Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2019 - 16

Tech Savvy

Ease of Use
The best home control interfaces
for the kitchen & bath
AS KITCHENS AND BATHROOMS become increasingly multifaceted, a need arises for an intuitive
interface to control the lights, temperature, music,
video and other electronic amenities. Ask yourself what would your clients rather do to prep the
kitchen for a party: toggle multiple light switches,
twist a dial on the stereo system, press buttons on
a remote to operate a TV or touch one button
labeled "entertain" on a home control interface?
The best way to describe a home control interface to your clients is as a dashboard to electronic
devices in a home. It works akin to the dashboard
of a car; it shows you the current status of specific
parts of the home and invites a user to alter those
settings to achieve a more comfortable, efficient,
enjoyable environment. Commands are issued
to multiple devices from one convenient location
rather than from multiple places. From a single
user interface in the kitchen and another in the
bathroom, your clients can monitor and control
anything in that room or the entire house.
Home control interfaces come in a variety of
styles: handheld remote control, a mobile app on
a smartphone or tablet, a wall-mounted keypad,
a dedicated touch panel and a smart speaker that
reacts to verbal commands. Some are better suited
to the kitchen and bathroom than others.

The Séura SMART Mirror can
be used as a control interface
when it is integrated with a
home automation system.
Photo courtesy of Séura

BEST INTERFACES FOR THE MASTER BATH

BEST INTERFACES FOR A KITCHEN

As the hub of a home, a kitchen facilitates the majority of a household's activities. It's where family
and friends gather, meals are shared and schedules
are synched. It's the room most people go to when
they come home and the last place they exit when
they leave the house. For these reasons, a touch
panel dedicated to the task of home management
is ideally suited for a kitchen.
Connected to the Internet, it provides all the information your clients need to plan their day, such
as the weather forecast and traffic report. They'll
also be able to use a touch panel to see what's happening elsewhere in the house, like if any doors
are unlocked and which lights have been left on,
for example. If the setting of anything needs to be
adjusted, such as engaging the electronic lock on
the back door, a user can do it right from the touch
panel and receive confirmation of the command.

Most touch panels can also function as an intercom so your clients can speak
with someone at the front door or another room of the house. Linked to a
security camera, they can even glance at the touch panel to identify the visitor.
This same touch panel can display content from cable, satellite and online
services, mitigating the need for a traditional TV and computer.
A great complement to a kitchen touch panel is a smart speaker. Supporting popular digital assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Home, they are
widely available and afford your clients a hands-free mode of control. While
cooking, for example, they can ask Alexa to turn on the lights over the kitchen
island or to activate the ceiling fan.

By LISA MONTGOMERY, editor
of Electronic House

Given the multifaceted functionality of a touch panel, you might be tempted
to suggest one for the master bathroom. There's nothing wrong with this;
in fact, the intercom and video display features come in very handy in this
space. However, in most cases, a simple, more affordable keypad will suffice.
Completely customizable and programmable, a keypad offers a quick,
easy way to control every aspect of a bathroom environment: lights, music,
temperature and more. Keypads are much smaller than touch panels, so when
space is at a premium, a keypad is a good alternative. Plus, they come in a wide
assortment of colors, finishes and styles to complement the bathroom fixtures,
tile or wall color.
Unfortunately, a keypad can't deliver the luxury of being able to comfortably
watch TV or access the Internet in a bathroom. One of the slickest ways to
grant your clients video without taking up any valuable space is by installing
a smart mirror. This type of interface, which acts like a mirror when it's off,
appears when clients tell it in their own voice to "turn on."
Voice activation allows for a simple and intuitive control option for those
with busy or wet hands to compose emails, search for or play a song or add to a
shopping list.Touch control allows users the option to scroll through content,
select new applications and adjust the size and placement of apps and widgets
within their personal dashboard. When the smart mirror is integrated with
a home automation system, it can be used to monitor and adjust lighting,
temperature, music and shading all from the place where they start and end
their day: the bathroom vanity.
Despite the benefits of touch panels,keypads,voice control and smart mirror
interfaces in the kitchen and bathroom,some clients still prefer to use handheld
remotes and smartphones, and that's perfectly fine. Be sure to present all their
options and let them decide which type of interface they prefer.Often,the ideal
solution will involve the implementation of a variety of different interfaces. 

Kitchen & Bath Business / JANUARY 2019 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official publication of KBIS (KBIS.com)

http://www.KBBONLINE.COM http://www.KBIS.com

Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2019

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