The OmniMount PLAY40 flat panel wall mount offers some of the most versatile and smooth TV positioning available in TV wall mounts.
You use your TV for many purposes throughout the day. With this mount, you can adjust the positioning of your TV for the specific activity.
Gadget expert Scott Steinberg named OmniMount’s PLAY products the best tech of 2012. this short video provides an excellent preview of its versatility!
Seura has done it again with another innovative TV application. This one is for outdoor viewing. Now this sounds like a great way to stay tuned in.
“Meet Storm, the perfect partner for behind the tiki bar to watch the championship during your picnic. Storm is a beautiful complement to that focal point outdoor fireplace. Play with the kids in the pool while catching up on today’s headlines. Soak up the sun while enjoying your favorite flick. Don’t miss a moment of the big game while tending the grill. Storm is expertly engineered to protect against harsh outdoor conditions such as rain, snow, wind, insects, and dust. Completely sealed out, contaminants are unable to damage, clog, or obstruct the television electronics. Storm’s robust metal construction is as tough as it is sophisticated. Unassumingly elegant, weather-proof, and strong, Storm’s armor resists fading and corrosion. Whether tested by Mother Nature or a stray baseball, Storm’s rugged build will continue to perform unscathed.”
Hanging the flat panel TV on the wall using an articulating wall mount has become very popular. But Salamander Designs has created a new line of cabinets for installations where wall space is at a minimum.
Salamander has created a line of two door, corner cabinets available in nine different styles. There are 29 corner cabinet designs in all. We have used Salamander in our installations for many years. There products are well made and very attractive.
Check out this new line from Salamander. It may be just the solution you’ve been looking for.
There is much debate about how these retail giants syphon sales from all the smaller retailers and the resulting macro impact to our nation. Our apparent addiction to getting the cheapest price fuels a spiral of cheap labor and manufacturing overseas and subsequently grows our landfills with broken products. (ok…I am showing my colors here).
I conclude that it isn’t the large companies that are evil. In fact it is us, the consumers, which have created these behemoths. The corporate leaders were just savvy enough to capitalize on our weakness for getting a “good deal” and staying in our comfort zone of convenience. As consumers, we are drawn like a moth to a light to do business in these stores as we can get everything we need, in one stop (or click) at a great price.
As a proprietor of a small “bricks and mortar” establishment I humbly ask you to stop and think about your next purchase. Although less convenient, I would argue that a local small store will give you much better attention and even some real honest to goodness advice on what would be the best item for your needs. While there, you’ll probably bump into a neighbor and have a nice chat. The person at the checkout will remember you and ask how the kids are doing. Great stuff. And guess what, if you really study the price, you would see that it isn’t much different.
So please take a chance on us small guys. Down deep our goal is to take care of you and to stay in business for the long haul. If you let us fall, all that will be left are these big guys, their stockholders and quarterly earnings reports, who will be seeking more and more efficient ways to have you fuel spiral.
This commercial caught my eye-I love the message and my local Ace Hardware Store.
We all know there is an app for everything. And although many provide hours of mental escape, most are admittedly trivial. But we are pleased to announce a family of apps that provide security, safety and reassurance.
More and more customers are requesting surveillance cameras be included in the home electronics system design. First of all, the sight of a camera, and intruders do look for them, serves as a huge deterrent. But even a very low profile, aesthetic friendly camera greatly enhances peace of mind.
• Check for flooding of storm damage while you are out of town.
• Keep an eye on the pool area, nursery or in-law apartment while working in the home.
• Get a visual of visitors as they enter the driveway or knock at the door.
• Leaving the teenagers in charge for the weekend?………
• And obviously, deter, detect and record the identity of potential intruders.
Typically, we install 4 strategically placed cameras, a dedicated 4 channel DVR to record the activity caught on camera, a local monitor for real-time viewing, an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) and an app which provides remote access ( real time and recorded video) via your smart phone, tablet pc or computer. You can set up the app to send an email when certain events are triggered such as motion detection. With certain cameras, you can even use the app to remotely pan, tilt and zoom the camera to get a better view of the location.
