HOME & DESIGN Magazine Late Fall 2013 | Page 185

The Wireless Music Bridge delivers music, sports, podcasts and more via a Control4 system using smart technology. Available through smart automationsystems.com. now that the bulbs look like incandescent. Also, big manufacturers such as Lutron and Hunter Douglas are making really high-quality, battery-powered motorized shades that you can control by touch screen. H&D: Do you see a big shift towards touch technology? Eddie Shapiro: Absolutely. People are moving to Apple iPads, iPhones, any kind of smart device, for everything. Lighting, climate, shades, camera alarms, home security, audio and video—all controlled from one touch screen. H&D: Is there an integration program you like best? Eddie Shapiro: Savant—it’s super powerful but really easy to use. All users tend to be skittish about technology, but it’s Apple-based so they already have the interface down when they get it. H&D: What other home-tech trends are you seeing? Eddie Shapiro: The Ultra HD flat screen TVs should be the next big thing. They have so much computer power, they can scale images on the screen up to four times the resolution of current super-slim TVs. Connect a TV like that with Apple TV for streaming content and the viewing experience is amazing. DVDs and Blu-ray are falling away quickly. Also, the price of electronic shades is dropping quickly. Homeowners can buy through AV integrators like SmartTouch and get high-quality products. ? Mike Wilson can be reached via bethesda systems.com. Eddie Shapiro can be reached via smarttouchusa.com. A Full Service Interior Design Firm 3 0 1 . 5 2 9 . 1 9 0 0 S A M A N T H A F RI ED M A N I N T ERI O R S . C O M homeanddesign.com • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2013 183 HomeTech1.indd 183 10/15/13 12:50 PM