I had an oppurtunity to demo the new Crestron Prodigy system this past week and was very impressed. Prodigy is Crestron’s budget automation system designed specifically to take aim at Control4. The system basically consists of a bunch of repackaged legacy product including the TPS-4L touch panel, the cameo keypad, the infiNET dimmers/switches, iDock and a re-boxed MC2E.
Through a simple wizard called “Prodigy Composer” the system can be programmed in under an hour for music, lighitng, hvac and audio/video control. The graphics are Crestron’s stock Destiny graphics and as of now can’t be changed. The graphics layouts can not be changed using the composer but that should be expected in a product designed to compete with Control4. More advanced systems and users will be better fitted to upgrade to a more robust system that allow more customization.
These systems are ideal solutions for retro-fit applications where running wire is not possible. All the devices are wireless except the touch panels which operate over standard cat5e networking wire. All together, this product line offers the ability to have a fully automated system for a 2,000 square foot home or condo for less than $10,000.
