Automating Your Homes with Crestron Home OS 3

We’ve discussed the merits of Crestron home automation systems at length in the past. Crestron is the company that is practically synonymous with automation in both the residential and commercial spaces. For some smaller residential applications, Crestron solutions had the reputation of being complex to integrate, as the system had many options.

Several months ago, Crestron introduced OS 3, a redesigned automation system aimed at making a home automation system easier for a homeowner to use and for integrators like GHT Group to install. In truth, OS 3 was not radically new; it was an evolution and improvement over the Pyng system that they had introduced a few years earlier that added many modern features to Crestron automation.

It’s important to understand Crestron’s approach to home automation. They are a company that designs and tests all their own equipment and software, not merely designing equipment that is manufactured offshore. When it comes to the software, the ability to control a home remotely through the internet also means being able to do it with the utmost security and privacy.  

If you have multiple homes, like your primary residence in Brookhaven and a cabin in Blue Ridge in the Georgia mountains, Crestron OS 3 is an ideal solution for managing your homes securely. Read on to learn more. 

SEE ALSO: 5 Reasons to Automate Your Home Media with Crestron

Simplified Automation

With OS 3, Crestron took a user-centric approach to managing automated features in your home. It's based on room rather than functions. If you're in the kitchen, you can tap "kitchen" on a smartphone, tablet, or Crestron touchscreen and see the options. A "cooking" button might set up all the lighting for meal preparation. It might also start a music playlist over your built-in speakers. Need to change the playlist? Crestron OS 3 works with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Apple Homekit, so a voice command to your system of choice can change the music while your hands are occupied.

On the interface, a picture of your actual room leaves little doubt about what your controls will do. A streamlined media interface shows you what music is playing, the volume, and in what areas. Play it throughout all your zones or keep your playlist in the kitchen while family members in the house enjoy something else. 

If you have a second home (or more), OS 3 makes it just as simple to manage it remotely. Check on lights, locks, HVAC, and security remotely. Start up your air conditioning or heating to the desired temperature as you go to your vacation retreat. Thanks to new integrations with popular systems like Jandy and Pentair, you can also warm up your spa or swimming pool before you get there. 

Compact Control Hardware

You might think that all the automation described needs big racks of equipment, but that's not the case. For example, Crestron's MC4-R control module is compact and space-efficient. It is small enough to mount behind a TV and can draw power from an ethernet cable if needed.  It's a perfect solution for your cabin or condominium and can control a surprisingly broad array of functions, like AV systems, lighting, thermostats, locks, sensors, and security alarms. 

With the ability to program custom scenes on OS 3, your second home can be ready for you when you arrive. When it’s time to go home, a button tap can return your retreat to efficiency and safety settings until your next visit. If you let a guest use your home away from home, specific profiles can be set up so your guest can use needed functions but not reprogram scenes or settings you may want while the house is not in use.

GHT Group can make it easy to manage all your properties with robust, secure Crestron automation. Please reach out to us here, or click below to connect with one of our home automation experts. We look forward to working with you.