Adding Streaming Internet to Your TV

If you want to add streaming internet to your TV (or switching altogether from cable or satellite) there are at least two units to consider.  One is the AppleTV which is quite familiar to most while the other is Roku, a newer device which may be more suitable for many users.  So we thought we'd take a moment to consider both.

Let's start first with WHY you might want to consider streaming TV.  More and more, people no longer hurry to their TVs to catch their favorite program in real time.  Instead, they will record the programming to view later at their convenience.  VCRs and, later, DVRs made that possible and popular.  Now however, with so many downloading their programming via streaming internet, the DVR may become less and less relevant.

Roku's head, Anthony Wood, forecasts, "Within four years I would say that the majority of TVs will stream over the Internet versus cable and satellite.... It is inevitable that all TV is going to be delivered over the Internet."

If that is true, then let's consider two such streaming devices currently making waves.

We'll start with AppleTV, an Editor's Choice from CNet.com.  The Apple TV is a tiny streaming box for $99 that lets you stream all of the movies and TV shows available in the iTunes Store to your HDTV on a rental or purchase basis, with purchases stored in the cloud. Netflix, MLB.TV, Hulu Plus, and a handful of other online media services are available, plus music, videos, and photos can be streamed from iOS devices (iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch) using AirPlay.  Those who've already invested in iTunes content and Apple hardware will find the Apple TV to be an indispensable living-room companion, and it's an excellent streaming-video box for non-Apple folks as well.

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Presto! Change-o! Family Room Becomes a Home Theater

Most of us don't live in sprawling homes.  And we try to make the most of our available living area.  That's why our family room often also serves as our media room.  At the center of our "media room" are the flatscreen TV and surround sound system.  Add to that the Blu-ray or DVR and if you enjoy good music, that's also where you'll find the CD player, the receiver and the amp.  Oh, you have kids?  Then add the gaming system to our media room/family room.

Those are just some of the different types of media components you could expect in either of our two sample family rooms pictured here.  Using either of these two photos, you can easily imagine including something like a satellite receiver or AppleTV or some or digital components in these rooms.

So what if you decide that as a family Christmas gift, wouldn't it be cool to have a home theater?  I mean, the existing flatscreen is fine for routine TV viewing, but maybe you like the idea of "big event" home entertainment.  Maybe its a special movie night or a sporting event that you'd like to have a monster screen so having someone walk in front of you doesn't mean missing the big moment!  And you certainly don't have space for a room dedicated to a home theater.  Why not let your family room also become your home theater?

So picture this...you see you have a comfortable living space for friends and family to gather.  There's ample room to move about as guests refresh their plates with the food you have out as part of your spread.  Only thing is, everyone tends to huddle real tight for those "can't miss" moments on the screen.

That's when inspiration hits!  You can add a drop screen and video projector to your media room.  Pick either one of our sample rooms shown and imagine a motorized screen recessed into the ceiling.  At the start of your event, the massive screen lowers from the ceiling just forward of the existing flatscreen while the lights dim and your audio system prepares to thunder!  Even the video projector can be recessed into the ceiling only to descend as well on cue!

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I Wish I'd Thought of That Sooner!

Did you ever build a home only to regret you didn’t think of a few worthwhile features you could have easily added?  For example, when building a home, it is ALWAYS to your advantage to consult with a custom home A/V installer before the house plans are finalized.  That’s because companies like ours can help you envision amenities you didn’t know were available to you...and didn't realize you'd want later!  For practically the cost of the extra wire, you can avoid the future labor costs of having someone crawling in your attic with fish tape feeding wire between studs and ceiling joists.

We ran across a forum topic that invited ideas of small but easily overlooked additions to new homes.  You might be GLAD you read some of these excerpts before building your next home.  Here are a few of our favorite posts:
  • Plugs in kitchen pantry for charging, or for items that may end up living there
  • Full size broom cupboard in pantry or laundry room to hide all the cleaning items away from sight.

    [caption id="attachment_557" align="alignright" width="196"] Solar Tube in Closets or Dressing Areas

