CE Pro July 2024 - 58

CE Products
FIELD TEST | EDITOR'S PICK | NEW PRODUCTS
New Shades & OS
Point Crestron
Toward Ultimate
Smart Home
Experience
By Robert Archer
WHEN CRESTRON announced
its Home platform
several years ago, it was
universally applauded by its
authorized dealers.
Since then, the company
has steadily bolstered the
platform through the availability
of products, including
its NVX solutions, lighting
products, and its new Battery
Powered Shades.
Keeping up with the
pace of its product launches,
Crestron also recently
introduced an update to its
Crestron Home operating
system - OS 4.
Through OS 4, as well as
products like the battery
powered shades, and its LED
lighting fixtures, the Rockleigh,
N.J.-based company
is providing integrators with
everything they need to
meet the hottest requests in
the smart home market.
Addressing my need for
new motorized shades (more
on that later), Crestron
sent along a pair of the new
Battery Powered Shades,
58 | CE Pro July 2024
which were installed by my
integrators, Danvers, Mass.based
Audio Innovations.
Shades & OS 4:
Features & Setup
Prior to the installation of
the shades, Jon Herbster,
co-owner of Audio Innovations,
swung by my house to
measure the windows. My
wife and I also chose a fabric
and color for the shades,
so once Herbster completed
the measurements, that
info was sent to Crestron to
manufacture the shades.
Features that the Battery
Powered Shades include
are the ability to notify
the homeowner when the
batteries are running low
and need replacement.
Internally, the shades use
the quiet and efficient QMT
motor that is designed to
maximize battery life, which
is specified for three years.
Supporting the ability to
integrate the shades into
a variety of home environments,
Crestron backs the
Crestron Electronics offers the Battery Powered Shades
in more than 400 fabrics.
Battery Powered Shades
with more than 400 fabrics,
including 240 designer-led
choices. Crestron offers the
shades with its Architectural
and Décor bracket options.
Debuting at CEDIA Expo
2023, the Crestron OS 4
platform utilized input from
dealers and homeowners
as part of its development.
Crestron states after learning
modern smart homes are
incorporating more devices
and that consumers want
easier methods to control
their lighting, HVAC, and
AV, it implemented that
feedback into the development
of OS 4.
One of the major components
of OS 4 is that it
provides integrators with the
ability to employ just about
any lighting protocol with
drivers for lighting solutions
available from the company.
Visually, the updated
OS features new graphics
and icons, along with
filters and room lists that
make it easier to navigate.
Crestron points out the
filters enables users to find
the specific function they
are looking for with fewer
screen " taps. " Crestron OS
4's compact view allows
users to see multiple rooms
at once, and its toggle
function allows users to
switch from a grid to list
view layout.
Moving into the installation
of the Battery Powered
Shades and the OS
4 update, I had noticed a
few days - maybe a week
before Jon Herbster and his
brother Matt had come to my
house to install the Battery
Powered Shades - that my
Crestron touchpanels were
displaying new graphics.
Once Jon and Matt arrived
at my house this time,
Jon carried his tools and
the two boxes in my " music
room. " Matt, recovering
from surgery, hobbled into
cepro.com
CRESTRON
http://www.cepro.com
CE Pro July 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CE Pro July 2024
