Central Coast Audio Visual

Science fiction writers like Ray Bradbury speculated about the wonders and dangers of smart houses back in the 1950s. By the late ’70s, companies had begun developing primitive systems that could transmit simple commands through a home’s electrical wires. Today’s home-automation systems use a combination of wired and wireless technology to enable fingertip control of every electrical or electronic device in the house. Software developer Rick Dwyer of Hingham worked with Advanced Communication Technologies of Rockland to install such a system in his roughly 6,000-square-foot, $1.8 million home. At first, “I didn’t really know the full scope of what was possible,” Dwyer said. “I said, ‘all right, so tell me what’s possible, and figure out where we want to lie.’ ” Today, he strolls through his home, iPad in hand, master of the house. Using software developed by Savant Systems LLC , Dwyer can remotely control home heating or cooling, tune in a basketball game on the living room TV, and...

Bathroom mirrors that turn into flat-screen televisions and air conditioners that turn on before you get home, while wooden work desks light up with a sweep of a hand. “Smart” homes, once the purview of the wealthy or tech-obsessed, are an increasingly accessible aspect of modern living, with technologies once considered futuristic and unattainable now within easy grasp of everyday homeowners. “Pretty much every project I'm working on, the client requests some sort of hi-tech application,” says Wendy Raizin, founder of Raizin Design in New York, Miami and Los Angeles. “Throughout all different levels, worldwide, people are taking advantage of technology in their homes.” The applications range from practical (security systems that enable you to see what's going on in your house from thousands of kilometres away) to indulgent (sensor-controlled bidets that wash and dry). But there is no disputing that the category is a burgeoning one. Read more: http://www.scmp.com/art...

While the increasing use of home automation technology to create your version of a ‘smart house’ may be all the trend and seem practical, Richard Keymer Head of Pre-sales at SecureData Africa warns of the flipside in that once an automation system is established and can be operated remotely online, then chances are it can be hacked. “A growing trend in electronics is to have them integrate with your home network in order to provide potentially useful features such as automatic updates or to extend the usefulness of existing technologies such as remotely controlling irrigation systems, pool pumps, garage doors, cameras and other devices. This allows their owners to turn these things on and off with a Smartphone app or via the Web. “However, what living in this world of network-connected in fact means is that we run even greater risk of being compromised. Even more terrifying is that while in the past a compromise only meant your data was out of control, today it can enable control o...

Unsecured automated homes provide an easy access to data about home owners and could be used by burglars seeking access to properties, German researchers have found. In a series of experiments, IT security experts from the University of Saarland proved that eavesdropping on wireless home automation systems doesn’t require extensive knowledge of the system and could be easily carried out by a determined attacker equipped with a simple PC. ‘Non-encrypted systems provide large quantities of data to anyone determined enough to access the data, and the attacker requires no prior knowledge about the system, nor about the user being spied on,’ said Professor Christop Sorge, who led the Saarland University team. ‘The data acquired by the attacker can be analysed to extract system commands and status messages, items which reveal a lot about the inhabitants’ behaviour and habits.” Using the data extracted from a home automation system installed in a house of two volunteers, the researche...

Lighting, security systems, heating and air-conditioning and other now-obvious extensions to this control system presented themselves with breath-taking frequency, aided by the spread of the affordable, compact, user-friendly computers. The concept of phoning home from one’s car to adjust the ambient temperature on the way back from work, turning on the oven to re-heat some leftovers, or checking the fridge to see if there’s enough milk have all been made real. Crestron can automate and integrate to levels of simplicity no more terrifying than using a microwave oven. A fully “Crestron’d” home leaves little for the inhabitants to do but employ and enjoy their various appliances’ functions, minus the tears. The leap from movies and music, and now multi-media gaming, to life-enhancing convenience and piece of mind, involved the sourcing or manufacturing of powered blinds and curtains, accessing in-home computer networks, and “talking” to the latest smart appliances. But there was a ca...

In case you’re not familiar, Piper is an all-in-one home security device that lets you keep an eye on your home from anywhere in the world through a mobile app. Its motion sensor makes it simple to be notified when someone enters your house, and you can even turn Piper into an intercom from your phone. The second-generation Piper nv looks almost exactly like the original, except for a new ring of infrared sensors around the 180-degree camera. The “nv” bit stands for night vision, and those sensors let you see what’s happening in your home even in near pitch black conditions. The camera’s resolution is also improved, and now offers sharp video with a 3.4-megapixel sensor. Read more: http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2015/01/smart-home-security-guard-piper-now-has-night-vision/

I'm in love with the smart home. I bought a Nest thermostat when it was released, Philips Hue light bulbs, and the Nest Protect smoke detector (which, sadly, was great when it worked, but terrible when it didn't). I can open my garage door from my iPhone, and it's all wonderful (except for the smoke detectors). I'm even more in love with devices that talk to each other to make the whole system better, and that's why I adore the Haiku fan from Big Ass Fans, located in Lexington, Kentucky. The Haiku is the residential offering from Big Ass Fans, who got their name from the truly enormous fans the company designed for commercial applications like restaurants, gyms, and warehouses. Made in America, the fans are luxury products with a price tag to match. The "smart" version of the 52" and 60" Haiku fan starts at $1,045 (a non-internet connected version is $150 cheaper) in a black or white composite material, with caramel or cocoa bamboo finishes...