What do you get if you cross the Logitech Squeezebox Duet with the Innovus Z-Wave House Controller and some custom software?  Home Automation of course!  The new Innovus and Logitech package includes the special Innovus MyHome Plug-in software for the Squeezebox Duet controller...

Plex, the media player / library manager for the Mac just hit another major milestone with the release of v0.7.0.  The whole community has been working hard on the latest release and as part of the testing team Automated Home can report with some authority that this thing rocks!

Undoubtedly the biggest new feature in this release is the addition of “Media Server” allowing you to play back all your DRM'd iTunes music plus a whole host of other features like great audio and video podcast support...

IDRATEK have provided us with some photos of their (now in production) multifunction user interface module - the £228 DFP-H02. This device is the replacement for the MFP range and provides the same comprehensive range of sensors including light level, temperature, humidity, PIR, general purpose digital inputs, an IR transceiver and audio I/O, but there the similarities end...

Converting video formats is one of the banes of the digital home.  Transcoding video files to .mp4 format (H.264) to work on the unmolested Apple TV for example can be a royal pain.  Mac users have long had the solution in VisualHub (although sadly no longer in development).  In a recent  episode of the Windows Weekly podcast there was a recommendation for "Format Factory" and after some playing with this free app, it does indeed appear to be the windows tool I've been looking for...

The Xtreme X38HD is a new high definition multimedia player with support for H.264, SATA and HDMI.  With a front mounted 2" TFT LCD display and space for an internal hard drive the X38HD has enough connectivity on the back to satisfy the biggest of geeks...

We reported back in June on the gorgeous new TPS-6X touchpanel from Crestron.  Now the company have announced a new white version of the 5.7" active matrix colour touchscreen coming in December...

Marmitek have announced a new inexpensive 3 way IR remote controlled HDMI Switcher.  The 40 Euro (around £33) Connect310 is a 3 to 1 v1.3 full HD device that allows you to connect multiple sources to a single HDMI port on your display device and then switch between them remotely....

Dynalite’s new all-purpose module is flexible enough to accept up to four dual-channel or two quad-channel plug-in modules/cards for different loads.  This allow its channels to be used for many different functions, including dimming or automation of blinds, curtains or fans etc.  This means no more unused channels, as can happen with conventional single function units...

DomotiGa is a new Open Source Home Automation package from the Netherlands.  Written in Gambas basic and almost ready for release, DomotiGa supports X10, RFXCom, Oregon sensors, BlueTooth, Asterisk and many other hardware devices...

So as if to prove his point, a day after our Masked Installer's piece on how the iPhone and iPod Touch are becoming such great Smart Home controllers, Sonos release their free app to control their multiroom music system...