While there is light at the end of a long tunnel with the current pandemic, the past few months have brought a sea change in how people work, learn, and stay connected. Zoom has become a buzzword, and everyone from 1^st graders to senior citizens is becoming comfortable with videoconferencing as a way to communicate, as easily as they might use a phone.

Crestron, a worldwide leader in commercial automation and communication solutions, has a foot in both enterprise solutions and automation in high-end homes. Seeing this trend for video communication in the home, they set out to take conferencing out from individual devices and make it easy to use for a family or small group of people. In essence, they set out to bring the videoconference room into the living room. It's called Crestron HomeTime, and it brings a level of quality to videoconferencing to your home that used to require commercial equipment.

Keep reading to see how Elite Technology Solutions, your local Crestron dealer serving Clayton, MO, can bring business-class conferencing to your home.

Smart speakers and voice assistants are ubiquitous these days. Many people use various smart speakers from Amazon, Google, and Apple for information, music, quick questions, and home automation. With tempting Black Friday sales and prices at this time of year, it's tempting to get one or more for your home.

While these smart speakers and their intelligence platforms are great, they are also sometimes frustrating – especially when it comes to home automation. Commands to turn on a light sometimes have to be repeated. They have a limited understanding of context. Ask your child to flip on a light, and they look for the nearest switch and turn it on. Ask a voice assistant, and it can sometimes be an exercise equivalent to telling your child, "it's the switch to your right, the one on the wall, white, 2 inches above your eye level.” If that’s a frustration you’ve experienced, you might be glad to hear there is another option.

Elite Technology Solutions has recently partnered with Josh.AI, a voice assistant that is exclusively designed for home automation and aims to be the personal assistant that always understands what you want. Elite is proud to be the only home automation company offering the Josh.AI solution to the Ladue, MO community. Read on to learn more about a new dimension in voice control for your home.

According to the research firm IDC, the smart home market is projected to grow at a healthy 16.9% annual clip over the next few years. As an architect, designer, or builder, your clients likely have smart home automation listed as a high priority for their next home in Wildwood, MO.

What’s the best way to plan for home automation in your projects? In the same way you work with other professionals and trades, you’ll want to start early. Smart home technology is much more than a basic pre-wire package for low-voltage cabling. Read on to see how planning for home automation from the start will lead to smoother and faster builds for your projects – and more satisfied clients to boot.

There’s no denying that upscale homeowners want more and more smart technology in their homes. One of the most popular requests from discerning clients is whole-home audio, and it’s easy to see why. The idea of being able to seamlessly listen to their favorite music in any room of the house with minimal fuss is extremely appealing.

The trouble comes when it’s time to implement and install the system. If you haven’t planned out the locations for speakers and other equipment, along with how you’ll hide the necessary wiring, you can end up with a system that doesn’t work right and is an eyesore in the home. You can avoid these headaches by bringing in an audio expert like Elite Technology Solutions early on in your project. Today we’ll illustrate how you can create the ideal whole-home audio system for clients in the Frontenac, MO region with our help.