Smart Home Blog

The new Z-Wave interface for LinuxMCE is developed hardly now. Currently there is a test version of the interface for i386. Source can be found here.

Following features are already implemented:

• Light control (binary, dimmable)
• Floorplan feedback from local operations and from ALL ON/OFF commands
• Lighting wizard integration
• Busy handling for newer chips
• PIR support in alarm and sensor mode
• Binary sensor support
• Basic wake-up handling (queue is still missing)

and those are coming soon:

• Download configuration
• Multi command handling
• RA-plus-w setback schedule thermostat support
• Merten Dongle support
• Multilevel sensor support

To buy Z-Wave stuff in Europe you can use some shop listed in that wiki page.

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A new fresh version of Nokia770/N800/N810 Orbiter for LinuxMCE is available. The list of changes is not so big but the fixes are very important:

• fixed issue with wrong colors of floorplan icons (including active media directors);
• fixed issue with displaying of titles for media files in case of existing covers;
• fixed issue with initiating phone call from the Orbiter;
• disabled screen saver.

The new Orbiter for OS2007 and OS2008 (including Diablo) can be downloaded from the Maemo garage or installed/upgraded from the repository.

The next step is to fix issue with button colors and add Hildon compatibility for switching between Orbiter’s window and other applications without crash.

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UI2 with overlay and resolution 1080p

Yesterday I made a few shots of ASUS P2-M2A690G. It’s really great. I found that there are actually two sound cards. One uses analog and digital outputs and another - HDMI. That means it’s possible to send audio and video via one HDMI cable!

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Yesterday I got barebone ASUS P2-M2A690G for testing as media director for LinuxMCE. That box is priced just in €100. But it’s really good: integrated ATI RadeonTM 1250 with HDMI output, S/PDIF-out (Optical) audio, slim form-factor and nice looking design.

Additionally I had Desktop Athlon 64 X2 5400+ and 2GB RAM. Installation of processor and memory took about 15 minutes (thanks to well thought-out internal design). By the way I like the quality of P2-M2A690G assembling. All wires are tied up into braid and placed around case. So, internal space looks very clear.

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After a few months silence Fiire has announced its new products for LinuxMCE smarthome system. They include Fiire12TB, FiirePrestigio, FiirePrestigio Lite and FiireInvisible.

New core Fiire12TB comes now with 12TB storage with built-in RAID to store media content. Additionally the box sports Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz, 2GB RAM, 500GB system HDD, Dual Gigabit Ethernet, 7.1 HD Audio with analog, SPDIF optical and coax/RCA, nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors and DVD RW. It’s quiet and low-heat/power model and fits in a standard A/V rack. The price of Fiire12TB is $1899 without HDD for media storage.

FiirePrestige is an elegant media director fitted into aluminum case a built-in VFD display and i/r receiver. It’s equiped by Intel® Core 2 Duo E4600 2.4 GHz processor, 1GB RAM, 120GB HDD (to use it as a core), Gigabit Ethernet, 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI output, DVD RW. The FiirePrestige Lite has the same spec except luxury case and VFD display. The price of FiirePrestige and FiirePrestige Lite is $899 and $549 respectively.

FiireInvisible is a slim 2″ silent VESA and Wall mount media director. It features AMD BE 2400 processor, 1GB RAM, 120GB HDD (for core/hybrid installation), Gigabit Ethernet, 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, nVidia 7050 graphics with HDMI, VGA, Component and S-video connectors. Plus VESA and WALL mounting kit is included into package. The price of FiireInvisible is $799.

Fiire core and media director use noiseless components and support HD (1080i), de-interlacing, OpenGL 3D effects, and alpha blending. Also all media directors can be used as core/hybrid as well. Core (Fiire12TB or some of media directors with HDD) comes with pre-installed and pre-configured LinuxMCE 0710.

It seems Fiire took in to account negative experience with its previous hardware. Especially with FiireStation 1″ and 2.2″. According to opinion of folks who bought previous Fiire stuff, only remote with gyroscope FiireChief was a good acquisition. Hope the new Fiire products justify hopes and spent money.

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