General Info

Introduction

General information about ZephIR, its cost, availability, components, ideal uses, and drawbacks.

Cost
$49.95 + shipping and handing

Availability
Online purchasing from manufacturer only at the ZephIR Store

What is included with each ZephIR   

• ZephIR and cable (with ADB plug)
• Short mounting post
• Longer right angle mounting post
• Suction Cup
• Installation CD-ROM
• 2 Cellophane Dots (To aid suction cup adherence on rough surfaces)

Ideal Uses

Home Automation
Ideal uses for ZephIR Home Automation At present, the most ideal use for the ZephIR is in home automation. In a home equipped with a centralized entertainment system, the ZephIR, in combination with speech recognition software, home automation software, and a wireless microphone, can be used to establish an environment whereby voice commands can be used activate and feed any audio or video signal to any room. Voice commands could then be used to view any TV station or play ay combination of music. Additional information regarding home automation can be found in the June 2000 issue of MacTech Magazine.

Multimedia Presentations
The ZephIR is also ideal for use in multimedia presentations where several audio and/or video components must be operated in concert with a computer based demonstration.

Drawbacks

Current Limitations of Webztir
Currently, the single biggest drawback to the ZephIR is the limited number of zeeCode sets that are available to the consumer. The Webztir library is relatively new and unless the user has the most recent or most common audio or video components, he will, in all likelihood, have to create his own zeeCode sets from his own handheld remotes. This is a very time consuming process even for the simplest of remotes. The tedium, complexity, and confusion that exists when recording infrared signals for components with a few number of remotely controlled functions, increases several times when working with digital amplifiers, satellite TV systems, and DVD players whose remotes can conceivably control dozens of functions.

Preparation and Set-up Time
The availability of zeeCode sets is also an issue in determining if the ZephIR is practical for all multimedia presentations. If the site of the presentation uses audio and video components whose zeeCodes are not in the Webztir, the zeeCodes for each component will have to be manually recorded ahead of time. This could pose a problem where access to either the facilities or the audio and video components themselves is not available. Furthermore, the last minute addition of a new component or the emergency replacement of a damaged component with one from a different manufacturer would be render the use of the ZephIR for that specific component almost impossible without a downloadable zeeCode.

Desktop Clutter
Most multimedia presentations required the use and coordination of several different audio and video components. Generally, they are being operated either simultaneously or sequentially during the course of a presentation. Depending the number of functions being controlled from the computer, the desktop remotes could become quite large. This is especially true of the Custom Remotes. If the computer's display is not that large and if other applications such as Microsoft PowerPoint, or Internet Explorer are running, it is very easy to cover the entire desktop with various windows.

Other Issues
Certain functions on most high-end audio or video components require either a continuous infrared signal or some form of custom modulation of the signal from the handheld remote to operate. Such functions such as "Play - Fast/Skip Forward" on VCRs, and DVD/CD layers or the Jog Shuttle functions on editing VCR's may not be available to the ZephIR.

Conclusion

The ZephIR is a device that shows great potential especially in Home Automation and in professional multimedia presentations. The current limitations of the WebztIR library, however, affects the overall practicality of using the ZephIR in all situations.