Better ZigBee performance, faster processing, lots of I/Os highlight $999 HC-800 home control processor from Control4, debuting at CES 2012; new HC-250 is Control4’s powerful new in-room controller.
By Julie Jacobson, January 10, 2012
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Introduced today at CES 2012, the new HC-800 from Control4 is the company’s most powerful home automation controller yet, and it’s packed with connectors that were lacking in its predecessor, the HC-1000.
The 1U piece is “the most powerful processor we’ve ever delivered,” says product manager Kordon Vaughn, ticking off the list of features: on-screen Navigator (Control4 interface) and audio through HDMI, analog and digital outputs to deliver four independent audio zones, two RS-232 ports, six IR ports and more ….
“eSATA on the back panel is wicked! says Joey Ferrell of Tennessee Home Theater by HomeSecure, Murfreesboro, Tenn.
For seasoned Control4 dealers, the new unit could be described like this: “Take the power of the HC-1000, combine that with the features of the old HC-500 and you have a blazingly fast controller that can keep up just about anything you throw at it,” says Shawn Lemay, president of Sound & Theater, an integration firm based in Buffalo, N.Y.
In addition to its powerful processor, the HC-800 offers much better ZigBee performance than previous Control4 hubs, with an external antenna and a 20db amp to boost the wireless signal.
“Expect much faster performance,” says Vaughn. “It can process ZigBee packets much more quickly and offers much greater coverage.”
Complementing the HC-800 is the new HC-250 in-room controller with PoE for a “really clean install,” Vaughn says.
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