CE Pro February 2022 - 22

Networking+Home Control
SECURITY | LIGHTING/SHADING | ENERGY MANAGEMENT | AMENITIES
URC Total Control
Earns Comcast
Xfinity Certification
Integration provides native voice control
experience with most URC interfaces and
Comcast X1 remote.
By Jason Knott
INTEGRATORS' ABILITY TO
leverage the growing trend
of voice control to sell more
smart home controls just
got a big boost. URC has
announced its Total Control
system will integrate with
Comcast Xfinity, the first
certified integration in the
custom installation industry.
That new integration
includes native experience
where the end-user can
leverage voice control with
most Total Control interfaces
and via most Comcast Xfinity
handheld remotes.
For integrators like Mario
Patelmo, regional sales manager
for World Wide Stereo,
a CE Pro 100 integration
company based in Hatfield,
Pa., the combination of
Comcast voice control in a
smart home control system
couldn't come soon enough.
Patelmo estimates 60% of
World Wide Stereo's clients
are Comcast subscribers.
" This integration is a
game-changer! We installed
a Comcast Xfinity 4K set-top
box in our showroom to
22 | CE Pro February 2022
demonstrate the integration.
We are confident that it will
help us expand single room
to multiroom automation
systems, " he says.
In fact, Patelmo says
World Wide Stereo pre-sold
four systems based on the
showroom setup.
" Clients love the X1
remote. This Total Control
module is very easy to install
for us and to operate for the
user - no matter their age
or technical ability, " he explains.
" Clients simply touch
the button on the Xfinity
remote and speak commands
or speak into one of URC's
voice-enabled touchscreens. "
He adds, " It works great
for residential systems that
extend into outdoor spaces.
We don't have to rely on
Bluetooth technology to
connect remotes, systems
and devices. A client recently
hired World Wide Stereo to
design a system that included
outdoor entertainment
spaces. We were able to
design the system to easily
use URC's TRC-1480 with
Mario Patelmo, regional sales manager at World Wide Stereo
in Hatfield, Pa., says the native integration of Comcast voice
control with URC user interfaces will be a boost to smart
home control system sales.
voice control to communicate
(over distances of up to
100 feet) with the Comcast
set-top box. "
World Wide Stereo acted
as a beta installer for the
Comcast/URC integration
and Patelmo says it is
easy to install, as other are
other Total Control modules
including those with HEOS
and Roku.
The URC/Comcat integration
is timely. Voice control
itself is gaining in popularity.
According to recent studies,
U.S. Hearable Voice Assistant
Users have more than
doubled from 2018 to 2020.
Estimates place the number
of users at nearly 50 million.
Within the custom
installation market, smart
residential and commercial
automation is helping to
fuel this trend by leading
with products that leverage
voice control to enhance
the end-user experience.
End-user engagement is rising
across environments due
to the natural ease of voice
communication to control
smart environment systems.
In 2021, URC launched
its TKP-8600 touchscreens
with voice activation capabilities.
The in-wall touchscreen
features an 8-inch
high-resolution screen and
sleek profile with a high-resolution
LCD display and
built-in AV intercom. Other
URC user interfaces with
voice control include the
7- to 10-inch TDC-9100 and
TDC-7100 touchscreens;
the 5- to 10-inch TKP-9600,
TKP-8600, TKP-7600, and
TKP-5600 in-wall controllers;
and the TRC-1480
ergonomic handheld remote
with 2.4-inch capacitive
touchscreen.
cepro.com
http://www.cepro.com
CE Pro February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CE Pro February 2022
