Personal devices like the iPhone and iPad bring entertainment and connectivity to our lives. To that you could add control, as technology developers like Control 4 and RTI , are using them to change our perception of the universal remote.
Part of the success of smart phones and other new-age gadgets is their versatility. By harnessing the power of a camera, computer, phone and video-game console, among many other things, into one product, consumers don’t need to consume – and store – as many other products. This has the added effect of making people extremely comfortable with and proficient at using the devices they do choose to buy.
Control 4is one company that recognized and is now trying to capitalize on this trend. They still offer universal remote systems as we know them traditionally, but now consumers that are glued to their tablet or phone can use those tools to control their video and audio equipment at home.
The Control 4 app is a software and hardware combination – an app for the iPad, iPod touch, iPhone or Android and an IR mini blaster system– that lets you browse what’s on TV, including through interactive web pages and manage an entire audio system. You can also control this equipment as it sits behind cabinet doors or out of sight. A quality Wi-Fi connection and router are needed in order to fully enjoy the experience, according to early user reviews.
RTI is also making waves with its foray into smartphones and tablets as controller. Its new Pro Control technology provides a more complicated but customizable experience, one that requires professional help to program. Because it is a niche product the Pro Control isn’t available at box stores – but then you’d probably be better off getting a tutorial from a consumer-electronics specialist anyway.
Liptons Audio Video Unlimited carries the new Control 4 and RTI systems aas well as other control options For more information on these and similar products visit www.liptons.ca or call 905-898-7133.
