CEO blog: A WH version of the Consumer Electronics Show
I’m a gadget guy. I like to watch the latest technology trends and determine how WH can quickly implement them to increase our service offerings. Our strategic technology plan outlines the importance of this:
“WH views technology as a market differentiator that enhances our members’ experiences and increases our competitiveness through efficiency and innovation.”
An amazing variety of devices are being introduced to the marketplace right now, including what seems to be an unlimited amount of apps and accessories that sync up to these new gadgets. Growing among these new offerings is an array of energy-management and home-automation products. It’s the prime reason I have assigned WH IT employees to attend the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in the last two years. While attending these shows, their mission has been to scout for the latest technology offerings that we might make available to WH members.
The CES is the largest gadget gathering in the world. The 2012 show, which concluded earlier this month in Las Vegas, drew 150,000 attendees to the Nevada desert and featured more than 3,100 consumer electronics companies displaying some 20,000 products.
Although attending the conference is beneficial to stay on top of trends, an odd thing has happened to our employees at the CES: When they’ve tried to buy the more promising home-automation or energy-management gear to test back here at WH, they’ve found that most of the products being showcased were only in the concept stage. More often than not, venders displayed product casings with nothing inside, like the false façades of a Hollywood movie set. The products that were available – and actually operational – were prohibitively expensive.
What a let down!
As I was leafing through the bundle of brochures brought back from the CES, something occurred to me: Many of these “new” products just being developed by the consumer electronics industry have long been available through home security systems – including those offered by WH Security.
There are two significant advantages for using a WH Security system for your home-automation and energy-management solutions.
One advantage is that the central processing unit of our alarm panel already provides the “brains” for the energy management and home automation devices you wish to add. The devices under development by the consumer electronics industry require separate “smart modules” for each of the home-automation or energy-management products you want to install.
This “smart module” requirement provides a second advantage for WH Security, which is cost. Because of the necessity for duplicate “smart modules” in each device, most of those energy-management and home-automation products under development by the consumer electronics industry are more expensive than consumers are willing to pay. In fact, the price for just a few of these products with separate “smart modules” will often times eclipse the price of a basic home security system from WH Security.
Check our website (www.wh-security.com), and you’ll find something of WH Security’s own version of the CES, showcasing a wide variety of products and mobile applications for all of your energy-management and home-automation needs. WH Security’s technology will let you:
- control your thermostat
- control lighting
- control door locks
- manage individual appliances
- view live video feeds of your home and property
You can control all these devices and much more via your smart phone or computer from anywhere you have an internet connection. Additionally, you get the advantage of having a monitored home security system, which can also help protect you from break-ins and theft.
And the best thing? The energy management and home automation products from WH Security are available today, competitively priced and backed up by our local installation, monitoring and service team. That team just scored among the highest in customer satisfaction among all U.S. industries, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index – a widely recognized national survey conducted by the University of Michigan.
Take a look at WH’s version of the CES. You might be pleasantly surprised by the options you find.