Home Automation

Take a geek and a PC, add one soldering iron, a home, and a copy of Home Hacking Projects for Geeks, and you’ll give new meaning to the term, “home improvement.” From fearless neophytes to tool-wielding masterminds, the home hacker in any geek will find new inspiration and plenty of hands-on guidance to take on a variety of home-transforming projects once relegated to the world of sci-fi.

This fun new guide combines creativity with electricity and power tools to achieve cool–and sometimes even practical–home automation projects. Never again will you have to flip a light switch when you enter a room or use a key to open your front door. With a few off-the-shelf devices, some homemade hardware, and a little imagination, you can be living in your own high-tech habitat.

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So much of what is commonplace today was once considered impossible, or at least wishful thinking. Laser beams in the operating room, cars with built-in guidance systems, cell phones with email access. There’s just no getting around the fact that technology always has, and always will be, very cool.

But technology isn’t only cool; it’s also very smart. That’s why one of the hottest technological trends nowadays is the creation of smart homes.

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Graphically control any OmniLT, Omni II or OmniPro II automation controller with this colorful, plug-and-play touchscreen interface! The unit features a 3.9 inch color, touch-sensitive LCD screen with backlighting that adjusts automatically to ambient lighting conditions and turns off when not in use. Simply connect it to any HAI Omni system, and you’ll have instant graphical control of security, HVAC, lighting and other home control functions via easy-to-recognize icons.

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Adding a wireless camera to your home’s security plan can provide peace of mind. The Day/Night Wireless Camera & Receiver combines this serenity with ease of use. The weather-resistant wireless camera transmits audio and video to the receiver over a distance of 325 feet without running any video cables, so installation takes only a few minutes. The color camera transmits even in low light, and the 2.4GHz receiver connects directly to a monitor or recording device.

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The Acenti™ Collection, the broadest new-product launch in Leviton’s history, creates a new class of premium-grade wiring devices for America’s luxury homes.

“One of the virtues of the Acenti Collection is that it allows architects and designers to create a consistent design statement down to the last detail,� said James Sherman, Leviton’s marketing director for residential products. “We’ve committed to launch a complete residential line, with 40 different devices and components, to achieve a unified design throughout the home.�

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If you’re ready to automate your home but are more comfortable with projects outlined step by step, a guide aimed at the savvy, do-it-yourself consumer will get you on your way. Created by the Technica Pacifica staff, Easy X10 Projects for Creating a Smart Home can assist with the design and installation of a wide variety of X10-related devices. You select the project, and this book will guide you through the steps from preparation to completion.

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Ok folks, this isn’t an April Fool’s Day joke. This is for real. Just imagine being able to control all of your X10 products and remote controls from your computer. Using ActiveHome, you can. Monitor your surveillance cameras, control your home via the Web, set up schedules to turn lights automatically on and off, create macros to perform certain sequences of functions. You can even extend the capability of the software by using their Software Development Kit (SDK). The kit also comes with a handheld remote control that would let you control your typical Audio Video equipment (TV, VCR, Satellite Receiver, etc.)

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ActiveHome Computer Controlled Remote SystemRead More »