Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 7/ Issue 1 i Residential Tech Today

March was a busy month for the team at Just Video Walls. Showing a commitment to increasing its dealer support in the MicroLED space, the company announced a number of initiatives that will allow the brand to grow to meet those demands. All of those efforts, the company said, align with their vision to differentiate themselves by focusing “on integrators' business, not just technology transactions.” In early March, JVW announced a major expansion of its Tamarac, Florida-based headquarters and the company's sales and project engineering teams. At its facility, JVW announced that is has added another 5,500 square feet of space, allowing the company to build out an immersive Lunar Walls showroom, a state-of-the-art training center, and other features designed to enhance support capabilities. JVW invited dealers attending the mid-March…

Some things in life just make sense. And the recently announced merger of SAVI Controls and OliverIQ happens to be one of those things. The brands come together under the new SAVI iQ banner with a promise to deliver the “first AI-driven, cloud-based automation and support platform” designed for both commercial and residential integrators. That's a mouthful, but simplified, SAVI iQ is going to help integrators provide exceptional and seamless service to their clients, no matter the size of their project. Prior to merging, SAVI Controls developed an all-in-one platform that provides commercial clients simple yet sophisticated control over their unique spaces—be it a restaurant, bar, office, stadium, or retail space. OliverIQ, for its part, built an intelligent home automation platform that has allowed consumers and integrators to build unique…

While tariffs introduce challenges, they also provide a unique opportunity for CI professionals to strengthen their business operations and protect profitability. We are alarmed by some of the advice we are seeing from buying groups and other organizations on this topic. We believe Daisy and other CI professionals should take a proactive stance on the tariff situation by immediately implementing the following strategies: Improve Your Short-Term Profitability Market uncertainty provides an opportunity to improve your short-term profitability by instituting an immediate tariff surcharge of 5 percent on the total proposal price (not just the equipment portion) of all new proposals. We encourage all CI professionals to institute this surcharge immediately, as we are doing. This surcharge serves two critical purposes: 1. Cost Recovery: Navigating this new environment will inevitably incur…

The smart home industry is transforming at a rapid pace, with customer experience emerging as the ultimate competitive edge. Staying ahead of trends like artificial intelligence, voice-first technologies, and sustainability, however, is no small task. This challenge is best tackled through close communication and strong collaboration between manufacturers and their integrator partners. Just as integrators play a critical role in delivering seamless, customer-first solutions to end users, manufacturers are equally responsible for empowering their partners with the tools, training, and support they need to deliver cutting-edge smart home experiences. Let's delve into why a trusted, collaborative relationship between manufacturers and integrators is essential for success—and how it directly benefits end-customers. Developing the Right Integrator-Manufacturer Partnerships Partnering with the right manufacturer is essential for long-term success. The most effective manufacturers don't…

In The Electric State, Stanley Tucci takes on the role of Ethan Skate, a powerful tech giant who helped create a peace treaty to end a man-versus-robot war. Ahead of the release of that film, our sister publication Innovation & Tech Today sat down with Tucci to talk about the role, the movie, and the impact of tech on the film industry. Here's a snippet from the full interview, which you can find on the I&T Today website (www.innotech.com). I&T Today: You play a tech billionaire in a retro-futuristic style, which is super cool. It's funny how it speaks to a lot of things happening today—technology, tech billionaires, and so on. Can you speak to that a little bit? Tucci: Yeah, I think it's incredibly timely. There are so many…

“Our incredibly skilled tech team is transforming a section of our showroom into a commercial experience center, anchored by LG's 163” DVLED wall as well as our existing 2x2 video wall—both powered by SAVI iQ. This initiative reflects our concentrated effort to further diversify into more commercial projects. Showcasing integrated video, surveillance, access control, digital signage, and lighting makes it a valuable investment in our showroom and sales process.” —Tom Pieracki, President & Founder, Simply Automated About Simply Automated Founded: 2012 Located: Greater Pittsburgh area Completed Projects: Over 700 Markets Served: Residential & Commercial Website: www.sapgh.com…

Progressive Screens, makers of the patented MagnaTrack system, recently cut the ribbon on a brand-new manufacturing facility in Dallas, Texas. The new 138,000-square-foot facility is the second manufacturing base for the company. According to Progressive Screens, the expansion reinforces their commitment to delivering “the most durable, reliable screen systems on the market,” while also marking a significant step forward in being able to keep up with growing customer demand across the country. “As the original creators of the patented MagnaTrack system, we continue to set the standard for performance and quality,” Arthur James, President at Progressive Screens, said in a statement announcing the opening of the new facility. “While others attempt to imitate our strategies with inferior products, MagnaTrack remains focused on innovation, precision engineering, and unmatched durability.” The new,…

