STEM EDUCATION LEARNS ABOUT HOME AUTOMATION: for fun,

STEM EDUCATION LEARNS ABOUT HOME AUTOMATION

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Recently, our very own Salt Lake City-based Control4 Technical Trainer, Jake Erickson, had the opportunity to visit a local Elementary, Falcon Ridge, to teach kids in the STEM program about smart technology. He gave them a virtual “tour” of his own smart home from his phone, demonstrating how to remotely turn on/off televisions and lights, check in on cameras, and start the music throughout the house. He also talked about the addition of voice control and the many ways you can use verbal commands to interact with your house.

Even Batman has a Smart House. Er, Smart Batcave, that is.

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You know what they say, “Always be yourself. Unless you can be Batman, then always be Batman.” So as the February 10th release date for the much anticipated “The LEGO Batman Movie” approaches, we’ve come up with some ways you can have an automated home, similar to Batman’s automated bat cave. (Check it out in the video!)

BITS & PIECES: FROM HOME SMART HOME MAGAZINE

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Check out these fun facts in this infographic featured in our most recent issue of Home Smart Home magazine. Download this issue for more fun, inspirational and entertaining articles and stories about automation and technology.

TINY HOUSE, SMART HOME.

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The tiny house phenomenon is on fire, with many homeowners choosing to downsize to live a life of simplicity. While this type of living isn’t for everyone, there are certainly aspects of compact living that are quite desirable.

Home Automation for Gamers: 6 Tips to Create an Immersive Gaming Session

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Do you love gaming but feel like something is missing? With these five home automation tips, you can boost the mood of your gaming session and take it to the next level.

Control4 Featured on Houzz

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We are pretty excited to have been hand-picked by Houzz for an editorial ideabook feature titled, "Designing With the Stars: Aquarius." In the article, the author, Kate Macdessi, notes that people with the Aquarius sign are drawn to technology. In fact, they tend to be the most tech-savvy of the zodiac bunch. Are you an Aquarius sign? If so, do you agree that your sign is the tech-savviest of them all? We'd love to hear from you.

How a Smart Home Helps Spread Holiday Cheer

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With the holiday decorating, shopping, and cooking in full swing, there has never been a better time to automate your home. Home automation can help you manage the wonderful chaos, entertaining your family when they come to visit, setting that special ambience that inspires the holiday spirit, and keeping your valuables and loved ones more secure than ever...

5 Ways to Use Home Automation While Preparing Thanksgiving Dinner

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With the use of a Control4 home automation system, you can make this Thanksgiving dinner easier and more efficient than ever. Here are five reasons why.

3 Ways to Have Fun This Holiday Season with Smart Home Automation

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Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Hanukah are approaching fast – it’s hard to believe 2015 is almost over. While you start thinking about your guest list for holiday celebrations and your Christmas or Hanukah shopping list, take some time to get in the holiday spirit with smart home automation. Here are our three tips for using your smart home for some holiday fun.

Merry Melodies for Smart Home Streaming

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Because so many of you enjoyed the tunes we hand-picked for your trick-or-treaters and party-goers, we figured we'd take the work out of finding a holiday playlist for you as well.

Halloween Harmonies for Smart Home Streaming

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...So it seemed fitting that with Halloween just a few nights away, we give you quick-access to some streaming stations that we have cherry-picked for you—all complete with scary (or fun) sounds and songs to play for your door-to-door tricksters or party-goers. Here are a few soundtracks and playlists from Pandora, Rhapsody, TIDAL & TuneIn—sorry Deezer-lovers, the service isn’t available in the states just yet, so we weren’t able to help with your playlist picking, but I’m sure you’ll find some good picks below!

Tech Bits & "Little-Did-You-Knows"

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A "Shoulder Phone" from Japan, a computer for the Amish, and a rechargeable highway...those are just a few of the fun facts you'll discover here!

Gettin’ My Game On!

