Builder Software
Software Works in a 3D World
Homebuilders that work with Graphicsoft’s new ArchiCAD software will discover how the program’s 3D environment can enhance their virtual building models, which can aid a builder’s ability to market a business. The software incorporates geometric and non-graphical information that allows a user to develop, document and automatically deliver a 3D rendering of a building project. The ArchiCAD software provides homebuilders with all of the design tools necessary to create 2D drawings, 3D zones, animated virtual reality scenes and photo-like drawings.
Graphicsoft U.S., Inc., Newton, Mass., 800-344-3468
Builder Software
Software Tracks Leads
B-HomeWise, Inc.'s new B-Wise family of workflow tools are designed to help a builder streamline his business and create a more efficient office environment. The suite of programs includes the E-Gateway Edition, which is designed for builders that already have an existing customer relationship management system in place. The E-Gateway program automatically tracks leads and prioritizes the leads based on specific information. The Online Sales Counselor is designed to meet the needs of a new homebuilder's sales staff, and the other tools that round out the package are the E-Leads software and the Enterprise Edition software.
B-HomeWise, Inc., McLean, Va., 703-734-2224, www.behomewise.com
Home Theater Furniture
Furniture Accommodates A/V Flexibility
Too often you may find that you don’t have the correct furniture to blend technology with the living space. After all, today’s home is as much about the technology that’s inside as it is how the electronics look within it. Vantage Point’s new Axsys Audio/Video shelf system is designed to support and organize a modern home theater and electronics systems. The Audio/Video shelf system features tempered glass shelves and wall-mounted tubes, which allow for the shelves’ height to be adjusted. The shelves can hold up to 25 lbs. each, can be rotated up to 45 degrees each on a horizontal axis. Vantage Point offers the units in silver and black, and the system can house items such as center-channel speakers, DVD players and cable and satellite set-top boxes.
MSRPs range from $69.99 to $300. Vantage Point, Santa Fe Springs, Calif., 562-946-1718, www.vanptc.com
Home Video
It’s Time to TiVo
By now almost everyone has heard of TiVo. It’s this generation’s brand name equivalent to Kleenex. Just in case you haven’t, TiVo is a video-recording technology, which allows users to record and playback their favorite television programs. The latest company to offer TiVo and its video recording features is Humax. The company’s entry-level model features the ability to record up to 80 hours worth of programming and the larger model is capable of recording up to 250 hours worth of programming. According to Humax, the DVR market is ready to explode and with Humax’s entry into the category the company will be able to provide users with the hardware and features that are desirable to record and edit a user’s favorite television programming.
MSRPs range from $299 to $699. Humax, Santa Ana, Calif., 866-486-2987, www.humaxusa.com
HDTV
Getting HDTV Is Now Easier Than Ever
Have your homebuyers seen an NFL game in high definition yet? Toshiba’s new 52HM9X4 52-inch widescreen television can make that happen. The TV features a host of technologies that are designed to provide the user with the best possible picture. The television features an integrated HDTV tuner, a CableCARD slot that meets the FCC’s requirements to allow consumers to connect to HDTV programming through a simple plug-and-play card slot. The television has a HD-compatible resolution, and a variety of input options that allows users to hook up their TV to a VCR, DVD player and cablebox in a number of ways.
MSRP is $4,200, Toshiba America Consumer Products, Wayne, N.J., 800-631-3811, www.toshiba.com/tacp
Home Video
TV Is Perfect Size for Bedroom or Kitchen
The latest LCD TV product offering from BenQ is the Q150A. The 15-inch television features the company’s new panel technology that’s designed to remove any unwanted video distortion and improve image quality. The Q150 can display high-definition television, and it can be placed just about anywhere, including a hallway, bedroom or in the kitchen. The television features a pair of speakers, a built-in subwoofer, a television tuner, and a carrying handle, which lets users carry the unit from room to room. The television can also handle just about any type of video signal.
MSRP is $895. BenQ, City of Industry, Calif., 909-569-0700, www.benq.com
Builder Software
Using the Web to Improve Service
The new HomeProfile software suite from AxisPointe employs the power of the Internet to enable new homebuilders to more efficiently collect, manage and distribute all the information they collect on each home that is built. The software tracks specific information that’s related to product warranties, appliances, building materials, customer option selections, elevations, floorplans and subcontractors in a single customizable package. The software can be used for single family, multi-family, vacation properties, custom homes and track-home developments.
AxisPointe, Inc., Bluffdale, Utah, 801-571-1055, www.axispointe.com
Home Video
Where’s the TV?
The new ArtScreen from Vutec Corporation is intended for use with either a flat-panel television or a projection screen, and it’s designed to complement the appearance of a home’s video-display system by blending with the decor. The ArtScreen features a hardwood frame that contains a piece of art, and integrated electronics that can be used to raise and lower the artwork within the frame. The artwork can be operated through the use of a home-control system system, and Vutec offers a choice of images for the ArtScreen. Additionally, the company can reproduce custom artwork for homeowners that desire a more personalized appearance.
Vutec Corp., Pompano Beach, Fla., 800-770-4700, www.vutec.com
Home Video
Record Favorite TV Programs
Samsung has introduced a complete line of DVD players and recorders to meet the needs of everyone from the novice consumer all the way up to the video enthusiast. Among these new DVD players/recorders is the DVD-R100 DVD recorder. The DVD-R100 supports all the popular DVD recordable formats, and its one-touch recorder timer option delivers more user flexibility for those users that don’t need to program their recorder.
MSRP is $449.99. Samsung Electronics America, Ridgefield Park, N.J., 800-726-7864, www.samsung.com
Outdoor Loudspeakers
Listen to Music in the Yard
With more consumers realizing the benefits of whole-house audio, and its ability to deliver music to any room within the home, it only makes sense to take that music outdoors as well. Boston Acoustics’ voyager Metro loudspeaker allows homeowners to listen to their stereo music from a single speaker. The speaker incorporates the technology to faithfully reproduce stereo music from a variety of placement locations.
MSRP is $300. Boston Acoustics, Peabody, Mass., 978-538-5000, www.bostonacoustics.com
High-Performance Home Theater
Customizable Home Theater
Some homebuyers have no problem buying the typical home theater or central vacuum system. There are however, many homebuyers that desire something more than the standard home amenity. These are the consumers who want granite countertops and appliances from Viking or Sub-Zero. Fortunately for the custom homebuilder, the consumer-electronics industry produces home theater equipment for this type of consumer, and one company catering to this consumer is Aerial Acoustics. Aerial’s new System 1 speaker system can accommodate a video screen size from 100 inches to 135 inches, and it incorporates two subwoofers, and a left, center and right loudspeaker. The System 1 is designed to blend unobtrusively into any home environment and sound great.
MSRP depends on system configuration. Aerial Acoustics, Wellesley Hills, Mass., 781-235-7715, www.aerialacoustics.com
Builder Software
Software Minimizes Mistakes
The new Affinity for Residential 3.5 software from Trelligence is an off-the-shelf program that is designed to help new homebuilders control their costs, streamline their job management processes and to control all the other variables that are associated with the planning of a building project. The software enables the new homebuilder to capture, track and validate project and client requirements, and once the data is approved and secured, the information can be transferred to other builder software programs such as CAD. The software can show itemized data, including change orders and other information that can be easily tracked and maintained by the software.
MSRP is $795. Trelligence, Houston, Texas, 713-526-4820, www.trelligence.com