You can view the video of the Wirepath Surveillance app on our website by clicking here!
Cameras are designed to suit a variety of functions including indoor/outdoor use, 360 degree capture (dome camera) and ‘covert’ cameras which look like a smoke or motion detector. Like most products, pricing is based on the camera’s features. Some are optimized for recording in low light, high resolution or include pan/tilt/zoom functionality.
The DVR Price points vary depending on the amount of data (time and resolution) which can record and stored.
We are currently providing a complete surveillance package for $2495. The system includes: 4 indoor/outdoor, standard resolution, fixed view cameras, a 4 channel DVR, a 17” local monitor, power supplies and UPS, the free mobile app, installation of cameras, system calibration and user tutorial. Wiring material and wire installation are priced separately based on installation conditions. Installation site requires high speed, wired internet access.
Call to Action! Give us a call to set up an appointment today!
Can an inexpensive iPad or mobile device app replace the need for a more expensive ‘purpose built’ control interface for your automated home systems.
Great question, and the answer is, “Absolutely –your tablet or smart phone will work wonderfully-in most situations…”
Tablets, like the iPad, or mobile phones are an excellent and cost effective tool for getting system controls for much less money than a purpose built device like the Crestron wireless touchpanel
or handheld WiFi touchpanel.
You can do everything on a tablet that a purpose built device can do. Control music, lights, heat and even see cameras – all from one app. Crestron has even developed the Mobile Pro App for just that purpose. this.
So what is the drawback and why not use tablets and mobil devices for everything?
The simple answer is convenience.
Convenience you say…..but a tablet and mobil device is always by my side……how can that not be convenient?
The reality is that these mobil devices are not entirely convenient when it comes to quick simple tasks like turning down the volume or changing channels on the TV.
Imagine for example, that you have the tunes going at a good volume while cooking dinner. You’re jamming out, enjoying the music and all of a sudden a phone call comes in. What do you do? How do you quickly turn down the volume? Answer: With a mobile device, there is nothing quick about it. You have to first locate the device…maybe your pocket, maybe on the counter, or maybe little Jonny is playing a game with it. Then you have to activate the device (2 seconds), open the app (2 seconds), let it sync up (4 seconds) and then turn down the volume. Now 8-12 seconds may not seem like a lot, but in this scenario, it’s an eternity and will leave you feeling anxious and rattled. Enough so, that you may stop jamming out to loud music. Now that’s a shame.
Instead, imagine a keypad or touch panel permanently fixed to the wall that has dedicated buttons for volume and mute. You calmly walk over and push the button. Instant response. No anxiety. No pole vaulting around the kitchen. No swearing at your kids for using the iPad like a toy. And when the call is over, just turn it back up and rock out baby.
So what does this mean? Well, having mobil control is convenient in one way and is great as a back-up tool, but it should never be relied upon as a primary device in rooms or areas of the home where you need real convenience. Mobil devices will allow you to save expense but will not supplant the usefulness of at least one or two dedicated devices.
A few months ago our 14 year old son asked for a texting plan on his phone. I know. He’s 14! Some of his friends have been texting since 4th grade or before. When he asked last year, we said “no, if you want to talk to your friends, pick up the phone and talk.” We explained the importance of verbal communication and how its very existence is being threatened in this digital age. There is the very real fear that the obsession with texting will become a life threatening activity when he is in a vehicle. We further expressed our concern about texting being another distraction from the important commitments in his life like family, school work, piano, sports, hobbies and real life and face to face social interaction.
So a year has passed since the initial denial of texting privileges and I am happy to report that he is a happy, athletic, well read, social, honor roll student. He earned a basic texting plan and uses it wisely. We now see the benefit in this quick, easy form of communication-as a supplement to real life communication.
So, at the same time we added a texting plan to our son’s account, we added a plan to mine. Having exceeded my basic plan by double on the first month, I was immediately upgraded to unlimited!
