 hours can feel like an eternity.
Thankfully, there is a bounty of smart products that can take the drudgery out of yard work. And for those who take pride in their landscapes, these five devices can give your gardening skills an extra edge.
Motion Activated Sprinkler
Deer, rabbits, raccoons, and other animals can destroy a garden; even the neighborhood cats and dogs can make a mess. Rather than stand vigil at your back door, you can let the smart sprinkler from Orbit handle these unwanted visitors. When the Yard Enforcer notices movement, it sprays water in the direction of the animal. It can protect an area as large as 1,600 square feet. $69.99
Smart Weather Station
The health of your garden and lawn hinges largely on the weather. A weather station like the BloomSky2 can help you determine the best times to irrigate your lawn and plantings, when to fertilize and when to yank hanging baskets from the porch due to a heavy wind. It measures temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, and precipitation and sends this info to an app on your smartphone.
With the addition of an accessory called Storm, the weather station can also measure and report conditions including rainfall total, wind speed, wind direction and UV.
An integrated camera HD camera captures real-time images of the sky every 5 minutes. At the end of the day, you’ll have a time-lapse recording of the changing weather conditions.
One of the coolest capabilities of the BloomSky2, however, is IFTTT integration. This means you can automate smart devices like thermostats and irrigation systems to react automatically based on weather data gathered by the BloomSky2 weather station. $299.99
Plant Sensor
The Parrot Flower Power sensor, a rod-shape device you plant into the soil, monitors and analyzes the four parameters essential to your plant’s health: sunlight, air temperature, fertilizer level, and soil moisture.
Whenever the Flower Power detects that your attention is needed, it sends a notification, via Bluetooth Smart, to your smartphone or tablet. It might tell you that your plant needs water or that it is in a spot that is too sunny.
$99.99
Self-Learning Wi-Fi Sprinkler Controller
The Netro Smart controller gives your existing sprinkler system a brain by using advanced technology to create a watering schedule completely on its own. You won’t need to fiddle with the settings of your sprinkler system because
Netro’s self-learning feature knows what to do. For example, it breaks up the long watering cycles to smaller ones to help water seep slowly into the ground to where it is needed. It also automatically disables watering when temperatures are too high to protect your plants and avoids watering at night which can cause lawns, foliage and plants to be soggy which attracts disease. The winterization feature disables watering during cold temperatures to protect your sprinkler system. Should you want to get involved in the irrigation process, Amazon Alexa and Google Home integration let you command Netro via your voice. $149.99
Robotic Lawn Mower
The Miimo is Honda’s first robotic lawn mower for use in the United States. It a microcomputer, timer and sensors to mow the lawn automatically, based on a schedule you set. It’s quiet enough to have it mow at night, and you can customize cutting intervals based on the season; for example, mow more often during the spring when the grass grows faster and less frequently during dryer summer months.
Miimo offers three main cutting modes; Random, Directional or Mixed: Random is the most effective for mowing large, open areas of grass. Directional is the recommended setting for narrow areas. Mixed is a combination of the Random and Directional pattern.
Two additional cutting options, Spiral and Edge, let you customize the mowing process even more. Spiral enables Miimo to concentrate mowing on areas where the growth speed of the lawn may be faster than the rest of the lawn. Edge mode sends Miimo to mow along the edge of the lawn along the boundary wire first, before mowing the rest of the lawn in the chosen mowing pattern.
This is an expensive mower, so Miimo is equipped with anti-theft protection that will sound an alarm and disengage operation if the mower is lifted from the ground. The unit can only be re-started once the owner enters a unique anti-theft PIN code. $929
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Tuesday, May 29, 2018
Best Buy Introduces Total Tech Support Program From Geek Squad
Last fall, Best Buy outlined its plans to massively expand the smart home services and in-home technical support provided by Geek Squad. Last week, Best Buy announced the launch of its Total Tech Support Powered by Geek Squad, making the service available nationwide.
The program has been in a pilot over the last few months, with Best Buy helping 230,000 customers set up, troubleshoot, and fix their technology.
Service Covers All Home Electronics Regardless of Brand
One of the key selling points of the service is how it provides consumers help with their home electronics and appliances, no matter when or where they were purchased.
“We all rely on technology more than ever and are constantly looking for that trusted friend to turn to for inspiration, advice, and help. We built Total Tech Support for that very reason,” says Trish Walker, president of Best Buy Services.
“This kind of service used to be available on single products only, but now essentially covers all of the electronics and appliances in your home,” Walker adds.
Best Buy Sets Annual Fee at $199.99
For $199.99, customers get unlimited technical support from Geek Squad, including in-store repairs, appliance installation, and computer-setup.
