The ETC Offices have moved, effective May 18, 2012.

Our new address is:
1300 North Florida Mango Road, Suite 11
West Palm Beach, Florida 33409

Please update our information for your records.

Our phone and fax numbers are the same.
Phone: 561-881-8118
Fax number: 561-882-0110

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In the past, first-run box-office movies could only be seen on release day at a public movie theater or at a private residence of a Hollywood star or movie producer. Now because of a new movie service called Prima Cinema, anyone with a high-end digital-projection screen can have access to first-run movies the day they start playing in theater. The cost is $35,000 to install Prima’s highly secure digital delivery system and an additional $500 per movie.

Now you can host private parties in your home to watch the latest 3D thriller or romance movie. No more waiting in line, or worrying about getting to the theater on time! ETC experts can upgrade your home theater so you can start using PRIMA Cinema services as soon as possible!

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We plan the wiring for the home components to be placed in ways that integrate several components to create one-touch systems that are out of site, and will accommodate future technology. Soon you may have several internet connections in the kitchen for different appliances, as well as the family room, theater room, game room and garage.

Each project has its own challenges and the last thing you want to do is re-design areas of the house to add the comforts of home automation after you have started building.

Here are five ways we make technology blend into a home seamlessly.

• Trufig: This is a must-have for luxury homes. Following the same trend of trimless light fixtures, this is an installation platform that allows us to make ordinary wall outlets, switches and iPad docking stations, completely flush and trimless. They practically disappear!

Trufig Crestron Touch Panel

• Invisible speakers: As its name implies, these speakers are completely invisible and the sound quality is surprisingly good. They can be mounted into ceilings, or disappear in a custom cabinet.

Stealth Acoustics Image Series

• Custom speaker bars: You hang a TV on the wall in the family room. Where do you put the speakers? We have a solution that creates a speaker system that looks as though it is part of the TV and sounds great! No more fighting for cabinet space.

Leon Speakers

• Precision controlled window treatments: You probably already have a window treatment vendor, but are they experts at controlling them? Motorized systems can be controlled with one-button, or set to open and close at specific times. We can also program the shades to respond to sunlight, and be integrated into the home’s one touch system. We have a variety of offerings in this category.

Lutron Motorized Shades

• Centralized systems: Nothing in view, nothing in the room. No cable boxes, no satellite receivers, no DVD players. Just the TV and a remote. We can centrally locate just about any audio/video component, but we need to plan for this up front since the wiring scheme is different.

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“These TV’s are the way of the future, well, the immediate future. The picture quality is amazing,” said Bill Maronet, President and CEO of ETC. “It is the one product that you do not have to see a side-by-side comparison to notice the difference. When you see it, you will know. It is that much better.”

Both companies won “Best of CES 2012,” and for good reason. They were not only the most talked about technology at CES, but the innovations in TV technology will truly change the way we use them in our home.

Samsung 55" OLED HDTV

The Samsung Super OLED HDTV 55” supports active-shutter 3D and has smart interaction technology that allows control via remote, voice, motion, and even face recognition. There are no confirmed release dates, but Samsung expects them to go to market by summer 2012.

If you can’t see the video click here.

LG 55 inch OLED HDTV

The LG Display OLED 55” HDTV doesn’t include all the smart technology but received raves about its design, including an incredibly thin body of 4 mm thick and a total weight of 16 pounds. The release date has been set for July 2012. The price is unknown, although DisplaySearch estimates the initial cost at $8,000 and dropping to $4,000 in 2013.

Why OLED?
OLED means Organic Light Emitting Diode. This is new TV technology that doesn’t need backlighting to produce a picture, so the screens can be super thin. This could lead to screens in the future that can roll up – that thin. But what this new technology really means to you the consumer is improved picture quality of 1,000,000:1 contrast. This means the contrast colors are more vivid – the whites are whiter and the black is blacker. Because OLED doesn’t use backlighting like LCD or LED TV’s, the black levels can be higher, more similar to what you experience at a movie theater. There is also improved color pop and viewing angles are increased.

The drawbacks are that this is a new technology and the life span of the TV is expected to be a few years less than a LCD or LED TV (10 years of viewing 4 hours a day, everyday versus 20 years of viewing 4 hours a day). This technology will improve over time, but early adopters may experience some minor challenges.

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Robert Van Winkle “Ice” was interviewed by the Miami Herald last week. He is most excited about all the high tech features of the home.

“This is season is going to be the most amazing showcase of the most modern high technology in a house that you’ve ever seen. The whole house is a smart house, which means everything from the curtains to the pool to the lights to the thermostat to the movie projector to the game room, the locks, gates and cameras are all controlled from a smart phone or iPad,” said Van Winkle.

ETC managed several parts of the renovation including designing the over the top home theater room, whole house audio, automated Crestron lighting, motorized Somfy shade control, pool and spa control. The home theater features a JVC Professional 3-D projector, Vutec 180” 3D Active screen , and 7.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound (with a stealthy install of the speakers that make them invisible in the room.)

“One of the creative features in the home theater room is the window coverings,” says Mike Squitiro, ETC Senior Systems Designer. “There is a beautifully framed window on each side of the screen, and light from those windows must be blocked out. With the press of the button, the lights dim, the screen comes down, and cool movie posters roll down to black out the windows; they look like beautifully framed movie posters.”

