Smart Home

What at first glance looks like a very smart cordless telephone is actually hiding a few neat tricks up its sleeve, as the Siedle Scope can also control a lot of your home technology.

While it connects to your landline and works just like a regular phone, including caller identification, its other main strength is security. The full-colour screen on the handset can be used to access and control remote security cameras located about your property. So if you hear the doorbell you can look to see who it is and even open the door for them, all via the handset. It will even let you control your electric blinds, lights and garage door.

The Scope is from German design firm Siedle, specialists in home technology with products ranging from intercoms to thumb-print scanners. Prices for the Siedle Scope start at £600.

Find out more here: http://www.siedle.com

The evolution of the latest home automation 'mod-cons', that start out as a gimmicky gadget and then often become a common home appliance, is driven by our desire for added functionality and convenience. Many appliances can now fully automate - or lessen the effort required for - everyday tasks in all areas of the home. Our own remote control blinds can be fully automated to operate at certain times of the day, offering the highest in convenience for window blind operation.

The kitchen is a major area for ever-improving functionality in appliances. Predictions for the kitchen of the future involve devices that utilise modern technology and materials to reduce the amount of hard work necessary to get what you want from your kitchen.

Examples of the appliances that could be coming into the home kitchen include a remote controlled cooker that will switch itself on to be ready as soon as the user returns home, a smart fridge that incorporates a display to show information such as your nutritional needs, and the captivating idea of a 3D food fabricating printer.

The sales of 3D printers has been rising since 2003 and, consequently, the costs have decreased. The 3D food printer is currently only at the design and development stage, but has the potential to transform the way we obtain certain foods by offering a choice of foods that can be fabricated, in the home, from liquids, gels or pastes that are loaded into the 'printer' in the form of cartridges.

Another interesting development in kitchen technology, that is closer to becoming domestically available, is Philips Green Cuisine Concept. The Green Cuisine features a large centre island tabletop that will sense everything you set down on it and can cook or cool food and beverages wherever they are placed. In accordance with the increasing eco-friendly nature of home appliances, beneath the tabletop is a composter that could allow you to reuse much of your waste.

Smart appliances can even be obtained today that are unlikely to look out of place once the kitchen is filled with future hi-tech conveniences. In particular, the stylish, yet practical, design of the Samsung RFG299 French Door Refrigerator shows a lot of consideration with regards to maximising the product's storage space. It uses urethane insulation, that allows the wall thickness to be reduced while remaining just as efficient with regards to power demand. This refrigerator also features a 7-inch LCD touch screen that allows control of the temperature and the water filter and provides access to calendars, schedules, nutritional facts and unit conversions, as well as the ability to showcase photos.

Thanks to the continuing improvements in home appliance technology, the next time you are doing a tedious task at home and think: 'I wish there was an appliance that could help me with this', it is possible that someone somewhere could already be working on the appliance you need.

Despite being estimated at a distance of 149,597,900 km away from Earth, our nearest star, the Sun, has an undeniable effect on our everyday lives. For instance, it is the Sun's rays that we, here at Controliss blinds, are giving people control over with all of the electric window blinds we deliver. Throughout history, many civilizations have utilised the Sun's phenomenal power. From the ancient sun dials and water distillation methods, to modern day uses such as electricity generation and heat gain for buildings, or nearest star can certainly be considered one of our most important natural resources.

Now there's a really cool way to predict to predict where that wonderful sunshine will be at the time of day that you need it – or the times when you do not need it. Thanks to Australian iPhone and iPad app development specialists, ozPDA, nature's ultimate multi-purpose tool can now be a little more predictable. They have developed Sun Seeker app that, combining the iPhone or iPad's 3GS, built-in GPS and camera, can show a 3D view of where the Sun will be at specific times of the day and even specific times of the year. This is displayed on the screen of the iPhone or iPad overlaid on top of the camera view.

The Sun Seeker app may provide incredibly useful information for individuals in various professions, for example, landscaping. Better consideration could be given to help decide on the optimal position for buildings, plants etc to best utilise the effects of the Sun at certain times of the year.

With other features at this app's disposal, including an overhead map view and a display of details such as sunset/sunrise times and elevation angles, the Sun Seeker app (available as a download for just £2.99 from the iTunes store) could prove to be much better value than similar apps; whether intended as a professional aid or just something to play around with. Of course, if excessive heat and glare from the Sun do become a problem, regardless, the team at Controliss blinds just might be able to recommend the ideal solution...

Getting the keys to a new home is one of the most exciting experiences for us all, however stepping through the the door for the first time often brings home the realisation that actually your new house will need a great deal of TLC to turn it into your ideal home. Sob, the tears start rolling down your face and the bank manager needs to be phoned!

But there is not necessarily any need to panic, a new home should be seen as a new venture, it is exciting, fresh and new, after all you want something that you can put you own mark on and add your own character to.

Let’s face facts, unless you are not constrained by small details like a budget then achieving your ultimate abode is not something that will happen overnight, no instead (as my in-laws keep telling me) it takes more than a few years to get your house to look like a home.