  • Solar tubes in areas that don’t get natural sunlight
  • Prewire security system
  • Run wire and prepare roof for future solar
  • Central Vac with vac pans
  • I would run conduit under your driveway just in case you need to run wiring or plumbing in the future.
  • My contractor friend said one thing he learned to do was run a 2" pvc pipe from basement straight up to attic, for any future wiring to second floor.
  • Pre-wire speakers indoor/outdoor
  • Garden outlets/power, water line
  • Double conduits from attic to basement
  • Dryer vent lint box
  • Hepa filtration for allergy sufferers
  • Heated towel racks
  • Motion sensor pre-wire for selected exterior lights
  • Soundproofing where needed (we did laundry room/bedroom wall)
  • Identify area for low voltage can/rack (alarm brain, network server, modems, routers, etc). Helps to have this stuff accessible.
  • And don't let your plumber caulk the bottom of your toilet to the tile to hide potential leaks. Sigh.
  • I'd also suggest several 4-plug outlets instead of all 2-pluggers. (By the time you have a bedside lamp on each side of a bed, plus a plug-in clock or two, plus a plug-in base for your cordless phone....it all adds up to lots of outlets.)
  • We are putting an exhaust fan in the laundry room for our indoor cat's litterbox.
  • A light switch at the head of your bed so you can turn out the light once you are in bed.
If you'd like to browse through the entire forum topic, click here. Two things we'd like to add here.  One is to consider LED lighting.  Far more efficient than traditional lighting and are dimmable (whereas the little swirly fluorescents are not).  Plus they draw so little power, your electrician doesn't have to use the beefier, standard size circuits.  The added expense of LEDs become added to your construction cost and savings in your utilities are immediate.  We can show you why this might be a great choice for you. The second thing is to pre-wire for all potential audio and video components--even those you may never expect to use.  We do post construction installations all the time for people who wish they'd have thought to install the wiring in advance. Why not keep your own little list of amenities that will make life all the simpler for you?  When its time to build, your thinking-in-advance will make your home just a little happier.

by Bryan Naquin.  Follow Bryan on Twitter @ACIexperts.  And you can always contact him at 225.906.2589 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Bryan Naquin is president of Acadian Home Theater and Automation based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  CEPro Magazine has ranked Acadian in the top 100 consumer electronic companies in the U.S. for the third year in a row.

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The Great Wall of Canada


People often ask us "Can you hook up our home electronics so we can operate it from our iPad?"  The easy answer is "Absolutely!"  While you're at it, what you really need to do is envision how your 21st century dream home or corporate office would function and, as a custom A/V integrator, let us help you make that a reality.  With that in mind I thought I'd bring you an EXTREME example to demonstrate what custom integrators can do!

GE, a global leader in energy research and technology, opened its new $40 million, 200,000 square foot Markham, Ontario Grid IQ™ Global Innovation Center dedicated to promoting its next-generation energy management grid. To help bring the new center to life in the most engaging, customer-friendly way possible, GE partnered with Advanced, Canada’s leading A/V integrator, to envision, design and install an integrated audio-video and IT solution that encompasses 55 rooms including a Customer Experience Center that features a jaw-dropping 58-foot Prysm LPD video wall.

Advanced utilized Prysm's video wall technology along with several wall-mounted touchscreens to enable customers to explore GE’s energy technologies firsthand and provide them with ways to discover solutions to improve and enhance their energy grids.

In fact, it's the world’s largest curved Prysm video wall, measuring 58 feet wide by 7 feet tall using 175 individual tiles with the thinnest seams currently possible.  Video processing is provided by the latest Extron Quantum™ Elite processor and a professional grade multi-zone audio system was installed to complete the media experience. The entire Customer Experience Center features Crestron automation and can be controlled through an iPad.

Acadian Home Theater is a Crestron dealer and we have automated many area homes with Crestron products and innovation.  Crestron has long been a leader in the "touchscreen control" of complex systems.  So a home can be programmed to have the HVAC system begin warming the bathroom 15 minutes before you normally awake, have the lights slowly fade brighter so your eyes can adjust and the flatscreen in your exercise room turn on and tuned to your favorite morning news program.

And, yes, if you want to override your regular settings, you can always operate it with your iPad!

by Bryan Naquin.  Follow Bryan on Twitter @ACIexperts.  And you can always contact him at 225.906.2589 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Bryan Naquin is president of Acadian Home Theater and Automation based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  CEPro Magazine has ranked Acadian in the top 100 consumer electronic companies in the U.S. for the third year in a row.

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MLB Star Adrian Gonzalez' Savant System

When MLB all-star Adrian Gonzalez, was traded from the San Diego Padres to the Boston Red Sox, Gonzalez and his family purchased a new home on the opposite coast, nearly 3,000 miles away.

He wanted to include in his new home some of the best features he came to enjoy in his current residence.  In 2010, Gonzalez’ San Diego home had been equipped with an Apple-based Savant home control system, relying on Savant apps on iPads and iPhones to command the system. The integrator included a five-screen home theater with four built-in iPads in a counter in the rear to surf the web or play games.

Fortunately, the Gonzalezes wanted the same Savant control system in their new home. So his integrator just had to duplicate some of its original efforts into the new home.  Only this time, the company would need to fly their crew to the other side of the US and ship everything needed for the job (including tools) ahead of them.

As it turns out, it wasn't until after construction on the home was completed, that the Red Sox traded Gonzalez back to the West Coast to the Los Angeles Dodgers, so he’ll be able to use the Savant system to keep tabs remotely on his Boston home … before he presumably puts the home on the market.

Two industry magazines featured Gonzalez' Boston home each of which included a slideshow of the results.  Here's a link to one such slideshow illustrating the finished product.  You might want to find out more about what he incorporated into his home.  Click here to read an article about how it all came together.

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