Latest Technologies for window shades

 

Motorized window coverings that open and close on command, on a schedule, or even depending on room occupancy are the perfect complement to any smart home. Smart window coverings, like smart lighting, provide a slew of advantages in terms of convenience, security, and energy conservation.

There's also a safety benefit: there are no draw cords that may strangle children or dogs. However, the wow impact they provide makes them a premium item-even deploying them one room at a time might cost thousands of dollars if each room has a large number of windows.

Motorized and smart shades have adapted to our world's ever-changing technology by providing simple, safe, and dependable alternatives to cables, difficult-to-reach windows, and easy privacy management.

Here are the four latest technologies for window shades that you must know:

1. Hunter Douglas Duette shade with PowerView Automation

Hunter Douglas' Duette smart shades with PowerView motorization are stylish, sophisticated, and luxurious. These are top-down/bottom-up shades that can open in both directions, providing the utmost privacy and light control.

And Hunter Douglas' accessories are truly top-notch, from its ingenious "battery wand" power solution to its Pebble remote controllers. They are, however, not cheap, and there is no do-it-yourself alternative.

2. Serena by Lutron motorized shade

These are lovely shades, but as geeks, we're particularly fond of their battery chambers. Because the compartment is built into the headrail, you simply need to tip it down to access and replace the batteries (D cells in the unit we reviewed).

Because the shades use a proprietary wireless protocol, you'll also need to purchase an $80 Lutron Smart Bridge to connect them to your Wi-Fi network. However, Lutron's app is excellent, and the bridge can also manage the company's excellent Caseta smart lighting products (dimmers, switches, and smart plugs) and ceiling-fan controllers, and it has hooks into third-party products ranging from Ecobee smart thermostats to Sonos multi-room audio systems.

3. Powershades TruePoE motorized roller shade

We don't have much experience with this sort of shade yet, but we like the Powershades TruePoE for its novel approach to connecting with a home network. Instead of depending on disposable batteries, the motor in these shades is powered by an ethernet line and receives both electrical power and command-and-control signals (power over ethernet, or PoE).

Because these shades have hardwired access to electricity, the motor is more than twice as quick as the battery-powered ones we've examined. Take caution, DIYers: Powershades does not sell directly to customers; if you want one, you'll need to speak with a professional installation.

4. Graber Virtual Cord Motorized Shade

Graber's Virtual Cord cellular shades are just as attractive as Lutron's, but their motors are somewhat noisier, and their battery compartment must be removed from the headrail to be replaced. They come with simple two-button remote controllers, but you can upgrade to more sophisticated ones that can control many shades at once.

Because these shades use Z-Wave technology, you'll need to use a bridge to connect them to your home Wi-Fi network. This might be Graber's own Z-Wave bridge and app, or it could be integrated into nearly any smart home system. Graber's product range is provided directly to the DIYer or through dealers who will handle the installation.

What are Motorized Shades?

When controlled at the window frame, from a remote across the room, or through an app on your smart device, motorized shades employ a tiny motor to tilt, descend, or retract the blinds. Each window's motor requires power for automation, which may be supplied by a battery wand, a standard outlet socket, or by being plugged into your home's electrical infrastructure.

Motorized window coverings are ideal for difficult-to-reach windows in a two-story entryway or skylights in your kitchen. Automated shades are a luxury, but they are also safer than having to find the step ladder every time you want to alter the amount of light flowing into your house or leaving the cables dangling for children or dogs to become tangled in.

Shopping for smart shades

window Shades are classified into four types: roller, Roman, cellular (also known as honeycomb), and pleated. Other varieties exist, but these are the most frequent. A roller shade works just as it sounds: A motorized roller rotates to unravel a piece of cloth that covers your window, then reverses direction to bring the sheet back onto the roller, revealing the window.

A Roman shade is likewise created from a single sheet of fabric (or other material, lined or unlined), but it opens by pulling up and folding the fabric into a stack as cables pass through rings sewed onto the back of the drapery-like fabric. To finish, the string is gently untied, allowing the cloth to drop and unfurl.

Cellular shades are made up of numerous layers of cloth that have been fashioned into honeycomb-like cells that trap air. Pleated shades are similar to cellular shades, except they are made from a single sheet of cloth and have significantly broader pleats.

The cords that raise the shade are exposed since they are formed of a single sheet of fabric, whereas the cables in a cellular shade go through the centre of the cells and are therefore covered. Cellular and pleated blinds both lift and descend like an accordion.

Wrapping It Up

To be termed smart, window shades and blinds must include more than just a motor. They must also have a communications protocol in order to send and receive command and control messages. Messages are delivered directly via an ethernet cable in the Powershades example, although wireless alternatives are considerably more prevalent.

Graber, for example, relies on Z-Wave technology for its Virtual Cord motorized shades, while Serena by Lutron shades use the same proprietary Clear Connect RF specification the company uses for its Caséta Wireless smart lighting and ceiling-fan controllers. Hunter Douglas also has its own proprietary wireless protocol, PowerView.

Some shade manufacturers have introduced dual shades that lower a light-filtering fabric when you want lots of light and just a little privacy and then drop a room-darkening fabric behind it when you want the most privacy and the least amount of light entering the room.