Gary Leeds UK

One of the best threads we have had for years - cheers 

The driver will hopefully soon be going onto DriverCentral for sale. The updated driver will have Google Cloud Text to Speech built in as well as various other changes and a few bug fixes. If you have already downloaded the free version then you can go ahead and use it but as stated earlier - support is limited for it.
The decision to sell the driver was made as it means we can put more work into future drivers.

thinking about not upgrading until after the buy out.

Man, I just got caught up on this monster... Have to say, there are some great points (from both perspectives) if perhaps over-dramatized a bit. 🙂
But, I really think knowitall and blub made some points worth repeating. 
The statement above is *mostly* the cold harsh truth, except for one glaring omission to choppedogg88's point later in the thread... They still own the best PRODUCT for merging everything together into one user friendly system. So, while the "business" is currently running away from them. The PRODUCT needs to be better marketed and flipped to at least some level of more mass-market adoption in order for any company in the space to succeed. I have had my system for about 3 years now... My friends and family are constantly blown away with the features it offers, simplicity, etc. But, in 3 whole years (and we have a LOT of company), not a single person we have ever had in our home has heard of Control4 or even knows what it is. That is a MASSIVE problem. I don't necessarily agree that IoT and DIY are exclusively the future, because i think the unique combo of hardware and software is what makes the system more stable than others. But, the efforts on marketing need to be quadrupled at a minimum. 
We can argue all day long about whether the dealer model will continue to exist or not, but both sides are speculating. The truth is... there is (and will continue to be) a need for both. The dealers will always have a small market of people that either a. don't want to deal with any of the headaches and just want stuff to work 24/7 or b. Have more money than they know what to do with and just want the latest and greatest anything. Neither of those are going away. But, as a dealer, if you don't want the market to expand to the other 98% who are literally clamoring for better solutions across all their devices, I simply dont know what to tell ya? But, i do know... if you continue to wait and try to force the old model, eventually you will become Blockbuster and the big boys will squash you like a bug once their products catch up and pass you. I went through 3 different local companies before finding this forum (and thereby un-earthing the beauty of the remote dealer). I can't believe that is a coincidence? The service SUCKS out in the local markets. And, the profits and revenue show it. Simple as that. Of course, none of you guys on here emulate that... Because, clearly you care about the end product and the service to customers. That's why you're here is to further service the community. And, we truly do appreciate it. 
So, what's the answer? How do I fix it if I am Snap?
Yes, lower prices on hardware, but sustain it with subscription tiers. Basic systems have basic hardware and free software. And, it goes up from there. Cut dealers in on the subscription tiers. Bonuses if x% of your customer base are level 3, for example. Same thing for consumer access. Different tiers have different levels of access. 
But, the BIGGER idea (i think) is two-fold. 1. Embrace the model you guys have basically built on here! I guarantee that every dealer would rather work out of their home remotely if they could sustain enough business doing it? The only way that happens is to increase customer volume with better (more attractive) pricing. Those local companies i mentioned wouldn't even show up for less than 150 bucks. Then, each request was + + +. I was lucky to get out of just about anything without it being 300 or more. There should be an ARMY of remote dealers on Control4.com right now. But instead, it's an antiquated 1994 system of locating a local guy and leaving a voicemail, hoping he even calls you back. It's the complete opposite of what a "technology" company should be. If everyone is compensated to get MORE users instead of worrying about stealing ones from other dealers... everyone wins. 2. Focus less on the hardware side and MORE on this notion of being the "glue" that binds everyone together. Google is pissing on Amazon, who is pissing on Apple. Sonos is just off on their own little planet. Etc. etc. Consumers don't give a DAMN about the politics and revenue implications, they just want their stuff to work with other devices as well as humanly possible. C4 does that REALLY well, but back to my point earlier... nobody knows who the eff they are? Focus on being THE solution, and make it your #1 priority. 
Bottom line, none of us know the answer as to what's planned. But, I can promise you NOBODY buys another company (especially a fledgling one) to just do "more of the same." Frankly, I'm shocked that notion has been repeatedly mentioned in this thread. You guys are much smarter than that! I spent the last 17 years in the video game industry... Imagine how hard it was to convince publishing executives to give away games on mobile devices for free. But, it was a very similar migration of thought. Sure, for every candy crush there are 600 failures, but C4 is a winner if they put the right pieces in place, and make the right chess moves.
Whatever it is... I hope Snap will move QUICKLY to clearly define and roll out a 1, 3, and 5 year plan. If they don't, sadly the bleeding will just continue.
Sorry for the long-winded rant. But, I'm passionate about the topic. 🙂
 

