Welcome to the Home Automation Archives

Established PC manufacturer and electronics leader, Packard Bell, teams up with multimedia specialist, Nero Digital, to create a unique, breakthrough DVD player called the DivX 450 pro player which enables video playback …..

Hometoys writes “Timecommander-Plus has been one of the the more popular home control systems for several years. The “Plus” at the end of the name means that an Input/Output card has been added to the standard Timecommander Package. This allows control of low voltage (16 Digital Inputs, 8 Analog Inputs and 8 Relay Outputs) as [...]

cnet writes ” Some of you may remember DIVX as a sinister plot by Circuit City and Hollywood studios to create a pay-per-view DVD business. It failed, but its spiritual opposite, DivX, is going strong. DivX is a popular video encoding and playback format that’s used primarily to compress DVD movies and play back the [...]

<a href="http://www.smarthome.com/asp/cl/cl.asp?SK=RSS200511&P=69010.html"><img src="http://cache.smarthome.com/images/69010-e.jpg" border="0"></a><br>
This truly wireless camera receives all of its required energy from the sun. When its built-in motion detector senses motion, images and voices are transmitted to the included receiver.

From SmartHomes

cnet writes “On paper, Philips’s new DVR-DVD recorder looks like the ideal combination. Boasting a 120GB hard drive, the slick-looking HDRW720 pauses and rewinds live video and archives your shows to DVD+R/+RW.

Unfortunately, the deck comes saddled with some crippling limitations, including an electronic programming guide (EPG) that won’t work with digital cable or satellite receivers, [...]

Hometoys writes “HomeVision is one of the newest and most powerful home control systems available today. What sets HomeVision apart from the others is it’s built in Video capabilities. With this feature, you can view / control the status of your system via the TV set. Built in or customized menu screens walk you through [...]

diyha writes “This article documents the removal the old mechanical timeswitch controlling my Immersion Heater and its replacement with an AD10 DIN Rail Appliance Module from X10. Although the timeswitch has been reliable for the last 10 years or so, it does have some serious shortcomings.

* No visible indication of the [...]

cnet writes “Like other DVD/VCR combo recorders, RCA’s affordably priced DRC8300N is geared toward consumers who want a multifunction device that can easily archive noncopyrighted VHS tapes and camcorder footage to disc. Retailing for $400 (though available for less online), this attractively styled, mirror-faced model measures 17 inches wide by 14 inches deep by 4 [...]

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Fast on the heels of the NBC/DirecTV announcement, Comcast will offer CBS downloads to subscribers.
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From Tech Living Blog

James writes “I can remember the first time I walked through Sears and saw this new system to control lights remotely. It was called X-10 and I was probably 12 years old. Over the years I have installed many of these switches throughout the house to turn on lights and appliances from a small console [...]

Hometoys writes “Xpress is a new Windows 95 program that uses the interface and wizards efficiently to make startup and operation a breeze.

The help system is short and sweet but it covers most of what you’ll need to know. The start-up schedule screen shows icons for your devices in the top frame and the schedule [...]