Daniel J SaitThe new release includes firmware updates, new licensing plans, Sonos integration, native streaming media from Autonomic, a new Pro Remote, and vast improvements to the user interface.
“We are launching some innovative new features with 8.0, which are designed to further enhance the quality and luxury our customers expect when they engage with their home control system,’’ says Caroline Britt, MD of Savant Europe. “This is a big step forward that will bring vast benefits to both integrators and end users.”
The new Savant 8.0 software includes an enhanced user interface for the Savant App. Amongst other changes, Savant has ‘flattened’ out the interface so users can “see everything in the house from the home screen,” says Tim McInerney, director of product marketing for Savant, making the App more intuitive.
In other developments, Sonos is the latest manufacturer to be named as a Savant elite partner.
Elite partners collaborate together with Savant to ensure that the products become mutually beneficial to installer and end users.
As a result, Savant 8.0 now fully integrates with the popular range of wireless audio products.
The Savant Smart Host with 8.0 will also double as an Autonomic media player, one of the most popular media-management services.
Users can now tap into music from all of Autonomic’s streaming media partners including Spotify, Tidal, Pandora, SiriusXM, Rhapsody, Slacker, Napster, Tunein and iTunes.
The new Savant 4K Video Input Module will also now be available and it supports HDCP 2.2.
It also provides audio down-mixing as well as video down-converting for 1080p displays.
Additionally, Savant partnered with PureLink, maker of high-performance commercial-grade video switchers, to offer new video switchers for the residential market.
They come in two versions, 4×4 and 8×8, and include SmartHost Premium licenses.
Another important part of this new release is the new Savant remote.
The unit works with the devices that users already own. ‘‘The new Savant remote represents the very latest innovation from Savant, bringing together everything the end user needs in home control into one easy to use interface. The Savant remote is the only remote that end users will need,” says Caroline.
The App is available for download from Apple and Android on-line stores.