Lexington, Ky.
–
plans April
shipments of the first components in its g! series of IP-based home-control
systems as part of a staggered rollout continuing throughout the year.
Systems built from
Elan’s g!-series components will cost consumers 25 percent to 30 percent less
per zone than the HomeLogic-brand systems they will replace. HomeLogic, a
manufacturer of IP-based home-control systems, was acquired by Elan in 2007,
and the brand is being phased out as Elan phases in its g! series.
With the launch of
the g! series, Elan is also adding control from a TV display and built-in
streaming if Internet music services. The series will also deliver a unified
user interface on multiple types of display devices ranging from TVs,
touchscreens, a touchpad, iPhones and iPod Touches, and Windows PCs and
laptops. When a g!-series app is installed, Wi-Fi- and Ethernet-networked
Windows PCs and laptops will control home systems whether the computer is in
the house or off-site. Likewise, home systems can be controlled via Wi-Fi from
within the house or remotely from iPhones and iPod Touches. iPhones will also
control home systems from afar via cellular.
Home systems that
can be controlled from g!-series products include security, climate, lighting,
entertainment, irrigation and pool/spa systems.
When all g!
components are available, system costs for end users will fall below $1,000 for
a single-room g! control system, and a four-zone system with three
opening-price in-wall touchpads and an iPhone/touch app would cost less than
$5,000, said Elan marketing manager Eric Harper. The prices exclude
installation and the cost of home systems controlled from g!-series devices.
The g! products shipping
in April include the $610-suggested TS2 Film Interactive OLED Touchpad,
third-party drivers to control most popular A/V and whole-home systems, and
control interfaces for the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Windows PCs.
Also in April,
Elan will ship three existing components previously sold under the HomeLogic
brand but upgraded to include g! series software. They are the HomeBrick and
MultiBrick IP controllers and the Profile 700 in-wall LCD touchscreen. The
HomeBrick and MultiBrick attach to Network Attached Storage (NAS) drives to
store and manage music, photos, and security-camera video. The HomeBrick adds
embedded hard drive.
The two Bricks will
ship through August, when they will be replaced by the $3,000 HC12 and $1,950
HC6 controllers. Also in August, Elan will ship the $1,700 TS7 7-inch LCD
touchscreen to replace the Profile 700 touchscreen.
Here’s what the
April and August products feature:
The double-gang
TS2 4-inch touchpad features 2-inch high-resolution OLED display and offers
two-way feedback and control of multiroom-audio systems, lighting scenes,
climate control and security arming/disarming. It also displays weather
forecasts and time of day on its home screen.
The HC12 and HC6
controllers feature 1080i component output to display a GUI on a flat-panel TV.
They also manage music, photos, and stored security-camera video. That content
can be stored on the HC12’s embedded 450GB hard disk drive as well as on a
network-attached storage device connected to the HC12. The HC6 lacks embedded
HDD but connects to NAS drives. Both controllers also stream the Rhapsody and
Pandora Internet music services and the Shoutcast Internet radio service. Both
components feature two-zone audio output.
Like the HomeBrick
and MultiBrick controllers, the HC12 and HC6 come with drivers to control
Sony’s 400-disc Blu-ray megachanger.
The HC12’s
connectivity options consist of 12 serial ports, 12 IR inputs, two RS485 ports,
two Elan VIA!Net ports, six sensing inputs, four relays, and two USB ports. The
HC6 cuts the number of serial ports to six.
The 7-inch TS7
LED-backlit LCD touchscreen features live, full-screen video to display security-camera
video and TV shows. Six hard buttons are available for often-used functions,
and an integrated microphone and speaker enable intercom functions.
Other planned
products include a TS10 10-inch LCD touchscreen, planned for sometime during
the third quarter. By year’s end, the company plans to ship the HR2 RF handheld
remote and HC4 behind-the-TV controller.
To go with the g!
series, Elan already offers its first lighting-control system, which sends
control si-series controllers. The g!-series controllers also support all major
other-brand lighting systems.
