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Energy efficiency and technology are big topics at this year’s Greenbuild show taking place in Phoenix, Ariz., where the movers and shakers of the growing green movement are urging attendees to go beyond plucking the “low-hanging fruit” of energy savings and take the extra steps toward deep energy savings. “We are in a time now where we really have to make big changes,” said Al Gore, in the show’s opening plenary session on Wednesday night. “It’s time for us to shift to a new kind… View this story
Lighting Control • Fixtures and Switches • Power Management • Home Control Systems • Green Technology • Info and Answers

For legendary blues guitarist BB King, the thrill isn’t gone when it comes to touring. The 83-year-old “King of the Blues” is still on the road with his famous Gibson guitar “Lucille” performing 100 concerts per year. And King gets from gig to gig on more than just a simple set of wheels. King rides in a $1.4 million, 45–foot luxury motorcoach that has more than $200,000 worth of electronics inside, making it a center of inspiration for laying down tracks, reviewing audio and video,… View this story
AV Components • Blu-ray • Digital Media Servers • Multiroom Audio • Multiroom Video • Receivers • Set Top Boxes • Displays • HDTV • Lighting Control • Cool Homes

One of the main tenets of green building is “Do you really need that?” Less becomes more. Smaller becomes better. And 8,000-square-foot homes are not supposed to be. A home that size should not be considered green, says green designer and consultant Michael Anschel of Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build in North Minneapolis, Minn. “The resource consumption, water consumption, land-use are all obscenely out of scale with what is appropriate, let alone required, for living.” Custom homebuilder Margie Hamrick of Ecoexistence in Vail, Colo., would disagree. She’s the… View this story
Home Control • Home Control Systems • Lighting Control • Lighting Control Systems • Green Technology • Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Cool Homes

Thinking of buying energy-efficient LED (light emitting diode) fixtures for your home? There are a lot of LED lights on the market today, but buyer beware. Good, long-lasting LED lights are also available—and will generally cost more. Here are some things you should check out as you shop: Where’s the power supply? Most LEDs require low-voltage, so they must have an AC-to-DC adapter, transformer, or power supply to operate them. These can be internal or external to the fixture. Color Temperature, or Correlated Color Temperature… View this story
Lighting Control • Fixtures and Switches • Green Technology • Info and Answers

CEDIA Expo is not just for exploring new technologies and enlightening CE Pros. It’s also a great place for doing your own virtual shopping – virtual as in, “If I had the money, I would buy ….” Virtual shopping also applies to products that are not yet available, and ones that are inexpensive enough, but you couldn’t be bothered to install them. After CEDIA Expo 2009, I came away with a nice shopping list for my own home—some items I’ve coveted for years; others that… View this story
Displays • Flat Panel • HDTV • Video Screen • Furniture • Lighting Control • Shades and Blinds • Safety and Security • Product News • Slideshows

It’s easy to get lost in a sea of technology when you’re a window shade, drape or blind. That wasn’t the case at this year’s CEDIA Expo, however. Lutron Electronics introduced a bounty of innovative motorized shading solutions at the Atlanta-based show. The most unique was a system called Kirbe. Instead of traversing a panel of draperies to the left and right, as is done with conventional system, the motorized roller moves the material up and down. In the up position, the fabric rolls out… View this story
Lighting Control • Shades and Blinds • Product News

New and greener shading solutions have been announced by lighting control company Lutron Electronics. The company’s Sivoia QS wireless solution includes a clock that allows the programming of “scenes,” much like lighting scenes that bring certain lights on at certain levels for specific tasks like art or mood lighting. Lutron will promote energy-saving shading scenes such as winter warmth and summer cool. A “winter warmth” scene, for example, would open shades or drapes to let in light to warm a space and use less lighting,… View this story
Climate Control • Lighting Control • Shades and Blinds • Green Technology • Product News

RadioRa 2 changes everything for Lutron, a pioneer in wireless lighting control. Ten years after RadioRa debuted—followed by several incompatible variations of the product—Lutron has standardized on a single RF technology for that class of wireless lighting controls: RadioRa 2. Goodbye RadioRa senior. Goodbye RadioRa SR. Goodbye AuroRa. “When we looked at coming out with the next-generation RadioRa, we wanted to do a lot of things that the architecture of RadioRa wouldn’t allow us to do,” says Lutron product manager Jeremy Kleinberg. RadioRa 2 is… View this story
Lighting Control • Lighting Control Systems • Product News

There are many variables that can impact the performance of a lighting control system. The amount of sunlight your home receives, the layout and size of the residence and even how the buttons on the controls all deserve careful consideration. Here are a few key things you’ll want to do (and not do) when your ready to invest in a lighting control system for your house. Do plan for 3-way switches. In a hallway or staircase, for example, put a keypad at both ends—so you… View this story
Lighting Control • Lighting Control Systems • Info and Answers

Lighting control has become nearly as popular as home theater and security. The technologies of lighting control have are now much more accessible to mainstream consumers, enabling a growing number of homeowners to reap the benefits. Low-cost solutions and Web-based controls are fueling innovation in lighting control. But consumers are also attracted to the falling prices and the category’s eco-friendly qualities, including the ability to monitor energy consumption. According to the CE Pro 100 Brand Analysis, the five most popular lighting control brands are: Lutron… View this story
Lighting Control • Fixtures and Switches • Lighting Control Systems • Product News • Slideshows

Q. What are some suggested manufacturers of automated blinds for shading windows?—George A. George, there are a handful of respected companies that you can check out, or work with a custom electronics pro to have professionally installed for your windows. Many of these offerings can be integrated into single-room or full housewide automation systems, to help make your home more energy friendly if that’s influencing your decision. Our sister publication CE Pro surveys a list of 100 custom pros each year and asks what brands… View this story
Lighting Control • Shades and Blinds • Home Control Systems • Ask a Pro

One of the easiest ways to save money on your energy bills? Buy dimmer switches for your lights and use them. Dimming a traditional incandescent bulb just 15 percent, which is hardly noticeable, can save you 15 percent in electricity costs and triple the life of the bulb. Dim it by 25 percent and you can save 20 percent. A dimmer can pay for itself pretty quickly. Lutron is upping the ante with new Maestro and Meadowlark eco-minder switches that turn small LEDs on their… View this story
Lighting Control • Fixtures and Switches • Green Technology • Info and Answers