We often hear that one of the great advantages of IP over PSTN is the increased speed of alarm signal transmission. Whilst this is partly true, alarm installers need to understand the different stages of an alarm signal transaction in order to take full advantage of this available speed.

Typically, from the time an alarm panel is activated, it takes approximately 10-15 seconds to dial the telephone number and send a DTMF or FSK signal over a PSTN line. When an IP dialer capture device is used, it listens for the telephone digits, ignores them, plays a handshake, takes the signal, plays a kiss-off and then transmits the signal over IP. Even though the actual transmission over IP might take only a couple of hundred milliseconds, the whole process takes approximately the same time as it does over PSTN. So where is the speed advantage in using IP...?

How do you fancy filling your bath to just the right level and just the right temperature with a click of your mouse?  Bath-O-Matic have just announced their automated bath filling system at the ISE show.  Integration with other control methods is available for example a touchscreen interface is supported via AMX, Crestron and TCP/IP...

We've been watching the innovative "AlertMe" home security system with interest over its development process.  Today marks the official launch of the package onto the market.  If you're looking for a self install home security and monitoring system you should check out the AlertMe video after the jump for a great explanation of how it works...

Savant, makers of the linix based home automation system, have announced the release of their new Mac based platform.  This allows developers to create control systems based on Apple products, including the iPhone and iPod Touch...

Recently at Automated Home towers, we got a new 24" iMac for the kitchen.  When it arrived we added the wonderful EyeTV 250 Plus USB analogue and DVB TV tuner box and we were able to take out the huge old CRT telly we had in there.  Elgato have just released v3 of the EyeTV software with a new UI and lots of new features.  DigMo have just published their review of the software...  

Control4 have announced their latest home controller - the HC-500.   In addition to its Home Automation credentials of lighting, temperature and security control, it also offers multi-room music from its built-in media server. The unit is expected to ship in March and packs IR, Serial, wired Ethernet, Wifi and Zigbee.  Read on for the details...

LaCie are taking pre-orders for their new LaCinema Premier product, due to ship next month.   The USB hard drive based unit supports 1080i through its component output.  Prices start at $250 for the 500gb unit rising to $470 for the 1tb player...

Here's the official Apple press release on the MacBook Air - "MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO—January 15, 2008—Apple® today unveiled MacBook® Air, the world’s thinnest notebook. MacBook Air measures an unprecedented 0.16-inches at its thinnest point, while its maximum height of 0.76-inches is less than the thinnest point on competing notebooks. MacBook Air has a stunning 13.3-inch LED-backlit widescreen display, a full-size and backlit keyboard, a built-in iSight® video camera for video conferencing, and a spacious trackpad with multi-touch gesture support so users can pinch, rotate and swipe. MacBook Air is powered by a 1.6 GHz or 1.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 4MB L2 cache, and includes as standard features 2GB of memory, an 80GB 1.8-inch hard drive, and the latest 802.11n Wi-Fi technology and Bluetooth 2.1...

Here's the official Apple press release on Time Capsule - "Apple® today introduced Time Capsule, a backup appliance that automatically and wirelessly backs up everything on one or more Macs running Leopard™, the latest release of Apple’s Mac OS® X operating system including the amazing Time Machine™ automatic backup software. Time Capsule combines an 802.11n base station with a server grade hard disk in one small package. Simply plug it in, then easily set up automatic wireless backup for every Mac® in your house to a single Time Capsule with just a few clicks. Time Capsule offers the benefits of a full-featured 802.11n Wi-Fi base station, and comes in two models: a 500 gigabyte model for just £199 (inc VAT) and a 1 terabyte model for just £329 (inc VAT)... 

So all eyes swing from last weeks CES show to MacWorld and possibly the most anticipated keynote of the year for tech heads.  Steve Jobs presented the iPhone to the world last year, so what toys does Apple have for us all this year.  Well, lots to interest the smart home enthusiast - Time Capsule, software updates for iPhone and iPod Touch, Movie Rentals for iTunes, new Apple TV UI and features, oh, and MacBook Air, the worlds thinest laptop.  For all the details you need read on...