What the... RF

2008-08-21T21:59:00.001-04:00

So we've finally, as an industry, acknowledged that IR control is annoying at best, unreliable and frustrating at worst. Enter RF and voila! Problem solved!

But not totally. RF is the best wireless option but which one is the best of the best? At URC we spent many years perfecting our narrow band approach and delivered two frequencies to solve interference problems. Our approach, when coupled with one of our base stations, provides dealers with an unlimited ability to control just about any CE device. Yet there are now a number of "standards" that our industry has adopted, and we are constantly harassed by many factions to consider "changing over" to one of them. And we do research all of them!

As with all standards, an argument can be made for and against each of them. We are always looking at them. I will now take you on a quick, 30,000 foot tour of each of these RF standards and give my highly biased, wildly non-technical opinion on where they stand:

RF the good: no pointing.
RF the bad: interference. Incompatibility. Range.

Mesh Technology: Zwave and Zigbee (see below) so far. The good: Connect many devices to create a network of "cells" to pass communication from one device to the next. "self healing" so if one "cell" is dead it will find another. String enough devices together to send signals long distances. 2-way communication.
The bad: Short range. Our remote controls would be hated if the best one could get under ideal conditions was 25 - 50 feet. Need many devices to match our current 418/433 range. Small data packets limit the amount of data on the return path - so small text and confirmations work well but album art, images and complex RSS and web feeds are not possible.

ZWave the good: a growing number of products in many categories. A standard that insures interoperability. Inexpensive chipsets to keep product prices relatively low. Great for DIY and cost-sensitive products.
ZWave the bad: Limited range. Limited data stream.

Zigbee the good: enhanced distance and packet size over the ZWave product.
Zigbee the bad: Interoperability is not assured - as a matter of fact the brands currently using Zigbee are absolutely proprietary. Limited range; limited data stream.

WiFi is hot! We have incorporated it into our latest remote, the MX-6000 due to the huge data transfers that can occur, providing a very robust user experience.
WiFi the good: It offers great range and a very robust 2-way data capability.
WiFi the bad: Chips are expensive. Flaxy connections and long connect times make it very frustrating to control TV's and AV systems.

Of course we have incorporated the WiFi in our MX-6000 exclusively for control of IP and 2-way devices. We are still including 418/433 and IR control for VA products.

Coming to a Sony as soon as January is the new RF standard in development by a consortium of high-influence CE manufacturers, including Sony and Panasonic to name but a couple. Dubbed RF4CE, these firms are committing to replacing IR devices with an industry "standard" RF protocol. We'll see how this progresses.

What else is coming? How about RF power! That's right, wireless power! Intel has announced their new wireless power system that will charge a laptop or even run a 60 watt bulb. Imagine when we could have a wireless remote control with no batteries!? Hold your breath 'till 2050 'cause that's when we're likely to finally "cut the cords"...

Yes there's more to all of this, and yet more standards. As you can see we have our work cut out for us, constantly evaluating the best way for us to offer you RELIABLE, PREDICABLE, REPEATABLE control. So for now, we'll stay with what works.

Stay Tuned.

2007-09-18T21:21:00.001-04:00

It’s not the price, stupid!

"It may be illegal to be crooked, but it isn't illegal to be stupid" – Lawrence Steinmetz

Don't get caught up in the never-ending "race to the bottom", even though the CE industry appears to be committed to winning it!

It’s amazing how many suppliers seem intent on growth through declining prices. They cut their prices; lower their margins; and make it up in volume.

Sounds silly, doesn't it? Yet companies in our channel do this all the time!

It’s a battle for market share, they tell us. It’s to keep the factory humming, they insist. It’s to bring cool new technologies to the masses, they declare.

Don’t believe them. And certainly don’t follow their lead!

Want to increase sales? Is dropping your price a good way to do it? It all depends – how important are earnings? How about profit margins? How about survival?

Let’s say you yield to client and/or perceived competitive pressure to lower your prices. So now you sell more. You need more staff to deliver. Good for you! Hire & train more people. Your employee costs have increased; and sales are indeed going up.

According to Lawrence L. Steinmetz, PhD, there are three occurrences that cause a business to get into serious trouble and eventually file for bankruptcy (this from his book, “How to sell at margins higher than your competitors”):

1. Gross margins decline over a period of time

2. Wages, as a percentage of sales, begin to increase

3. Sales volume begins to increase

Do your sales people insist your prices are too high? Do they contend that, in order to do their jobs, they need to lower their prices? If that’s true, replace them! Get someone who can sell!

Our channel customers insist on more important things than price, most notably delivery, quality, a satisfactory experience. Do you provide these? Consistently and reliably? As long as you can guarantee them, your price is never going to be a problem.

Customers may tell you price is their determining criteria; but as long as you deliver a quality experience on time and meet or exceed their expectations, your pricing strategy will stick. If it doesn’t, let that customer walk – you’ll never satisfy him anyway.

Let the other guy lower his price. Let him get as much work as possible. Watch his margins dwindle; wages go up; and volume increase…

It’s not about the price, stupid. It’s about everything else…

Remote Soundings

What the... RF