VOTE - How should the next Vera hardware look?

I’ve not run a poll for a while…

I have been having this conversation/argument with a few friends (and the Mrs) about the look of the Vera products, especially in comparison to some of the other solutions on the market.

Now - we all excepted price can play a part in how things look, (we can’t all have brushed aluminium or gold plated) however the discussion did show real mixed feelings, with one one saying they wouldn’t buy either Vera because of how it looked !! - which for me is stupid to base a judgement on looks alone. (Just ask the Mrs :wink: )

Also the leaf design was very much the image of Micasaverde, (a brand name that has now been dropped) so where do they go next? (A large ‘V’ for Vera do you think?)

So, after having such a good discussion over a drink or two - I wanted to bring this to the forum to see what other people thought and more importantly record what would YOU would like to see in the future design - because you never know who might be reading this.

— Extra —

If you have time or the urge please feel free to also post your hardware requirements for that future box too, as I’m thinking of running another poll on what we’d like to see on the inside of the next Veras.

To help encourage voting, you can only see the results

Std rectangular box with plenty of mounting ear options. I never like to have too much on show so non offensive colouring and a size which is easily hidden.
TBH I feel my green vetalite is a pain in the behind. It cant easily be stacked, I would have to damage it to add std mounting brackets and if I dont have it out of site it sticks out like a sore thumb.

Also all buttons and LEDs on the front or back panel like the V3. I like the v3 but it still should have been squared off and a bit more boring. Plus I would hope it should therefore be slightly cheaper.

Either that or deigned by Porsche…etc…

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

How about the (looks of the) VeraLite G incarnation?

Given the choice I would most likely take the G’s design over the leaf, but i appreciate the leaf gives the Veralite a bit of character to allow it to stand out.

I feel that the shape plays a role in initial product selection. If it is too odd or ugly, people will tend to not choose it. I do remember feeling that the Vera Lite was odd looking and the pictures of it did not clearly indicate its unusual shape. I think a pleasing or stylish design is beneficial to the company by attracting, or at least not repelling buyers.

Once in use, the shape and color of Vera doesn’t matter to me at all. My Vera and future Veras will be hidden as best I can while still providing the necessary functionality.

@twistedsanity - In my opinion, regardless of Vera’s form factor, it should not be stacked. The Z-Wave dongle is not all that strong a signal and sandwiching Vera between other metal components, like audio/video systems will always have a detrimental effect on performance.

I think that its exterior shape should include a place for an external antenna. Other than that, it can be shaped like anything. A great home automation piece should be invisible (or at least well hidden).

Just like my vacuum cleaner, I have never shown my cable modem, my routers, my NAS or any other network item to friends. I go out of the way to keep them out of sight,no matter how elegant or homely they look. Likewise, I’ve never returned a network device because it was ugly, but I have returned some because they just didn’t work.

I have read hundreds of entries on this forum, and have yet to come across a person who complained about the look. I have heard a lot of concerns about the UI, its ease of use, its reliability, etc. If that is what they focus on for the next gen product, then everyone wins.

Utility.

Thanks to everyone who took the survey.

It’s conclusive that people are either keen to see, or are open to changes in the (external look) of Vera - with only a couple feeling the current leaf and retro design of the lite and heavy Vera’s should remain.

Let’s see what comes out later in the year…

Also if there are design changes to the case please make it wall mountable!!!

No wall mount? You didn’t notice the ergonomically engineered molded basal planar surface constructed of amorphous polymeric composite materials?
Perfect for accepting adhesive backed velcro and stick’in it to the wall!

I’d like it if it were 42" rack mountable. What it actually LOOKS like… couldn’t care less. It’s hidden away anyway.

Being only 4x4x2 inches, a Vera Lite can be mounted anywhere in your 42 inch(tall) 19" rack. But, unless your rack is made of something other than metal, I wouldn’t recommend mounting Vera in a rack. Radio signals don’t get out of racks too well once you close the door.

I’d like it if it were 42" rack mountable. What it actually LOOKS like… couldn’t care less. It’s hidden away anyway.[/quote]

Rack ears would be good too, as long as they can rotate 90 degrees to double as a wall mount. Lots of smaller network equipment can do this.

Forget making any new hardware and just use a RaspberryPi and put it into a Cyntech case. This case already can be wall mounted. If you want an internal Z-Wave controller just plug it into the GPIO connector on the Pi. That leaves two free USB connectors. You cannot build as solid a hardware platform for the price you pay for a Pi and that case in quantity.

This is what HomeSeer did and I think it was one of the best moves they could have made.

[url=https://www.modmypi.com/image/cache/data/raspberry-pi-cases/cyntech/cyntech-pink-raspberry-pi-sd-card-cover-2-800x800.JPG]https://www.modmypi.com/image/cache/data/raspberry-pi-cases/cyntech/cyntech-pink-raspberry-pi-sd-card-cover-2-800x800.JPG[/url]

My Vera 3 sits in my ‘wiring closet’ so to me the look doesn’t really matter. As long as I can quickly tell from the LED’s that it’s operating properly I am happy.