When it comes to automated lighting systems, the options can seem endless, but finding the system that works for you provides the ultimate in convenience. Consider this: With the touch of a button (or in some cases a programmed setting), you can adjust the ambiance in a room, light up the driveway when returning home, turn off every light in the house as you go to bed, and control the blinds to reduce energy waste. To give you an overview of the automated lighting options available, let’s compare the top two brands: Control4 and Lutron. Each system offers flexibility and convenience but, by comparing their features against your needs, you can determine which system is right for your home.

Lutron

- No Need to Retrofit or Rewire

Lutron has been the world leader in lighting control systems for more than 60 years with good reason. Using patented wireless technology, this company allows you to install a whole-home lighting control system without retrofitting or rewiring your home.

- Seamless Control

With Lutron, all of the lights within your home can be seamlessly controlled both in-home and out using a broad array of devices: keypad, remote control,, iPad, iPhone, Android, etc.

- Unlimited Options, Designed to Your Specifications

Lutron approaches in-home lighting from a holistic fashion, incorporating window treatments, lighting devices, and seasonal shifts to engineer the perfect lighting design for any situation while saving energy and time. Take a moment to consider all of the light sources in your living room alone. Now imagine having the flexibility to adjust each element individually from the comfort of your couch. Find a combination you like? Set it as a “scene” so it can be easily recreated. As the masters of ambiance, Lutron makes it easy for you to create and/or pre-set lighting designs to match your activity, your mood, and your company. The controls are in your hands.

- Reduce Energy Costs

Lutron’s streamlined user interface allows you to see and adjust all of the lights that are on at any given time. Their solar-adaptive shading software can further reduce energy costs by tackling much of the daytime lighting control for you, bringing in soft, natural light while reducing the need for artificial light.

- The Perks of Geofencing

Lutron’s new Geofencing capabilities enhance the customization and convenience of automated lighting systems by enabling you to design action triggers based on the movements within and around your home. Here are just a few examples of how this might come in handy:

• Select indoor and outdoor lights turn on as you arrive home
• Shades close and lights dim when the house is empty
• You are notified if lights are still on when you leave the house

Lutron is...

Precision. Flexibility. Ambiance. Responsive. Streamlined. Lighting Focused.

Control4

- Flexible Install

Control4 is a newer company in the field of automated lighting systems but is backed by years in complementary smart home technologies. A Control4 automated lighting system can be installed either during construction or after (wireless), allowing homeowners to adopt the technology at various stages in the design process.

- Convenient Keypad Control

All Control4 smart home technologies function through the Control4 platform, an operating system that allows you to cohesively manage your home’s “internet of things” through a simple user interface accessible across multiple devices. Adjust your lighting with the touch of a button using sleek wall mounted or wireless keypads (a favorite amongst Control4 users); the Control4 user interface on your TV or tablet; or the Control4 mobile application.

- Expansive Compatibility

With the Control4 automated lighting system, you can dim virtually any type of light, large or small, interior or exterior, incandescent or LED. They offer a continuously expanding list of third-party compatible lighting fixtures so it is easy to identify which devices can or can’t be used with the Control4 technology.

- Match your Mood

Like Lutron, the Control4 Lighting System gives you the freedom to adjust ambiance without dealing with the “which lightswitch?” fumble. While Lutron offers more flexibility in crafting the perfect lighting design for your specific mood, Control4 offers users the option of incorporating audio control into their keypads. What does this mean? One button could simultaneously dim the lights and turn on soft music. Or, set up the inverse as an automated alarm clock: bright lights and loud music. Control4 also makes it easy to incorporate timers and motion sensors into your lighting design—a quick way to boost convenience and security while decreasing energy costs.

- Adaptive Technology

Want to adjust the overall lighting system? It is both straightforward and convenient to tweak your lighting design...yourself. No complicated re-programming required.

- Lower Costs

Control4 was founded in 2003 with the mission “to deliver an elegant and more affordable way to control and automate lighting, music, video, security and energy in a single room or throughout the entire home.” On average, a Control4 lighting system will cost approximately 10% less than a Lutron system, providing a homeowner with substantial cost savings

Control4 is...

Cohesive. Elegant. User Friendly. Lower Cost. Integrative Technology.

What are you looking for in an automated lighting system?

For each of the following options, consider which benefit is more important to your needs.

• A whole home automated lighting system OR an automated lighting system spanning select areas
• Higher costs with a higher level of flexibility OR lower costs with a lower level of flexibility
• A platform uniquely tailored to your lighting needs OR a broad platform that integrates with other smart home technologies
• Low-level user interaction/broad span of options vs. high-level user interaction/simple user interface

If your answers were more closely aligned with the first option in each of the questions above, we might recommend Lutron. If you tend to prefer the second option, Control4 might be the better choice for your needs. Either way, you can’t go wrong with an automated lighting system in your home. Which is Right for You? When selecting an automated lighting system, take some time to decide what features are most important to you, and how you want those to interact with your control devices. A system that feels intuitive and comprehensive will save you time and frustration, and will allow you to make sure that your home is always a “welcome home” for you and your loved ones. If you’re looking to transform your lighting or looking for whole home automation and don’t know where to start, contact BRAVAS Colorado. Our team of experts can design a lighting that works for your lifestyle.