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A New URC Logo Reflects New Opportunities
Here at Universal Remote Control, “Remote” truly is our middle name. That will never change. But our logo, like our company, is changing.
This summer, URC grows out of the home theater and into the whole house.
Our new logo reflects that we’re ready to show you entirely new ways to control the universe—and that we’re not limited just to remotes.
Our mission is to provide you with solutions that empower you to deliver the greatest experience for your clients. That’s why our new tag line reads Control the Experience.
We pride ourselves on the fact that we’ve worked with you side-by-side on small jobs, big jobs, and every job in between. Together, we’ve automated home theaters, made entertainment simple and provided award-winning, high-quality control products on which your customers have relied for well over 20 years. Thanks to you, we’ve sold an aggregate of 50 million remotes in the last 10 years alone.
Now we’re looking ahead at the next 20 years. One thing that will never change, however, is that we want to thank you for your support and your loyalty. You can count on us to continue to keep our part of the bargain.
2010 will prove to be a very exciting year for URC and URC dealers. Our snappy new logo is just the beginning.
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Product of the Month
Native to the Network
Two New Products Added to URC’s IP-based Control Lineup
Control the Universe readers this month get an exclusive preview of products we’ll officially announce at Electronic House Expo (EHX): The KP-4000 2-Way Network Keypad and the MRX-1 Network Base Station — URC’s Network Keypad System. Like the MX-5000 and the MX-6000, they communicate with IP components via a home local area network. We call them “Native to the Network” because they are optimized for IP network applications, while still working both with traditional A/V gear and our RF controls.
The KP-4000 is our first hard-wired, in-wall IP controller. It’s a color touch screen keypad that can control virtually anything on an IP home network: A/V components, energy management devices, PCs, iPods, and whole house lighting—all via preprogrammed modules. Additional modules for IP cameras, security panels and other devices are in the works. The KP-4000 is perfect for residential, classroom/boardroom and hospitality installations.
The KP-4000 can directly control and display 2-way information from IP A/V components like multi-zone A/V receivers via pre-programmed, drag-and-drop 2-way modules. That means 2-way control of AM/FM/HD tuners, XM/Sirius, status and volume pop-up. Imagine having essentially the entire front panel of a networked AVR on an in-wall keypad: That’s what you get on the KP-4000.
The KP-4000 doesn’t just communicate with IP-controlled components, of course. The MRX-1 base station receives commands from the KP-4000 and converts them for IR or RS-232 components. And with the optional RFTX-1 accessory, the MRX-1 can control URC lighting. As part of a growing system, the MRX-1 is optimized for the MX-5000 and MX-6000 as well.
So what can you do with all of this? Plenty! Being connected to a home’s IP network provides a wealth of capabilities URC’s never been able to provide before. And the best part is, because the Network Keypad System provides control that’s Native to the Network, NO SCRIPTING is required. That’s a lot of time and money saved for both you and your clients.
More info about the KP-4000:
- The KP-4000 offers 2-way control of an iPod via the PSX-2 Personal Server, and 2-way control of PC- or Mac-based iTunes music collections via pre-built modules.
- When a URC network remote in the house is used to adjust volume on an IP-based AVR, the KP-4000 displays the change when connected to the same zone. And vice versa.
- Because the KP-4000 is hard-wired to the home’s high-speed LAN, it can display all kinds of metadata: lists of artists, albums and songs, as well as “Now Playing” cover art. You can use either the URC PSX-2 Personal Server to dock an iPod on the network, or install Autonomic Controls’ Media Control Server on any networked PC, and help your client enjoy (and richly control) music anywhere in the house. No need to run wires from the computer to the audio system any longer.
- Via the popular URC modules for News, Sports, Weather and Stocks RSS feeds, KP-4000 users can stay connected at a glance to the information they need via customized views.
- There are two KP-4000 power options: Power over Ethernet (POE), which requires just one piece of CAT5, or a standard 12 Volt (1Amp) power supply where POE is not an option.
More info about the MRX-1:
- Via the MRX-1, most RS-232 components can display 2-way volume pop-ups on the KP-4000.
- The MRX-1 features six adjustable IR ports (Port 6 can be used to control URC Lighting via the optional RFTX-1). RF collisions and crosstalk are eliminated because each IR port has its own IR engine and can operate totally independent of the others. When used with the KP-4000, the MRX-1 can handle multiple simultaneous commands over the LAN, and make sure that each component gets routed its correct command.