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As much as I love to watch football games in person, the best alternative is watching them from the comfort of your couch with friends and family in front of a big TV, sporting your team colors as the surround sound blares. And in a Control4 home, you can make each moment count. Let me give you a few examples:

Back to School Contest: Put the “Art” in Smart

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To celebrate the upcoming school year, Control4 invites your kids to fire up their creativity and create a picture of what they think a smart home is. When they put the "ART" in "SMART" they'll be entered into our Lock-&-Light Giveaway! Get all the details here...

6 Ideas for Automating your Holiday Decorations

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The anticipation for the holidays begins as soon as the weather starts to change, and your home should be ready for it. No matter what holiday you’re celebrating this winter season, there is plenty that your home automation system do to help you and your family get into that holiday mood. Here are a few tips to have the best holiday season yet.

Internet of...Toys? Christmas Gadgets for Techy-Tots.

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Kids of this era are interested in toys with flashing lights, robotic movements, and loud noises—you know, the ones that leave us parents wanting to rip our hair out in patches. However, Internet-connected toys aren’t all bad, in fact, some of them are great for education and development. So with an “if you can’t beat them, then join them” attitude, I bring you these pretty cool, techy toys for connected kids.

4 Home Automation Ideas for Entertaining Guests This Thanksgiving

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Thanksgiving has the potential to get pretty chaotic. With all the cooking that needs to be done (add to that guests arriving and football blaring on the TV), it can be pretty easy to lose a degree or two of thankfulness. Here are 4 great smart home ideas that will help you kick off the holiday season just right.

The Smart House of the Future [INFOGRAPHIC]

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We couldn’t help but wonder what people of today think the “house of the future” will look like—or what they want in their own futuristic smart home. So we took a survey and compiled some of our favorite responses...

Double Double “Tech” and Trouble: Top Halloween Apps

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Halloween is fast approaching and it is my favorite time of year! The spookiness of October always excites me. I can’t get enough witches, ghosts and zombies on TV so I decided to look and see what fun I could cook up on my phone. Here are some of the best (and free) apps I found...

It's Always the Season for More Control

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This week, the transition from Summer to Fall is officially upon us. The changing seasons can oftentimes also change daily routines and even the way you interact with your home. Perhaps the Spring is a time when you enjoy nightly visits to the hot tub. In the Summer you may aim to get out of the house extra early to take advantage of the great weather. Fall may be a time where you spend countless...

Automation Hits the Road

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As someone who grew up watching Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Jeff Gordon battle on the racetrack every weekend, I always dreamed of buying a motorhome and traveling from state to state watching every NASCAR race throughout the season. When I saw what one race fan from Georgetown, Tennessee did to his 49-foot motor coach, I considered selling everything I own to join him.

Off the Wall: Automated Table Tennis

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While I’ve seen my fair share of table tennis set-ups, I’ve never seen one quite like this one. Lightweight and collapsible, this ping-pong table lent itself well to being integrated into a larger home automation project. With the press of one simple button...

Oscar Extravaganza!

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We celebrate a few non-traditional holidays in our house like they are Christmas. The Superbowl and the Oscars. As a diehard Broncos fan, the Superbowl this year was devastating, and embarrassing, and something I’d like to forget. We can only hope that the 86th Annual Academy Awards this Sunday turns out better. We have a group of equally nerdy, movie-buff friends who gather for Oscar night every year. We crowd around our 70” Sony TV—usually reserved for Sunday football and weeknight basketball games—to watch from the first red carpet interview to the final sign-off from Ellen.

Sweets & Smarts—A Tasty, Automated Combination for Valentine’s Day

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Valentine’s Day is all about showering your special loved one with candy, chocolate and the like. But what would be the real icing on the cake? Taking her to pick her own goodies in a fully automated sweet shop.

Winter Olympics—Facts & Video Wall [INFOGRAPHIC]

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The Winter Olympics are upon us. I love the Olympics and I’ve discovered there is just no point in watching the Olympics casually. Sure I could watch NBC’s nightly recaps, even though Twitter has already announced all the winners and there seems to be more commercials than actual competition. But there are only a few sporting events per year that give us the chance to truly take advantage of a full video wall, allowing you to watch every event as they happen...

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