When it chose late-March for its second-annual Hill Day event in Washington, DC, it was purely by chance that CEDIA wound up spending time in congressional offices right before one of the most impactful days in recent geopolitical memory. With a contingent of about 30 industry representatives, CEDIA's Smart Home on Capitol Hill Day ultimately wound up being at the perfect time. Tariffs were fresh on the minds of many people on the Hill, and so too were a number of other issues impacting the workforce and supply chain around the custom integration channel—all topics that the association worked into their various conversations with lawmakers. Residential Tech Today sat down with CEDIA's Global President & CEO Daryl Friedman and Government Affairs Director Darren Reaman not long after the group's Hill…

It's uncommon for all parties involved in a new home build or remodel to completely align and agree on the design, especially a husband and wife with differing styles. However, despite their varied tastes regarding the style and design of their new seaside home, this couple achieved an ideal resolution by closely collaborating with the integration team at Newport Home Theaters and selecting high-performance Coastal Source light fixtures that Defy the Elements for their outdoor living space. Amid construction, the Newport Home Theater team planted 112 premium outdoor-rated light fixtures from Coastal Source throughout the beautiful, professionally landscaped property. With the owners' input, Newport Home Theaters chose fixtures with a low profile, appealing to both the wife's aesthetic sensibilities and the tech-savvy husband. “Coastal Source was the perfect solution for…

Green is chic. Many luxury homeowners consciously strive for carbon-neutral or net-zero homes. Electrification is a core strategy for achieving these sustainability goals: i.e., swapping out gas-fired appliances like furnaces, stoves, and water heaters for electric alternatives. The goal is an all-electric home powered by clean energy, reflecting the client's values without sacrificing comfort or performance. A carbon-neutral home needs a reliable, high-quality energy supply to live up to its promise. Power outages are increasing in frequency and duration. In addition to electrification, many luxury homeowners now demand the ability to “island” from the grid for days or weeks by drawing power from battery walls, renewables, and/or a backup generator. Ironically, electrification itself can contribute to grid instability. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has warned that electrification without smart management…

A combination of the Latin words “Acutulus” (smart) and “Ara” (home), Aqara was founded in 2009 and has grown to be one of the largest manufacturers of smart home products in the world. Their portfolio of product is installed in over 12 million customers homes, in more than 170 countries and territories, and accounts for some 36 million activated devices. The Aqara Light Switch H2 US is among the more-recently launched devices in their lineup. The smart wall switch is designed to control lighting in your home with enhanced functionality, usability, and automation capabilities. The switch features a touch control interface, support for multiple IoT protocols, connects via the Aqara app, and can be controlled by any popular voice assistant—and more. Setup of the Light Switch H2 is quite easy,…

Ahead of registration opening for the 2025 CEDIA Expo, CEDIA, the Association for Smart Home Professionals, announced a fresh take on the educational conference that will run alongside the annual trade show. The association has tapped veteran integrator and industry expert Amanda Wildman as a short-term consultant to help lead and organize the education program. In the role, Wildman will help curate a full slate of cutting-edge classes that will be taught by industry leaders and organized into relevant tracks. Business, Technical, Design & Build, and Future Focus. “The CEDIA Education Conference isn't just an event—it's a highlight of the year for smart home professionals who want to up their game,” CEDIA Global President and CEO, Daryl Friedman, said in a statement. “As the industry continues to evolve at lightning…

Sensor-driven automations that require no user actions are the best way to control a smart home. However, there are times when homeowners need to manually turn on/off lights, adjust a thermostat, or change the volume of music. Voice commands, with the widespread adoption of inexpensive smart speakers, are a simple way to control a smart home, but have their own flaws. (Raise your hand if you've ever gotten mad at Siri or Alexa for misunderstanding a request.) Shortcut Labs—a Swedish company founded in 2013 and the developer of the Flic smart button—now manufactures several products under the Flic brand that are designed to simplify how users interact with their smart home. Leveraging simple taps and twists, their products, like the Flic Button 2, the Flic Twist, and the Flic Hub,…

Residential Tech Today recently had the chance to tour a show home designed by One-Touch Automation in Westfield, Indiana. In the home, owner Ryan McDaniel converted a loft and bedroom area into the full-blown home theater pictured here. So many elements help make this space as incredible as it is, but here's a look at some of our favorite spec'd out features. Not pictured: The kickass power sliding pocket door from Future Automation. The room is controlled by Savant. SKYWORTH Clarus Outdoor Full Sun TV — Unleash the ultimate outdoor cinematic experience with the SKYWORTH Clarus Outdoor Full Sun TV. Designed to defy the elements, its ultra-bright, anti-glare 4K Mini-LED screen conquers direct sunlight, while robust IP66 and IK10 ratings ensure enduring durability. Immerse yourself in breathtaking visuals powered by…