Although this may be the case (sadly), there are a some great cost effective steps you can take to make your new house seem more like a home sooner rather than later!

Firstly, a lick of paint can do wonders for any room. A fresh, new colour palette really can make a drab room appear fresh and new!

Secondly, remove those moth-bitten curtains from the window and instead replace them with our inexpensively priced and super fabulous roller blinds, vertical blinds, venetian blinds or wood blinds. Dressing your window really will make a difference as it is common knowledge that people look towards a window when they enter a room.

Third and finally is that old furniture and home accessories that your grandma kindly gave you (disgusting but appreciated).  All you have to do here is adopt a little imagination. Sand down and add a lick of paint to that old, dark wood sideboard, spray that distressed mirror frame black and dye those pink sheets red. Imagination really can turn something drab into something fab in no time.

So, wipe away those tears, get excited about your new venture and let the process begin!

Being in the window blinds business, we here at Controliss have always been fascinated with the latest innovations in window technology. On the horizon are windows that can be incorporated into air conditioning, heating, and energy systems within the home. What's keeping us excited are the smart window technology that we’re seeing more and more of, such as that of electrochromic glass technology.

Although they're not yet commercialised, electrochromic glass technology can pave the way to smart windows. The theory is that a pane of glass will be able to change its opacity from transparent to translucent through a remote control. The translucent window will completely block out the sunlight whenever you prefer it. Electrochromic glass will change how it transmits light as a response to the voltage and electricity that will be applied to it. In this way, light and heat that passes through the glass will be controlled.

This kind of technology will need all windows to be wired electrically so that windows can be opened and closed for security and ventilation purposes. When this kind of technology is mass-marketed, having windows control light and heat will be commonplace. Imagine the possibilities that this kind of technology can do to our society. At this very moment, solar powered windows are being developed to generate electricity although this electricity might only be used to power the windows itself.

Although these developments in window technology very exciting, we know that these kind of smart windows sold to the general public are extremely expensive and out of reach for most people. The closest things to smart windows are smart window blinds, such as electric window blinds. Controliss electric blinds do not need any professional installation in order to work and are powered by standard  AA and AAA batteries that you can commonly find anywhere. Choose from our extensive range of wooden blinds, venetian blinds, vertical blinds, and roller blinds. We’re sure that we’ll have the perfect window blind to fit your personal preferences.

Just recently, Plex, an open platform that revolutionises how users manage and consume media, has teamed up with LG, integrating the Plex platform into the latest generation of HDTVs and Blu-ray devices. This platform allows people to synchronise their personal and online media content across different media, such as the computer, television, and mobile phones.

As new technologies are being introduced, Controliss is amazed at how our quality of life has improved. Imagine the possibilities of a seamless viewing experience. You wake up in your bedroom and open the TV for your daily dose of morning news. Then, as you lazily go to your kitchen for a cup of coffee, you open your kitchen TV and the TV will know what you’ve been watching in your bedroom TV. As you put on your suit, you’re still watching the same channel. Then, you're off to your daily commute and you're still watching the same channel. How cool is that?

Now that we’re celebrating the possibilities of a seamless viewing experience, why don’t you match this revolutionary technology with equally innovative remote-controlled blackout roller blinds? Our premium remote-controlled black-out roller blinds are the height of luxury. With a single touch of a button, you can block the sun out and enjoy the experience of a theatre-like feel in your very own home.

A member of the Controliss Blinds team came across these ultra covert electrical accessories available in various guises for light switches, sockets and dimmers.
Approaching the electrical fitment market from an aesthetic perspective, Forbes & Lomax transparent, acrylic plates allow wallpaper and paint to show through the fitment combing an aesthetically pleasing finish with up-to-date electrical components. The Invisible range is available with a choice of toggle switches including Brass and Stainless steel and the user friendly dimming system allows custom programming scenes with remote control options.

At only £8.99 the Controliss blinds remote control handset will control up to 99 blinds and offers 6 programmable channels but the idea of controlling your blinds with an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad is to tantalising to resist.

The i-Got-Control universal learning remote and free software download may just be the answer. Codes for our the Controliss infrared blinds protocol will not be pre-installed but as soon as we get our hands on one of the i-Got-it Controls we'll test the infrared learning capabilities with our blinds.

The fast approaching Smart Home Expo is the perfect event for Controliss Blinds to explore the latest home automation technologies.

Organised by CEDIA, the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association, the Home Technology Event is the only dedicated product and training event for smart home innovations. The trade event showcases an ever growing portfolio of products and services for designers, installers, integrators and specifiers of electronic systems in the home.

Featuring the latest innovations and technologies in home cinema, blinds, audio-video solutions, lighting control, structured wiring, HVAC control, and security systems plus the most diverse education and conference programme the industry has to offer.

Following its 12th year, CEDIA Expo re-affirmed its position as THE event for anyone involved in residential custom installation. This exhibition, which runs alongside CEDIA's extensive seminar programme, is used as a launch pad and showcase by manufacturers and distributors allowing visitors to see, experience and discuss the latest products and technology available.

Exhibition Dates: 15 - 17 June 2010