- The MRX-1 features two 2-way RS-232 ports.
- The MRX-1 Relay, which controls motorized projector mounts, screens, drapes/shades and TV lifts, operates NO (Normally Open), NC (Normally Closed) and MC (Momentary Contact).
- The MRX-1 offers an RF input for connection to RFX-250 and RFX-250i RF sensors, as well as for RF control from standard URC RF remotes. Its RF output passes incoming commands to additional RF base stations. Its IR input receives incoming signals from other RF base stations, including the ZigBee-based MRZ-260.
- The MRX-1’s Video/Voltage Sensor, when used in a macro, ensures 100 percent reliable power management of a standard component that requires initial Turn-on Delays, or a TOAD component which only has a “Power Toggle” command.
- The KP-4000 features 2-way RS-232 Status Request Macro Capability; it can request the status of a RS-232 device like a TV, and based on the reply, execute an if/else macro (for example, If: TV is “OFF”, issue the “Power On” command, wait four seconds, and then issue the “Input 1” command/Else: just issue the “Input 1” command).
You don’t need a USB cable to install and configure the KP-4000; it’s all done via the network. And the devices’ MAC addressing enables you to install multiple KP-4000s and MRX-1s for control of as many components as needed throughout the house.
Contact URC or your sales rep today for more information about this groundbreaking new system! And remember, this is just the beginning from URC when it comes to whole house control. Stay tuned!
What a tiny $39 accessory can do for you...
It may seem like there is no end to what URC’s Network Keypad System can do for you. Take, for example, the low-cost RFTX-1 transmitter. It plugs into the back of the MRX-1 and transmits RF commands to URC light dimmers and switches. By adding an RFTX-1, your client can use the KP-4000 to brighten, dim, and recall lighting scenes, as well as store new scenes whenever they like, without a PC or a programmer. The client simply manually adjusts each dimmer to the new setting, then presses and holds a scene button on their KP-4000, just like storing radio station presets on a car radio. That means fewer truck rolls for you. Now that’s a bright idea!
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Get Free URC Training at EHX (and maybe save some additional cash!)
Heading to Orlando this month for Electronic House Expo (EHX)? Make sure to take advantage of the FREE URC TRAINING available throughout the show in Room 202A, conveniently located just outside the main entrance to the show floor. Click here for class descriptions and times.
URC has also arranged with the show organizers to save some lucky URC dealers additional money at EHX. The first 25 URC installers who click here will receive FREE admission to EHX, a $50 hotel voucher and a $10 meal voucher.
Good luck, and see you in the Sunshine State!
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 Vishal Narwal, Daemion Nelson and Robert Bourne created the RGA tool. Try URC’s New Online RGA Tool!
At URC, we pride ourselves in offering high-quality products that have a very, very low defect rate. However, returns are a fact of life in the consumer electronics industry.
When it’s necessary for a URC dealer to return merchandise for whatever reason, we don’t want you to waste precious time tracking it down. That’s why we recently unveiled an online Return Goods Authorization (RGA) tool for our dealers, and we encourage you to use it. It’ll save you both time and peace of mind.
Previously, if you wanted to check the status of a return, you had to call URC Tech Support for an update. Now you can check the status of an RGA instantly, online, any time you want: 24 hours a day, seven days a week! The URC Online RGA tool is simple, secure and convenient, and the best part is: No more time wasted with phone calls to Tech Support!
All you need to do to check on RGA status is visit http://www.universalremote.com/rgastatus and input the RGA number. It’s that easy!
The online RGA tool updates the four major RGA events in real time, as they occur:
OPEN
RGA has been issued but merchandise has not yet been received by URC
RECEIVED
Merchandise was received on XX-XX-XXXX date
SHIPPED
Replacement product OR rejected product has been shipped via UPS (or FEDEX) on Tracking Number XXXXXXXXXXXX
CLOSED
RGA process is complete
That link again is http://www.universalremote.com/rgastatus. Check it out!
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URC’s “Top Ten Networking Basics” Available at CEPro.com
A recent networking webinar conducted by URC Online Training Manager John Martin attracted more than 800 participants. So many people registered that URC Technical Training Manager Jeff Wagner assisted by handling questions in the background during John’s presentation. Jeff recently distilled the potent list of FAQs that emerged from the webinar into a “Top Ten Networking Basics” list that was published on CE Pro’s website. Check it out!