Exactly my saying....

"Do you want to be rich selling to the poor or poor selling to the rich?"   Great line, @chesterwilson.
I've heard it said this way: "Sell to people who ride in limos, you ride in subways.  Sell to people who ride in subways, you ride in limos"
So true. Years of developing/selling software taught me this over-and-over.  I wish I had listened and understood earlier.
Despite GIYF, I couldn't find an attribution for the subway line.
C4 will continue to struggle financially without a DIY offering that lives in symbiosis with the dealer model.  IMHO.

Plus one for DS2 - especially as it has been rock solid for me on OS3

Control4 sold itsself because:

There was not the expected revenue and growth

Major shareholders wanting to cash in and they increased the pressure after stock price plummeted and Neo acquisition will cost resources.

Why did Control4s reven and growth not meet expectations?


My 2c:

1 - the dealer only model does not attract new customers. It is limiting Control4 growth - I am sure of that. It's the major thing holding Control4 back.

2 - Entry costs are still high. HW needs to be cheaper and 4sight needs to be mandatory, maybe in different levels between 50 and 200$ per year depending on project sizes

3 - Lack of innovation. OS3 took ages and Control4 still doesn't support media management via web, support of TV series and ZigBee 3 is nowhere be seen...and I am not even talking about voice recognition.....

Dealers should realize that DiY will likely make them more money in the end as it lowers the entry cost and if systems get larger they are back in the game.


So let's see what SnapAV makes out of it....

You can see why most of the employee were selling shares  - Sounds like they had a few worries.
The Dealer Model will not go away and to be honest over time I think it will be more important, however I believe that Snap AV will look
at ways to increase business and  the opening up of Composer for a fee could be one .
Control4 Big Issue is Voice Control and Alexa / Google in our house is becoming more and more useful - However
we have Phillip Hue / Sonos - which work brilliantly with her.
I think they sold are right time. lets see what Snap AV do going forward.
 
 

Thank you for this.  I decided to go with the Araknis 300 for now.  I have several other SnapAV products and with OvrC, made sense. 
It will be interesting to see which router line stays after the merger.  I feel comfortable with the Araknis since its already part of the SnapAV family but we'll see.  
Thank you again for your suggestions.  Appreciate it.

I rewrote the security spy driver.
Note: Even though I am a Control4 employee, this driver is not supported by Control4. Control4 will not warranty this driver. Please do not contact Control4 regarding this driver. This is my personal driver. 
securityspy_camera.c4z

Hi @composedryan,
We have done some work on Hikvision cameras in the latest release of the iOS OS2 app.  Unfortunately it is still working it's way through the app store submission process, but if you would like, you can download the beta and give it a try.  It can be found at this link https://testflight.apple.com/join/1T6qRsAk
 
If the newest app doesn't work for you, please send me a PM and we'll see if we can get you back up and running.

