At Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2016 this month in Europe, we saw a wide range of new dedicated touchscreens and keypads for home automation. But we also saw our share of mounts and docks for iPads and other tablets. Here are some of the gems we spotted at the show.
iPort Surface Mount with Buttons
iPort, the Dana Innovations brand that makes elegant mounting and power solutions for iPads and other iOS devices, has scored some more design wins with its newest on-wall iPad frames.
The new Surface Mount for iPad sits right up against the wall, adding only a few millimeters of depth to the tablet itself. A module sits behind it in a standard wall box, providing options for PoE or two-pin 24V DC power. The lightning connector plugs into a USB port on the module, with excess cable wrapping around the little box … and still fitting into a small back box.
The “magic was to design a PoE splitter to fit in the smallest European boxes,” says Ari Supran, CEO of the Dana Innovations brands Sonance, iPort and TruFig.
The fact that the Surface Mount requires such a small back box means there is wiggle room in placing the iPad.
“You can replace legacy keypads with a new controller using the existing framework,” says chief sales officer Jason Sloan. “Just use the existing wire for power and the iPad for control.”
The Surface Mount System is available in black, silver and white for $399. The price includes the PoE/DC power splitter, which otherwise sells separately for $120.
More interestingly from iPort is a Surface Mount with IP-addressable buttons. In the past, iPort has offered a LaunchPort iPad sleeve with hard buttons, but the buttons communicated via proprietary Clear Connect technology for controlling only Lutron devices.
The new mounts with IP buttons enable integrators to configure one-touch control of virtually any home automation function via third-party control systems. Initially, the system is compatible with Savant, Crestron, Control4, NuVo and Simple Control.
Mounts are available with six or 10 buttons, which are backlit in any color of the customer’s choosing. The company recently invested in its own laser machine, so they can create custom buttons to order.
