Embedded Automation have announces mPanel, a touch screen for accesing digital media and home automation. I hope to find out more from Embedded Automation and get an update on the show. Here is the press release:
Integrated Touch Screen is a Portal for Accessing Digital Music and Home Control
Surrey, BC – March 12, 2008
Today, Embedded Automation, launched mPanel, the newest member of the mHome product family. mPanel is a wall-mountable touch screen, which acts as a unified control portal for your “digital home”. With mPanel, homeowners can control digital music within the room, manage the home’s lighting and climate settings, or view and adjust security and surveillance systems.
Embedded Automation will be providing live demonstrations of the mPanel in the Demo Alley (Room 240A) at Electronic House Expo (EHX), running from March 13-15, 2008 in Orlando, Florida.
mPanel’s breakthrough design fits seamlessly in homes with an IP infrastructure. mPanel integrates easily in to homes using or considering Microsoft Windows Media Center or Windows Home Server technologies.
§ mPanel provides a single user interface for digital media and home control – mPanel’s Digital Media Interface allows it to stream music from any computer or storage on your local area network and plays it through the on-board amplifier to attached speakers. mPanel’s Digital Home Interface can connect to any mControl installation to allow live status and control of lighting, climate control, security system, surveillance cameras, audio/visual components and custom macros.
§ mPanel is simple and inexpensive to install– unlike other whole-home audio systems which require control and audio cables to be wired to a central source and then distributed to each room, mPanel requires a single Ethernet cable to network hub. The Ethernet cable provides the access to digital media and, optionally, can act as the main source of power for the unit. In-room or ceiling speakers connect directly to the mPanel. Furthermore, mPanel’s quick and robust 4-point dog-leg mounting system and magnetic front-panel, make installation a snap.
§ mPanel is easy to use and configure – mPanel features a large 7” (800×480) touch screen display, integrated networking and an on-board amplification system. Using a standard Ethernet cable and Power over Ethernet (PoE), mPanel’s on-board amplification system provides up to 20 Watts per channel at 4 Ohms – additional wattage is available with an add-on module. mPanel’s tiny wall footprint (5.5” x 7.75”) and low-profile faceplate allow it to be mounted in virtually any location within a home. While a single mPanel is a great addition to condos or small homes, multiple mPanels can be installed in larger homes like THEO Condos.
“We’ve seen a tremendous need from our customer base for an integrated digital home user interface platform. This demand is being fueled by customers centralizing both their digital media and their home control functions, but looking for a straight-forward and inexpensive way of accessing this infrastructure,” said Ted S. Singh, CEO of Embedded Automation. “mPanel solves this problem by integrating a control interface (for communicating to the digital media and automation servers) with a Power over Ethernet (PoE) backbone and an audio amplification system. With these items together in one convenient platform, mPanel becomes a perfect solution for main entrances, kitchens, recreation rooms and covered outdoor decks needing a method to access digital music and home control.”
“As part of this solution, we’ve now ported mControl to run on Windows CE platforms,” said Ted S. Singh. “This now lets us extend mControl to other embedded touch panels.”
mPanel will be available in limited quantities in Q2 2008, with full availability in Q3 2008. Customized front-panels are available under OEM agreements.
About Embedded Automation Founded in 1998, Embedded Automation designs, manufactures, and markets solutions for “Digital Home” under the mHome product family. mHome products allow consumers to easily and affordably add control and media management capabilities to their homes. mHome products are available from Embedded Automation and through the mHome Authorized Dealer Network.
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I haven’t done one for a while, so here is a recent post round up, cross posted from my main blog HERE…
It is great to see more these products being released. I hope it will be affordable for the enthusiast.
NAS and SAN technologies are good in order to solve
storage problems. I have found following servers very
good and easy to use:
http://www.sentralsystems.com/wasabi.html
Also, iSCSI is an alternate solution.