With the 3G sunset quickly approaching, now is the perfect time to give your customer’s home controls interface a makeover. Find out what the latest control panels have to offer and more.

Today’s consumers want the latest and greatest convenience technologies in their homes. Integrators want technology they can install easily and efficiently. Fortunately for both parties, today’s home controls are feature-packed and installation-friendly.

In the past, security control panels and sensors were ugly plastic boxes that required cable to be pulled and holes to be drilled. Today, security solutions manufacturers are taking design cues from companies like Apple and creating sleek, modern-looking wireless control panels that are attractive, but unobtrusive.

Qolsys SVP Mike Hackett explains the fortuitous timing of Interlogix’s exit announcement, plus how his company is attracting dealers left in the lurch.

Interlogix’s decision last September to bail on its security business in the United States and Canada may well endure as one of those “Where were you when you first heard?” moments in industry annals.

Pose that question to Mike Hackett, co-founder and senior vice president of sales and marketing at Qolsys, and it’s clear why that consequential announcement will forever remain with him like it hit yesterday.

“I’m very sensitive to the people at Interlogix, so I don’t mean to say this in a disrespectful way,” he says. “The timing couldn’t have been more opportunistic for us.”

Elevating the dealer to a smart home or business expert in the eyes of the consumer reduces churn, allows for upsell and more RMR potential.

Touchscreen technology is a part of our everyday life. We use them at bank ATMs, to retrieve a boarding pass at the airline ticket counter, when our iPhone battery is about to die, to control aspects of our home or office, and more.

In the not-too-distant past, the electronic security industry offered keypads to control the system and before that a key switch to turn the system on or off — yes, a real key!