New Sigma Designs Software Said to Cut Installation Time of Smart Home Devices

Sigma Designs announced availability of Z-Wave SmartStart software that's said to facilitate installation and setup of Z-Wave smart home devices for do-it-yourself customers and custom installers. SmartStart, comprising Z-Wave protocol and gateway software layers, preconfigures devices to a residential network before they reach the home, shrinking installation time, said Sigma Wednesday. By preconfiguring scenes, rules and scripts, installers only have to physically mount devices and turn on power to create a network, it said, and setup can be uniform across brand, application and product type. Setup difficulty is often cited as a reason for smart home devices returns, said Raoul Wijgergangs, vice president-Sigma Z-Wave business unit. “We’re removing that barrier to adoption,” he said, and providing “consistent installation quality, using pre-configuration for instant, uniform integration, whether they’re doing it themselves or relying on the expertise of their service provider.”