Jordan O'BrieniRoom is gearing up for ISE 2016 by revealing what is has to show off at the event; with its iTop set to take centre stage.
As with all iRoom products, the iTop has been designed to work with the iPad; a device that has become ubiquitous with home control in recent years.
Now iRoom is hoping to fill a certain gap in the market, while at the same time taking on traditional touchscreen controllers that installers work with on a day-to-day basis.
Like with the iBezel, which was revealed at ISE 2015, the iTop is a dock that is designed to make it less cumbersome to operate an automation system.
With iRoom’s iBezel and iTop users can decide, where immediate access to their favourite controls is needed.
The independently programmable keypad is incorporated into the glass bezel and gives the end-user direct access to their most used functions.
What makes this system unique is the fact that it combines the mobility of the iPad with the convenience of a central control unit installed in the wall or through the use of a table top iPad dock.
As with all of the company’s products, the iBezel and iTop have been developed, produced and tested at the company’s in-house facility in Oberndorf, Austria.
Marc Hofer CEO explains: “A common criticism of using the iPad is that it needs to ‘wake up’ and you need to navigate to the control App before you can do anything with it.
“The iBezel adds eight and the iTop six hard buttons on the exterior of the dock, which means integrators can program the most common functions into the product to provide immediate access to the lights, AV systems, HVAC, whatever you like.”
Marc says that the buttons are all customisable in terms of the icon used and can be programmed easily using a simple list within the control App, which looks similar to the menus found within an Apple product.
The buttons can link to major third-party control systems from the likes of Crestron, AMX, Savant, Control 4, RTI and more, or act completely independently and control any IP addressable product via its open system architecture, effectively making the product an automation platform on its own.
Marc argues: “It’s of course very important that we can integrate with the major automation platforms, however we are very excited about iBezel’s and iTop’s ability to create a control network of its own, which we feel opens up a whole new affordable route for smaller scale apartments, board- and meeting rooms and home theatres.
“Basically it changes the product from a very nice accessory, to an essential part of the control network.
“The products also have a proximity sensor and Integrators can program what happens when the user activates the Dock.”
Both the iBezel and iTop are available in black and white gloss, with the former possessing the capabilities of locking the iPad into the mount and secured with a custom four-digit pin code.
One of the key product launches at ISE 2016 however, will be the iTop.
It has been billed as the first iPad Pro-compatible docking solution in the industry, while retaining compatibility with the iPad Air 1 and 2, as well as the iPad 4 and all generations of the iPad Mini. iPhones with lightning ports are also supported.
Alongside the ability to charge any iDevice, it also features six quick access buttons that can integrate with all major control brands and send IP control commands to IP controlled devices directly.
Other features include a programmable smart motion sensor to activate the iTop and a POE+ power supply, which will please some installers.
The second launch at ISE 2016 will be iRoom’s IO83, an eight-port relay card.
With this card, installers will be able to give users the ability to control lights, shades, projector lifts and screens directly from the iBezel or iTop.
The high voltage power relay is able to switch lights directly as it is compatible with 0-240V/10A and can therefore simply replace any light switch.
The Wi-Fi and RJ45 connection it possible to be integrated into either a wireless or wired network.