Smart Home Buyers Guide
Looking to build your dream smart home? Make sure you read this!
Life gets busy—but when your home technology is
connected into one simple-to-use automation platform,
it helps take away some of those little daily stresses. A true
smart home system helps make life more convenient and
your home safer, more comfortable, and easier to enjoy.
Unlike other smart home systems, Control4 homeowners
enjoy personalized smart home experiences perfect for any
home—no matter the size or budget, new construction or
decades old.
With Control4, You Get:
• Choice from brands you trust
• A customized smart home design
• Centralized smart home operating system
• Easy control of home devices from one app
• Professional installation
• Concierge-level technology support
Interested?
This Control4 Buyer’s Guide will take you through
everything you need to know to get started creating
your ideal smart home.
A smart home operating system (OS) is
a software platform that connects the
many different types of technology in
your home together to make devices
easily accessible and customizable.
The Control4 Smart Home OS enables
you and your family to control nearly
every device and system in the house in
ways that are easy and fun to use.
When you have a Control4 Smart
Home OS installed into your home,
the technology integration possibilities
become almost endless. After browsing
these highlights of what you can do
and connect with a Control4 system, talk
with a local smart home professional to
get even more inspiration for your home.
Smart lighting goes far beyond beautiful
switches and dimmable bulbs. It provides energy
efficiency, added safety and security, custom
lighting scenes, and the ability to control several
smart products in your home at once with just
the touch of a button.
You need only a few products from Control4 to enjoy smart lighting
in your home. You can even start with one room and add more smart lighting over time to your existing system—the choice is yours.
Stay connected to your home anywhere in
the world with real-time home notifications,
doorbell alerts, mobile home access and
control, smart home security, and more.
Control4 works with your most trusted security
brands, protecting you without compromise.
What happens in your home should stay in your
home, which is why we’re committed to strict and
proactive standards for data privacy.
We respect your right to privacy and believe
your data should be handled with integrity and
confidence. Control4 does not sell or rent your
personal information to third-party companies.
We also enable you to set and adjust your Control4
privacy settings to better meet your preferences.
With Smart Security, You Can:
• Arm/disarm your security system via
the mobile app
• Receive alerts when a door or window
is opened
• Set lights to automatically turn on
at dusk
• Open and close your blinds at
scheduled times
• Control your home privacy settings
with easy-to-use tools and
clear choices
• Set up an alert and notify you if
movement is detected by a pool
or fire pit
• Set up secure two-way conversation
using touchscreen panels that ring
your mobile app
• Automatically have your home security
system arm during the weekdays while
you are at work
• Lock or unlock your front door and view
your security cameras from one app
Standard Products Used for Home Security
Get started with smart security using products that will help you build the
secure home experience you are wanting. You can easily add more security
devices and features over time to your existing Control4 system.
SMART AUDIO
Get sound you don’t just hear, but also
experience. When you connect your
sound system to your home automation
platform, you can create an experience
that takes your breath away.
Home Theater
Home theater speakers range from in-ceiling
and in-wall to in-room and on-wall, depending
on your preferences or needs.
Soundbars
Triad soundbars are premium speakers
built in the USA. They can be custom
painted to match a wall color and custom
sized to match the width of the TV.
Multi-Room Audio
Ensure all speakers throughout the house
are customized to the room they are in
and easy to control, from inside the home
to the back yard or pool area.
Outdoor Speakers
For the best sound experience outdoors,
be sure to select speakers dedicated for
outdoor use.
Outdoor speaker options include wall-mounted
models as well as speaker solutions that
disappear into the shrubs and plants around
the perimeter of the space.
Standard Products Used for Smart Audio
With nearly 40 years of experience in premium loudspeakers, K&W Audio offersaward-winning speakers that fit your home size, lifestyle, and budget.
Start small and build over time with speakers crafted just for you.
SMART VIDEO
Multi-room smart video connects all TVs in your
home together, hiding away technology while
still giving you quick access to all your content.
You can also easily stream a station or movie
in multiple rooms at the same time—perfect
for entertaining.