Crestron iPad docking station

The house is completely decked out with iPads. There are nine iPads mounted on walls throughout the home to allow for easy control of the automated lighting, music, TV, shades, and more. The unique Crestron docking stations make it easy to pop the iPad out to take to the couch to control the TV and browse the web. When you are finished you can pop it back onto the wall to re-charge.

Another awesome feature of the home is the pool with the lazy river running around the tikki hut island. The little oasis in the middle of the backyard includes a TV, music and bar, which can be controlled with the iPad from your raft or anywhere inside the home for that matter.

Look for our ETC team to be interviewed on the show about the featured home technology. Watch as they go behind the scenes highlighting the importance of having experienced technicians install wiring, coordinate the programming and develop the overall system design. These type of systems are not for the do-it-yourself renovator, experience really matters.

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Best All Around Tablet: Not a new gift idea, but one of the best around, the Apple iPad2. ETC engineers and integrators are big fans of this useful tablet. It is a sure crowd pleaser for any age! Look for the new Apps coming out just in time for Christmas, including ones that make home technology simple and easy to use! Find out more.

Other great gift ideas in 12 categories, from stocking stuffers to gadgets good for your home, car and office, CNET gift guide covers all the bases. Read more.

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No need for keys with a fingerprint scanner.

“We often advise our clients to add a fingerprint scanner to specific areas that they want to secure in the home,” says Bill Maronet, CEO of ETC, inc. “We add it to rooms or small closets they want to limit access to maybe two or three people. This level of security makes it easy to track who goes in and out and when. “

When adding this type of security to your home, we usually ask our clients to carefully consider the following things:

Who will need access and why. One of the benefits of biometric technology is you will no longer need keys, a card, or have to remember pass codes. You are the key! With this in mind, carefully consider the number of people you want to have access to certain areas of your home. Fingerprint scanners will provide very specific tracking so you will know who and when someone entered or exited the room. Often times we will combine fingerprint scanners with cameras for added security.

Integrate into your existing security systems. Fingerprint scanners can do more than open garage doors or gates. They can control anything with an on-off switch. As you enter your home and place your finger in the reader, your home automation system can be activated to turn on specific lights and de-activate your security system. We can even signal the TV to tune in your favorite channel.

Choosing a reliable device. Biometric technologies abound in the marketplace. But buyer beware, there are different levels of quality associated with different systems. There are biometric systems that can be purchased at home improvement stores. These are not of the same quality that we would use on an estate home, and the price is reflective of the difference in performance. Additionally, you want to be sure that the system is not easily compromised by using a high-definition picture of a fingerprint, or a mold. The new high-quality models come in various looks as well, many scanners are small, sleek and stylish, and will have minimal impact on your overall decor.

If you are currently evaluating your security needs and considering adding biometrics technologies to your home or office, give us a call. We can help you navigate the various options available and choose the best system to compliment your current needs.

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Outdoor security comes in many forms, gates, fencing, call boxes, cameras…. One form that is not visually apparent is the driveway alarm system. This additional security feature has a few applications providing protection, detection, convenience and most of all peace of mind.

The driveway alarm system has many features. When a vehicle enters your driveway, or leaves your property, an alarm can be triggered, cameras can be directed to take pictures, outdoor flood lights, and entry door interior lights can be turned on and much more. Gates can be programmed to open automatically as a car exits, and will use sensors to stay open until the car is completely through the gate. No need to punch a key pad or use a remote. This system can be integrated into your existing security system or home automation system. You can have different alarms set up to indicate entry, exit, or a visitor waiting at the entry gate. And when this is connected to your home automation system, you can see who is in the driveway on your TV or tablet.

The driveway protector is installed under the pavers or cement of the driveway. There is also a retro-fit option that can be installed next to a driveway. Wires are connected underground to a detector that creates a magnetic field. When a large metal object like a car or truck disturbs this magnetic field, the alarm is tripped and alerts the homeowners. Depending on what kind of responses you have set up, this is where the driveway alarm can really make an impact.

Having this type of system set up correctly will make a big difference. Technology integrators should create a fluid system design that allows everything to work the way you intend for it to work. ETC engineers and technicians have the experience and on-going training support that make them experts in security installations and integration. Call today for information about all of the options available to you.

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One product we are excited about is FD322 Fiber-Optic Perimeter Detection System, created by Fiber SenSys. This new value priced edition offers a rich feature set at a price that opens up the availability to more home owners and commercial businesses.

This new technology detects intruders who are attempting to climb over, crawl under or cut through perimeter fence or barrier. An alarm processing unit detects every movement of the sensing fiber extended along the perimeter fence and uses advanced processing algorithms to carefully distinguish between intruders and “nuisance alarms” that might be caused by wind, falling palm fronds, or small animals. And unlike the current wiring systems that use metallic sensors, the system’s fiber-optic based sensing elements are unaffected by harsh environments including UV radiation, moisture, salt, snow or even lightning strikes.

Since these systems use fiber-cabling, it is important that installers have installation experience and knowledge of fiber-optics. Proper tuning and calibration of the systems is important to ensure accurate and reliable intrusion detection.

ETC system designers and installation technicians can go through all the options available for upgrading your perimeter security including adding fiber-optic technology that will be right for you. Contact us for more information bill@etc.fm.

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