Their iPad App Was Designed Completely From Scratch
May 4, 2010

As we suspected, after discontinuing their 10.5" touchscreen, Control4 has fully embraced the iPad by offering new software that takes advantage of the 9.7" screen size.

According to Jason Knott of CEPro, Control4 contracted with Control UI to write their iPad app. "The Control4 iPad interface was designed completely from scratch while still maintaining the well-known Control4 look. It takes advantage of both the portrait and landscape streams but with a lot of built-in user efficiencies that allow you to take advantage of the added real estate [vs. the iPhone] to more easily navigate in between areas."

So what exactly is different between Control4's iPhone and iPad apps?
• In the iPhone the homeowner would have to change screens to navigate between functions, such as lighting, audio, thermostats or home theater. With the iPad, there is a “quick nav” menu in the upper right hand corner. Of course, the new menu bar allows the homeowner to initiate functions much faster because they don’t have to navigate to another screen.
• An added “pop-up quick interface” on the iPad app that did not previously exist that allows the homeowner to initiate actions in a secondary system without having to navigate to another screen. These pop-ups allow the user to scroll to multiple options within the pop-up window. For example, while controlling audio, you can bring up the lighting pop-up window and scroll down to activate a lighting scene from among the lighting loads in the home.
• There is a “Now Playing” bar on the bottom of the iPad interface allowing the homeowner to see exactly what is playing on the audio or video while they use other control functions.
• On the backend, an automatic update function kicks in whenever the iPad restarts after the integrator changes settings.

Control4 Dealers believe the above changes offer multiple advantages. Also, the latency accessing the Web is almost non-existent when you view the iPad app in action. Many have noticed the Wi-fi connection is much more stable on the iPad, and don't experience the dropout signal problems with the iPad prevalent with other handheld devices.

Perhaps the biggest benefit is it’s easier to tell where you are while controlling your system. With the iPad app it will be much easier to navigate the GUI.

Undoubtedly, an iPad will soon, if not already, become a staple in the showrooms and demo homes of Control4 Dealers.