With Smart Video, You Can:
• Stream music and video to different rooms
at the same time
• Quickly access your favorite television and
music stations, streaming services, playlists,
lighting scenes, thermostats, door locks, and
more from one interface
• Set the TV to turn on to a certain station at
a certain time of day
• Open and close blinds automatically
when the TV is turned on/off
• Record and view your favorite shows
from any smart TV
• Use one button to quickly adjust your
lighting and TV for movie viewing
• Have your movie easily move with
you from room to room
• Stream music and video to different rooms
at the same time
• Quickly access your favorite television and
music stations, streaming services, playlists,
lighting scenes, thermostats, door locks, and
more from one interface
• Set the TV to turn on to a certain station at a certain time of day
Standard Products Used for Smart Video
Control4 builds some of the finest products available to create unforgettable
cinematic moments in your home. We provide a high-quality picture and sound
experience that is easy to use throughout your entire home by connecting
everything through your Control4 Smart Home OS.
REMOTE ACCESS
Be connected to what matters most, no matter
where you are. Remote access to your smart
home system keeps you informed and in control
of what’s happening at home—whether you’re in the kitchen or across the world.
Stay Connected to Home With:
• Mobile app access and
home control of lights, door locks,
cameras, thermostat, TVs, audio,
and more
• Custom system alerts and
push notifications
• Live camera video and two-way
audio chat
Receive a Push Notification When:
• Your child arrives home from school
• Someone rings your doorbell
• A door or window is opened during
certain hours
• Motion is detected in a room
• Home temperature goes outside of
the normal range
• Someone wants to reach you through
a home touchscreen video chat
Standard Products Used for Remote Access
Enjoy the peace of mind that comes from being able to quickly switch between
cameras, lock/unlock doors, receive home notifications and alerts, or check on any
room in the home from your app.
VOICE CONTROL
Using your favorite voice control assistant,
you can control a specific device, a few devices
simultaneously, or your entire Control4 Smart
Home with just your voice. Effortlessly activate
music, turn on or off a single light or multiple
fixtures at once, lock doors, or adjust the
temperature, all without lifting a finger.
With Voice Control, You Can:
• Activate a home scene
in the morning that raises
the shades, turns on the
bathroom lights, and
starts playing your favorite
news station
• Lock or unlock your front
door with your voice
• Arm your security system
while lying in bed
• Turn on or off lights with a
voice command when your
hands are full
• Ask your home to display
camera footage on your
touchscreen
• Quickly adjust your home temperature
Easy for All
Voice control is an easy and
convenient way for anyone in
the house to interact with your
smart home. The commands
are simple and natural. For
example, “Alexa, turn on family
room TV” or “Hey Google, dim
the theater lights to 40%.”
Standard Products Used for Voice Control
With a simple voice command, your smart home is prompted to turn on/off lights,
lock/unlock doors, adjust the thermostat and security system, and more, depending
on what you have connected to your Control4 Smart Home OS.
NETWORK
The network—your connection to the
internet—is one of the most important systems
in any home. Each connected device adds strain
to a home network, so it is important to have a
network properly built for your home size and network usage.
Customize Your Network
Here are some of the common
networking products found in a
medium-to-large home:
• A router
• Managed switch (with PoE power)
• Multiple access points or repeaters
• A power distribution unit for
smart control
• A remote management platform
The Right Network for You
You want a network that is seamless,
reliable, and consistently dependable.
Rather than choosing an off-the-shelf
networking product that gives you
an often-unreliable router, switch,
and wireless connection all in one,
a Control4 Smart Home Pro will tailor
your networking products to fit you.
Standard Products Used for Networking
For most families, the home network and Wi-Fi are the most important technology
in the home. Ensure that your network is robust enough to handle your usage with a custom network that can grow with you.
CONNECTED DEVICES
Unlike some smart home systems, the
Control4 Smart Home OS is an open
platform and works with over 13,000
third-party products—meaning you can
connect and control almost any device
through your Control4 OS.
Will It Connect? Yes!
In addition to working with
these well-known brands, a
Control4 system can control
many third-party products,
such as:
• TVs and speakers
• Smart door locks
• Doorbell cameras
• Thermostat and HVAC
• Voice command devices
• Sprinkler/Irrigation systems
• Floor heating systems
• Garage doors
• Blinds and shades
• IoT devices
• Smart washer/dryer
• Smart kitchen appliances
• Plumbing and faucets
• Pool controls
• Gate access and
monitoring
• Pet door control
• Medicine cabinet locks
HOW TO GET STARTED
Whether you are looking to automate a
single room or you are designing your
dream home, get your project started by
chatting with a K&W Audio Smart Home Professional
about your lifestyle, wants, and needs.