My name is Leslie and I am a textaholic.
This morning my addiction took me to a new low. In an effort to communicate privately with my husband, without being overheard or interrupted by a child, I texted him. He was sitting 6 feet from me. I’m truly not sure if that makes me really clever or really pathetic.
My son and I spent the better part of Friday evening laughing ‘til we cried at ‘auto correct’ texting fails. If you are looking for a laugh, check it out! http://damnyouautocorrect.com/ .
All kidding aside, please NEVER text and drive.
We are so pleased that the Fall 2011 issue of Coastal Home Magazine features the home of one of our favorite clients. The Archibald’s home reflects their warm, inviting lifestyle in every detail, right down to the Green Monster in the back yard. We were referred to the couple by the builder, Ron Houghton, and met with them early in the house design process to ensure that the systems they wanted to incorporate could be seamlessly integrated into the infrastructure of the home. During this initial consultation, we learned that music is an important element in their daily life. We developed and installed (prior to sheet rocking the walls) a structured wiring plan to accommodate not only in-ceiling speakers, but also audio, video and data distribution. The finished home features a Crestron Adagio system which provides music in the kitchen, dining room, family room, sun room, patio, office and basement recreation room. In any given space, the user can select from 4 different sources of music including AM/FM, XM, iPod or CD. The music source selection and volume is controlled in most rooms via a wall mounted key pad. For convenience and usability, they elected to use a 6 inch touch panel as the main music system interface in the highly trafficked kitchen/dining area.
As mentioned, the structured wiring also supports internet access, a Pakedge wireless network and the video distribution including a 50 inch wall mounted plasma TV. Since this is in a large, open area, we enhanced the audio quality by adding a Bay Audio speaker bar and compact Integra amplifier. The components; HD cable, Blu-ray player, cable box and amplifier are all stored out of sight, in custom cabinetry fabricated by Jamie Gowing.
And finally, since Rainwise and I share the same home town, I must mention the Rainwise weather system we installed which provides information on wind speed, barometric pressure, wind chill and temperature. They have provided excellent products over the years!
We thank the Archibald’s for choosing DC Home Systems as their integrator and look forward to providing them with great service for years to come.
Ever since the start of my career in consumer electronics and every time I meet a new person who learns of my career I get the dreaded question:” You must have a great system at your house?”
The answer was always been the same; A nervous laugh followed by the comment that the “cobbler never has any shoes”.
Yes, it is true. For the last 20 years I have walked around barefoot in my electronic home. All of my “stuff” has been a mishmash of older components strung together with left over patch cables and power strips. Quite a sight to behold for the home of an electronics “professional”. (“Honestly” Leslie interjects, “We’ve had some cool technologies over the years…”
Why you ask? Money, time and priorities. Plus, when you are around the stuff all day, it seems crazy to have it at night too. At least so I thought.
Everything changed last month.
I took some bucks I had saved in the kitty and bought, installed and programmed (myself) an integrated system for entertainment, lighting and HVAC control. My house now has an in-wall touch panel, keypads, smart switches, communicating thermostats, iPad and iPhone control, streaming radio, XM, etc., etc., etc.
We didn’t just get new shoes, we got Nike high-tops with brightly colored laces and pump up soles.
While I was carefully removing each new Crestron Prodigy device from its den of cardboard, styrofoam and plastic, I wondered if it would make a difference in our home. Of course our teenage sons would think it was “sick” and all, but how would it be for Leslie and me? Maybe the Wal-Mart “Air-tops” would have been sufficient?
I can honestly say it is great fun. I am now experiencing what I have been telling my clients all along. Sentences like: “You will discover your music again” and “If it is simple to use, you’ll use it” and “You’ll find it so convenient” are all true. In fact, we have been really enjoying our new system so much that I keep obsessing about how I can add to it. So, now I look forward to meeting someone new with the hope that they will ask the question. Heck, I might even try to bring it up because it’s really cool to have new shoes and it feels great to be a proud cobbler.