The fee also covers over-the-phone support, online troubleshooting, and in-home tech support. This builds off of Best Buy’s existing Geek Squad technical support team, which last year provided service more than 16 million times. Best Buy also bundles up to three licenses for Internet security software for each member.
Members also benefit from special pricing and exclusive savings on in-home services like TV mounting, connected home device installation, select hardware repairs, and future purchases of most Geek Squad Protection and AppleCare service plans.
Also of note, Best Buy will continue to support Mag Care, it’s Magnolia Remote Network Support which helps customers monitor their own networks and receive remote tech-support from in-store specialists.
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Monday, May 28, 2018
Thursday, May 24, 2018
Wednesday, May 23, 2018
Optoma UHD51A 4K Projector Controllable by Amazon Alexa
Combining two of the hottest technologies in consumer electronics, the affordable $1,699 Optoma UHD51A projector offers 4K images and Amazon Alexa voice command capabilities.
Related: See a Star Wars 4K Home Theater
Through the projector’s companion SmartProjection for Smart Home skill, a fully voice-controlled home theater room that includes audio, projection screens, lighting and video can be set up.
“Optoma’s leadership in the consumer home theater space has largely been attributable to our ability to design and deliver projectors that leverage the latest innovations and technologies to deliver a great entertainment experience at an affordable price point,” notes Brian Soto, head of product management, Optoma Technology.
“With smart home adoption on the rise and voice increasingly becoming a preferred way for consumers to interface with their electronics we prioritized delivering this feature to our audience.”
According to Optoma and research from Alpine.AI, approximately 8.2 million people own an Amazon Alexa product, issuing more than one billion voice searches per month.
Using the voice options for the UHD51A, homeowners can issue voice commands to turn the projector on or off and to change inputs.
Optoma UHD51A Projector Also Delivers 4K Pictures
The heart of the UHD51A is its ability to produce UltraHD 4K images. The projector is rated to produce up to 2,400 lumens of brightness, and contrast ratios as high as 500,000:1.
Compatible with the high dynamic range (HDR) HDR10 format, the UHD51A also complies with the Rec.2020 and DCI-P3 color gamuts, and it also incorporates a built-in 4K HDR media player with an Android operating system (OS).
Some of the installation options built into the projector include a pair of HDMI 2.0 inputs that provide compatibility with the HDCP 2.2 copyright protection scheme and other features such as a 1.3x optical zoom and 15 percent vertical lens shift provide installation flexibility.
Optoma HD51A Features
- Resolution is 3840 x2160
- Produces brightness levels up to 2,400 ANSI lumens
- Produces contrast levels as high as 500,000:1
- Supports HDR10 high dynamic range format
- Supports the Rec. 709, DCI-P3 and Rec. 2020
- Two HDMI 2.0 ports with HDCP 2.2 compatibility
- Throw ratio of 1.21 to 1.59
- 3x optical zoom
- Vertical lens shift up to 15 percent
- MHL 2.1 support
- Alexa Smart Skill voice control options
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Tuesday, May 22, 2018
Monday, May 21, 2018
Polk Smart Speaker Features Google Assistant, Chromecast
Smart speakers are widely available from a variety of manufacturers; so are speakers that can playback streaming content. Polk Audio has combined the two features in one device, delivering voice control and whole-house music streaming.
Related: Top Reasons People Use Smart Speakers
Bringing 45 years of audio engineering to the smart-speaker category, the new $199 Polk Assist employs Google technologies to deliver a high performing voice interface to the consumer audio market.
Polk says the voice-controlled smart speaker provides homeowners a hands-free device usable around the home to perform a variety of tasks.
“Polk Audio is committed to providing premium audio solutions enabled by the Google Assistant and Chromecast. With the addition of the Polk Assist smart speaker, consumers can easily add Google Assistant’s hands-free convenience and Chromecast’s hi-res multiroom audio streaming to their homes,” says Michael Greco, global brand director, Polk Audio.
“Polk Assist complements and works with our existing Chromecast-enabled soundbars, including MagniFi Mini and MagniFi Max.”
Through the inclusion of Chromecast, Polk’s Assist speaker can be used as part of a Polk Audio-based whole-house audio system for the playback of content from streaming services such as TuneIn, Google Play Music, iHeartRadio, NPR, and Spotify.
Polk Assist Gets New Control App
Built on the Android Things platform, the new Polk smart speaker leverages Google’s intelligent learning algorithms and Android development (and partner ecosystem) to enhance the speaker’s user experience.
According to the company, the Assist is also one of the first smart speakers built using certified Android Things System-on-Modules (SoMs), which receive regular feature and security updates from Google.