As with all URC webinars, attendees received CEDIA CEU credits. URC webinars are ALWAYS free of charge, and are a great way to polish your programming skills right in the comfort of your own home or office. Watch this newsletter every month for the webinar schedule; here’s the current schedule.
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Your Peers
Tom Ranney
President, Regal Home Media Solutions
Getting Ready for the Rebound: Don’t Try to Be All Things to All People
Tom Ranney, along with his business partner Jim McDaniel, runs Regal Home Media Solutions (www.rhms.com), with locations in the Cincinnati and Dallas/Fort Worth areas. The company’s tagline reflects its lifestyle focus: “Automating the way you work and play.” Founded in 2003, RHMS started out doing residential installation but has gradually moved into the commercial space as well. It’s been a URC shop from day one.
Tom has adapted his business model not only to his unique markets but also to the changes in the economy. One foundation of his success has been sticking to what he knows, and getting the most out of it. Tom deals with just a handful of vendor partners, URC included.
“Pick your solution, and sell your solution into the market,” advises Tom. “You can spend a huge amount of time researching and learning different products and technologies, but especially in today’s economy, you need to be fluent in what you install. You need to get in, get the job done right, and get out. So it’s important to stick to your core product set, know what you’re going to market with, get in and get out faster, and keep your margins up. If you sell more lines and more categories than you need to, you might bring in more revenue, but your profitability and margins will likely go way down. It’s a hard lesson to learn, but you need to stay in your core area.”
Tom’s bread and butter for years has been the venerable URC MX-900, but lately he’s been installing MX-880s and MX-980s because he recognizes the customer preference for color displays. He also raves about the MX-5000 and MX-6000, and even sees potential for the latter in corporate boardroom installations. On the commercial side, Tom reports he has been installing URC’s often-overlooked, often-misunderstood KP-900.
Share YOUR story with us and we’ll share it with your peers. To set up an interview, contact editor@universalremote.com.
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Your Business
By Glenn Gentilin
URC Regional Product Specialist
How Much Should You Charge for Programming?
As we travel the country training installers, one of the most frequently asked questions we receive is: “How much should I be charging for programming?”
As an industry, we tend to undercharge for programming. I’ve met an alarming number of installers who confess that they program the remote for free when the customer buys it. I wince when I hear stories like that, and hope you do too.
The fact is that programming a remote is a skill that you’ve learned and developed, and you should be compensated for it.
Remember: You’ve invested a lot of time and money learning how to program. You’ve spent valuable time in the field putting that knowledge to use. Don’t forget that you had to pay for the laptop computer you use to do the programming, too. All of these things represent a significant investment of your time and money and, like any businessperson, you should be getting a return on that investment.
There are three basic things to consider when you determine how much to bill for your programming time.
Always charge for programming and re-programming. Never give away your programming labor. If you do, you not only devalue your own work, but that of everyone else in the field. And if you go back to add or change something for a client—unless it was your mistake, of course—charge for that time as well.
Your programming labor rate should be higher than your installation labor rate. Programming is viewed as a skill by your customers, and they will be willing to pay more for it. Generally speaking, charge 15 to 25 percent more for programming than you charge for installation.
Amortize your training time and equipment costs. You spent time learning how to program and you paid for the PC you use. Recoup those expenses!
You’ve spent many hours in training classes. The first few remotes you programmed most likely took several hours each; maybe it even took a couple days to get one completely right. So now, even though you’ve whittled the actual programming time down to 20 or 30 minutes by using existing Files and Imported Devices, you should still charge an average cost. Estimate about how long it took you the third time you programmed a particular model. Make that your baseline, the benchmark you use to calculate your charge for basic programming of one remote.
Note the word “basic.” If a customer requests special features, charge for them. Favorite Channels? Additional charge. Custom graphics (a huge time drain)? Additional charge. Don’t think twice about this.
Of course, you must make sure that your customer understands what level of programming is included with the remote, and what programming services are optionally available at an extra cost. Don’t begin programming until this pricing model is absolutely clear and understood by the customer.
One last word: make sure you deliver. Don’t leave the job site until the remote works perfectly, especially when the customer is operating it. Explain all of the functions. Warn the customer about what could conceivably go wrong, and what to do if things do go south. Counsel the customer on battery care and safety. Inform the customer that rechargeable Lithium Ion cells do not last forever.