I’d be just as circumspect about buying C4 touchscreens and door stations.  I’ve wasted far more money on that hardware than I ever have on iPads and mounts 😉

It's conciderbly slower then 2.0




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Hi Folks,
I’m the Manager of the Mobile and Embedded UI teams at Control4. I’m sorry to hear that you are having issues with your T3s! As has been confirmed we had an issue with doorstations calling T3s which results in long early media delays (when you first see the video before answering). We have a fix and it is currently being tested. I think everyone will be pleasantly surprised by the intercom performance when the fix is released. The  posts about a one to two week turn around is still accurate. I also want to assure you that we have an internal process in place to make sure we avoid these types of issues happening again. This specific issue was due to not testing calls from a doorstation to T3 on a large system. We have different scale racks with 18+ touch panels around the company, but the team responsible for this kind of testing hasn’t had the access they need. We are currently working on fixing that.
Re the other T3 issue the OP referred to, I am unaware of that particular issue. Please work with your dealer to send us the system logs. We are very interested in taking a look.
I appreciate everyone’s patience as we work through these issues! This was a HUGE release with a lot of moving parts. The great thing about Control4 is most of the employees are also customers. We want our houses to work well too! I have seven touch panels (4 in-wall, 3 table top). If my system doesn’t work well my family lets me know. 
Thank you for reading, sorry it was a long one 😁

End user... I strongly disagree. How would my nanny change the temp in my house? She doesn’t have a smart phone, my t-stat is deep in an AV closet, and I abandoned dedicated crappy touch screens long ago. She doesn’t speak English and all I had to do was show her the red button on the sr260 and she could use everything immediately.
Sure I can select my audio/video sources on my remotes but the “coolness” of control4 would be completely gone for me if I didn’t see it come up on my TV when I hit the red 4 button. 
Im not your ideal client. I’ve got self installed Lutron lighting, security, sonos everywhere and a ton used of gear off eBay. Control4 ties it all together and the TV GUI is my favorite part. My system isn’t designed or relies on any single brand. 

We have the same issue with OS3 App Cameras crashing App 
Same issue we had in 2.10.6 
Not having the issue with the Tstats 
 

Good Luck 

Just had a look for the CA1 thread form a while back and below are two Quotes concerning the CA1
Quote from CY about the CA1 "LOL you're all assuming it even exists beyond paperwork....and that the paperwork is even real. "
Quote From msgreenf  "Imho the paperwork is real.but the product was cancelled "

Thanks.

Allowing customers more GUI customization and a new look is nice.
But I think C4 missed the opportunity to actually change important things to keep up with competitors and technology:

HTML5 instead of flash based:
This would enable Control via Web interface and would be future proof since flash is more than EOL. (MyHome Windows app sucks)

Change media management to be web based, - like Plex and Emby And finally support TV series!!!!

More customizable GUI so far that driver creators can build custom pages via HTML for floor plans (neat for alarm systems), schedules, logs and text, custom graphics for energy management tank levels etc.... possibilities here are endless..


The update of OS3 only seem to be made so that customers can change their system via the GUI and web (mycontrol4 login) without the need for Composer HE, so that there isn't any struggle between the dealers and customer in who f****** up the system/programming - nothing wrong in that per se, but again I do see it as a missed opportunity to make fundamental and necessary changes

PS: down the road I guess composer HE will be gone. The current changes hint to that

Makes sense to get this rolled out prior to the C4Yourself day. 
"Over 1,000 new enhancements" - that is a bold statement!  Curious if they will provide a list 😁

It’s been crap for a long time. And so has the camera feed in iOS devices. It’s pretty disappointing.


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We have a basic set up ~ isp to netgear switch 
controller attached to  Netgear Switch 
works fine no issues.
have Netgear switches and Eap 115 from tp link (AP’s )around the house and gardens 
WiFi channels we use 1 ~ 6 and 11 
ZIGBEE Channel 25
 
 

hc-800 - good and solid. New ones "work faster" but.... sometimes it doesn't matter, your tv will turn on not in 5 sec., but in 4.5. New controllers work well  with new equipment, if you didn't install anything new. don't worry. 

I`m going for Tuesday or Wednesday next week
amazon icon already updated to show 2 
https://www.amazon.com/Control4-Control4®-for-Android/dp/B00NGTAF4I/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=Control4&qid=1558118978&s=gateway&sr=8-6
just a guess