Polk says the speaker will fit almost anywhere in a home due to its small footprint. It offers the Assist in a choice of midnight black and cool gray finishes.
Polk Assist Features
- The Assist employs Polk designed drivers and amplifiers
- Hands-free control powered by Google Assistant and Chromecast
- Built-in Chromecast allows users to stream Google Play Music, TuneIn, YouTube Music, iHeartRadio, NPR, Pandora and Spotify
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Friday, May 18, 2018
Thursday, May 17, 2018
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Monday, May 14, 2018
Nokia Sleep Tracker Automates Your Home
Sleep trackers have been around for some time, and they all do pretty much the same thing: monitor quality of your sleep by measuring sleep interruptions and REM phases. At the Consumer Electronic Show 2018, Nokia brought something new to the table. Its Wi-Fi enabled Nokia Sleep Sensor and companion Health Mate App (iOS and Android compatible) not only monitors and scores your sleep patterns but also controls connected devices like lights and thermostats through IFTTT (if this then that) rules that you can set up via the app.
For example, if the Nokia Sleep Sensor detects that you have left the bed, it can switch on the hallway lights to the bathroom. Or, if the sensor detects that you are laying down, it can turn off the light and lower the thermostat to a comfortable sleeping temperature.
“Our vision is to help make the world a healthier place and quality of sleep is as critical a component of a healthy lifestyle as regular exercise and a balanced diet,” says Rob Le Bras-Brown, head of Nokia’s digital health business. “Nokia Sleep gives users insight into what happens when their eyes are closed along with the ability to change the environment for more restorative sleep with IFTTT home automation capabilities. Nokia Sleep will be a game changer in helping maximize a night’s sleep to make the most of the next day.”
The sleep pad, which measures nearly 3 feet long, is placed horizontally under the mattress. Its internal air bladder senses pressure (your weight in the bed) and a microphone detects snoring. It plugs in via a 7-foot USB power cable.
Nokia Sleep synchronizes automatically with the Nokia Health Mate app so users can have all their health data in one place. The app provides data history, personalized advice and coaching programs, including one developed specifically around sleep.
An individualized Sleep Score is provided to indicate how restorative a night’s sleep was, and educate users about what makes a good night’s sleep and how they can improve night after night.
Nokia Sleep is available for $99.95 via https://health.nokia.com/us/en/sleep, Amazon.com and other leading retailers.
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Friday, May 11, 2018
Amazon Introduces Smart-Home ‘Experience Centers’
Amazon has announced the opening of interactive Amazon Experience Centers within select Lennar model homes across the United States. In these Alexa-enabled smart homes, customers can ask Alexa to control the television, lights, thermostat, shades, and more.
The model homes showcase how customers can use Alexa in their everyday lives. According to the retail giant, customers can experience how easy it can be to reorder household essentials using the Amazon Dash Button, listen or watch Prime content with Fire TV, or schedule on-demand home services through Amazon Home Services.
“We are excited to extend our relationship with Lennar with the launch of Amazon Experience Centers. As one of the nation’s largest homebuilders, Lennar offers the potential to enable this experience within easy driving distance of millions of customers. “We wanted customers to experience a real home environment that showcases the convenience of the Alexa smart home experience, great entertainment available with Prime, and Home Services,” says Nish Lathia, general manager, Amazon Services.
In a real home setting, customers can experience how Alexa, Prime, and Amazon services come together.
Using Alexa in the experience centers, customers can adjust the thermostat, see who’s at the front door without leaving the couch, and try routines such as “Alexa, good morning” to have Alexa turn on lights, read the weather, and provide an update on commute times based on traffic.
“We picked Amazon because of our shared commitment to customers, their Amazon experts across the country, and their ability to connect customers with thousands of service providers through Amazon Home Services.”
— David Kaiserman, Lennar
Customers can also experience Amazon Prime using voice control with access to more than two million songs on Prime Music along with Prime Original movies and series.
The Experience Centers are set up by “Amazon experts,” who plan to update and refine the experience within each model home. The experts are Amazon employees who are specially trained on the latest technology, says the company.
If customers are impressed, they can bring the experience to their existing homes by booking a one-on-one session with an Amazon employee.
“Amazon’s ability to bring a home to life with Alexa smart home experiences, entertainment, and services — coupled with their obsession with customer experience — is a natural extension of our Everything’s Included approach to homebuilding,” says David Kaiserman, president of Lennar Ventures.
“We picked Amazon because of our shared commitment to customers, their Amazon experts across the country, and their ability to connect customers with thousands of service providers through Amazon Home Services.”
Amazon Experience Centers are now open in Lennar model homes in Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, Orlando, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington DC with more coming soon.
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