Finally, remind your customer that when his friends go gaga over his new expertly-programmed home theater system, he should please refer those friends to you.
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Hank's Absolutely Free Tip of the Month
By Hank Eisengrein
URC Regional Training Manager, East
Add URC Lighting to Every Sale for Happy Customers
Hello from your friend Hank.
URC Lighting was introduced in September 2008 at CEDIA EXPO. I remember standing by the display wall in the URC booth and talking with URC dealers about these exciting new dimmers, switches, and lamp modules. While I was conducting a demonstration, two Los Angeles-based installers said to me: “We’ll put one in every system now even if the customer didn’t think about lighting control, since these are only $150 retail. Then the customer can come back and buy $9,000 of whole house lighting from us.” These guys sold high-end Crestron systems with Vantage and Crestron lighting. I thought “Wow, what a great idea.” So after that experience, I started telling their story to every dealer I saw at CEDIA.
Fast forward to a distributor show held in Toronto later that year. I was talking about lighting along with URC’s Jeff Wagner, and one group of Canadian guys said to us, “URC Lighting is so affordable, it can be the ‘gateway drug’ for whole house lighting.” Pretty funny, but a true statement. Jeff liked that.
Now your customers can get more than they expected in their A/V systems. Sure, they all think that the custom programmed remote control will control their entertainment system, but how many customers think about lighting control?
If you train yourself and your staff to always add URC Lighting to every system, you’ll find that you exceed the expectations of the customer, while increasing your profit in every system you install. Now, in addition to operating the Blu-ray player, game console and A/V receiver, you introduce the concept of lighting control. That will set you apart from your competition for bids with prospective customers.
The best part is that URC Lighting is fast and easy to program. You use the URC CCP whole house designer software and simply add phantom base stations in the program to control URC Lighting. And URC Lighting works with virtually our entire remote control line. For example, standalone remotes like the MX-450 and MX-350 can take advantage of the extra dimension of URC lighting products. In fact, our longtime URC dealers can use URC Lighting with URC RF remotes going back to the MX-600 and MX-800, so you can add lighting control to older systems if you’re called in to upgrade some devices in a customer’s system.
If you update your CCP software, you will quickly find all of the URC Lighting codes listed under the LIGHTS database. If you look in the URC Control Room on the User Forum in the URC Lighting section, you will also find a zip file from URC’s Robert Durbin with learned codes ready for you to use.
So now you need to practice the concept: “Add lighting to every sale.”
Remember that now your customers can get more than just A/V control, because you are helping to promote energy savings and related cost savings by using dimmers. In some cases, by dimming a lamp, you can triple the life expectancy of the bulb and reduce energy bills too. This can make you a “green” business instantly. You can help reduce your customers’ carbon footprint. With the more expensive URC remotes, you can create Event Timers in the CCP software to provide timed lighting control for selected areas of the home.
With URC Lighting, you can expand your business beyond A/V, which is especially good during this era of very small profit margins on video products. Your competitors may be selling on price alone, but you can set yourself apart by using URC Lighting to broaden your assortment.
In my house, I have several table and floor lamps. I am able to use the URC lamp dimmer module to control those rooms without having to install any dimmer into the wall. You’d be surprised how fast customers get used to having one-touch automation with lighting control. You just need to add lighting to every system.
Many of us at URC have been traveling the globe telling dealers to add a “free dimmer or switch” to every system. Of course, we really mean that you should “build in” a “free” lighting product with each and every system that you sell. Many dealers who heard this said, “Wow, that’s a great idea, I’ll start doing that.” And the URC dealers who did have seen their lighting business grow steadily, along with customer satisfaction and profit margins. All it takes is practice and the discipline to remember to add URC lighting control to every job.
Lighting control also is a very effective showroom demo. Don’t have a working showroom? That’s OK; just carry a small lamp with you and a URC lamp module plus a remote. At every consultation, you can quickly show prospective customers how easy it is to include several rooms of URC Lighting. Our Mid-Atlantic URC sales rep, Hugh Hart from AVR Marketing, has even built his own URC
Lighting demo road case. A bathroom light bar fixture is mounted in the lid of the case, with a URC lamp module connected and operated by a URC remote such as the affordable MX-450. Hugh can go into any dealer, plug his demo case into an AC outlet, and show how effective URC Lighting is. You can do the same with your customers.
