I’m excited that Crestron will be incorporating video control into the Pyng platform. I have been hearing rumblings about it in the Master Class and all of you Crestron dealers know it is coming. I’m hearing really good things and can’t wait to get my hands on it myself.
For those of you who are not too familiar with Pyng, it is a configuration platform that allows a dealer to get a Crestron system up and running much faster and much less expensively than previously possible. With Pyng, everything is done on an iPad and the installer is configuring the system, not truly programming. Devices are acquired into the system, button behavior is set, audio paths are configured, and soon video systems with universal remote controls can be added. Once set up in Pyng, the program can be imported into Crestron Studio or Smple to allow the customization and personalization that is the hallmark of Crestron.
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Not only has Pyng made commissioning a system much easier and faster, but it has also put more control into our client’s hands. They can create and edit scenes and set schedules right from their iPads. They no longer need to call us and wait hours or days for us to change the programming and pay us to do so. The client is very happy to have the control, and we are happy to not be distracted by the small requests. Additionally we are not contending with client dissatisfaction at having to pay for the small changes, especially when their friend with Lutron Caseta, installed by their electrician, can do everything themselves.
I still see many dealers who only want to sell and install systems that are fully under their control, and they are loathe to put any control or customization into the client’s hands. While we used to operate under a similar model, particularly when we used URC Complete Control, which did not have any client-facing tools. I have since learned the value of empowering our clients – and several other dealers have as well. In fact, there are many dealers out there who have redesigned their entire business around consumer-grade products that the client can completely customize on their own – from Lutron Caseta to Harmony remotes to Sonos. While I do not ever foresee going to that extreme, I do see the pendulum swinging more towards end-user control, since the consumer-grade products are becoming more pervasive and home owners are getting more used to customizing things themselves, especially with the prevalence of Nest thermostats.
We are putting more and more control into our client’s hands with things like Pyng and OvrC Home, which allows clients to initiate reboot macros themselves when devices are misbehaving. Every market and every client base is different. Therefore each dealer needs to evaluate their markplace and the client they are targeting to see what, if any, level of end-user customization they will incorporate into their offerings.