After over a year and a half of telling dealers to give away a free dimmer or switch, I met an even smarter dealer, Pedro Moreno and the team from Gables Audio Video in Coral Gables, Fla., at a distributor vendor event in Ft. Lauderdale in November 2009. I was talking about URC products and said, “Are you guys using URC Lighting?” The response from Pedro was, “Yes, we love it, we use it all the time.” Turned out, he had a great angle that I didn’t think of using: the old selling technique of the “assumptive close.” Gables Audio Video simply writes a dimmer into each and every job estimate for its customers; every system gets at least one URC lighting product. If the customer asks about it, Gables responds, “We include this $150 dimmer in your system. If for any reason you don’t want it, we’ll remove it in 30 days and credit your account.” Guess what? They’ve never had a single customer ask them to remove the $150 dimmer. Quite the contrary: According to Gables, customers actually ask for additional URC Lighting for other rooms in the house. How smart is that? More money and happier customers.
Remember: URC lighting products are easy to sell and easy to install. No special interface is needed, no expensive modules, no extra wires. And they work together with URC remotes. For those of you who do not sell URC remotes exclusively, you can also use URC 433MHz lighting with other brands of remote controls.
So start the summer off right. Make happy customers and generate more profits. Add URC Lighting to every sale.
And don’t forget that Light Almond is the hottest color for 2010, with a KP-900 to match.
See you on the road and online. And in the meantime, watch me talk about URC Lighting in the Video Gallery section of the URC Control Room here:
http://www.urccontrolroom.com/videos/?video_id=57&s=new
Thanks,
Hank
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Tech Tips
By Joe Salvatore
URC Technical Support Manager
Upgrade Your Firmware!
Imagine driving a brand-new, 641-hp, 6.5-liter V-12 Lamborghini with sixth gear of the transmission blocked off. Then imagine finding out after a full year of driving this awesome machine that it’s been capable of going to sixth all along with a simple, free upgrade that your mechanic could’ve performed.
Something tells me this doesn’t happen too often in the world of luxury automobiles. Unfortunately, though, I’m certain that many consumers of high-end A/V gear can relate to that scenario.
The last feeling in the world that you want your customers to have is that of owning a premium electronic device that is not operating at maximum efficiency, or to its fullest capability. This is especially true of remote controls, since these are the devices with which your customers interact every day. Because remotes are the centerpiece of any great home theater, it is best practice to unlock their full potential by executing potential firmware upgrades before every installation you perform.
Here are four simple steps for updating firmware on a URC remote:
- Live Update your CCP (or standalone editor software if applicable) every time you configure a remote.
- Factory default the remote from its internal menu.
- Download a default file configuration that contains no programmed info.
- Download the customer’s programmed file into the remote.
This is the fastest, easiest way to ensure that your customer can enjoy the latest and greatest remote control firmware enhancements from URC. These enhancements have been made to enrich the user experience, so make sure your customer receives them.
Firmware upgrades also prove valuable to installers as preventative measures as well. For example, Windows OS updates sometimes affect the ability of various mobile devices to connect to a PC running those specific updates. A firmware update may be required at that point to make a remote compliant with the changes to the Windows operating system, which, in turn, will guarantee that any programmed information would be transferrable from a remote to a PC and vice versa.
Our CCP product software features an “Update History” button inside of its Help section. There, you can find information on any database and firmware improvements as necessary.
For further support on this tech tip, please email us at techsupport@universalremote.com.
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URC Tool Box
App of the Month |
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NetStreams DigLinX Control for MX-6000
A recent addition to the URC Tool Box store is a free two-way app from NetStreams that contains 22 skins for MX-6000 WiFi control of its DigiLinX distributed entertainment system. All of the NetStreams functions can now be built into the MX-6000 controller, including tactical buttons such as volume up and down, mute, and channel up and down. The MX-6000’s scroll wheel can now enable quick and precise selections through even the largest DigiLinX media libraries and playlists. The MX-6000 now can easily control all aspects of a DigiLinX installation: A/V, lighting, HVAC and security.
The NetStreams app is just one of the latest to be added to URC’s growing Tool Box app store. Apps from URC industry partners as well as installers like you are available for download. You can also upload, and even sell, your own apps!
Haven’t checked out the Tool Box yet? What are you waiting for? Do it today! Just log onto the URC Control Room and click “URC Tool Box” on the left side of the home page.
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