Elk Navigator questions

Anyone know the answers to these questions?

1. What are the full dimensions of the Navigator?

2. Does it connect to the data bus the same way as a keypad?

3. Does it require external power, or does it pull all its power off the data bus?

Thanks,
Ira

Ira, I am still waiting to hear back from ELK, but the touchscreen is supposed to be a drop in replacement for a keypad. Good question about the power requirements, it's something I will have to ask them about.

I saw it yesterday at ISC West. It takes its power off of the data bus. Hold on for a while regarding the mounting. At this point in time it requires a single gang box turned horizontally (this may change). There is also a surface mount style.

The Navigator keypad is a 3.5" touchscreen keypad that runs on the keypad data bus. It is surface mountable and surface mountable with a back box for walls where the wire must come down the wall. It has adjustable backlight.

Thanks for the info. It sounds really nice.

But...any idea what the price will be? When will information about it show up on the Elk website?

Regards,
Ira

Release time frame was stated as Summer 2011.

Spanky said:

The Navigator keypad is a 3.5" touchscreen keypad that runs on the keypad data bus. It is surface mountable and surface mountable with a back box for walls where the wire must come down the wall. It has adjustable backlight.

Click to expand...

Why is the screen so small? This doesn't seem competitive when compared with the other touch screens out on the market.

Have you seen what Honeywell is doing? It makes this look like it is circa 1995. Unless the pricing is such to make this extremely attractive, I can't see how this is competitive at all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0Ljk1brlek&feature=related

ELK already offers a 7" touchscreen. The Navigator is designed to replace an actual keypad, meaning you don't have to run new wires. I actually like it, the video shows how quick it responds to touch, and is very simple to use. And yes, it is supposed to be a low-cost alternative, but no official MSRP has been announced yet.

HERE is the ISC West 2011 review of this product along with a demo video. I liked it. The graphics were sharp and I really liked the smaller size (wife would rather not have big bulky automation type keypads on the wall anyway)! B)

As mentioned above, this is a DIRECT replacement for Elk's existing keypads, meaning you just use the same four wires that you used for the current setup.

The bezels come in different colors and the mounting is 'flush' along the wall. I don't know the full dimensions, but you can get a good estimate from the video!

Two questions - is there any way to mount an SP12 behind this to keep the sound at the keypads like I do today with my KP2's? And does it have an input and an output like the other keypads? Just curious...

I can tell you this
there is a 3 wire serial (DB9) connection to it. So you can connect it to a PC and mirror the keypad with software, basically remote control it as if you were in from of it.
I doubt you can do the speaker behind it is a lot smaller than the KP2.
they only told me about a 4 wire connection but not anything additional for a wired zone, since it's connected to the same bus it may be possible to have that capability but I can't confirm

Work2Play said:

Two questions - is there any way to mount an SP12 behind this to keep the sound at the keypads like I do today with my KP2's? And does it have an input and an output like the other keypads? Just curious...

Click to expand...

If you use a 4" sq box and a single gang mud ring mounted horizontal it might work for the speaker in the box. Good question about the zone and output.

I like this touchscreen keypad better than the TS07 because it sits on the 4 wire buss and makes it a lot easier for a retrofit install. This product will be perfect for a friend of mine who I help do installs when he uses ELK. He can mail a flyer offering an upgrade package to this and its basically a quick changeover (depending on how much more power it requires than a regular keypad). I could do one in an evening for him and make a few bucks for both of us. Its a good way to get back into a customer's home and sell add on devices. Also it is more reliable because it does not require your router and switch to talk to the panel so it can be the primary keypad.

I wonder if the backlight dims after a set time of inactivity to save battery power when AC power is lost?

Wish it had video but that is just not possible over the data bus. It may not be a 7 or 10 inch screen but a lot of people dont want that.

I asked Spanky if this keypad had any I/O capabilities and he said it does not.

Thx BSR - I was asking for the same reasons as Digger - though it doesn't matter much for me, others may be using those inputs/outputs today.

Still tho - it's not bad looking - I'm considering a couple as replacements for my KP2's - for me though, the audio is important as I have it originating at my keypads today.

So this is really going to come down to the pricing on this unit. A small uplift over a conventional keypad would make tremendous sense. Anything beyond that, and I am not sure I'll be able to sell it.

Yes, ELK has a 7" touchpanel but it is in desperate need of an update. The dealer cost is way too high when compared with the competition. I can get a Honeywell 7" touchsceen for around $250-$300. Also, the resolution of the screen needs to be updated. If they revved the panel I am sure they could bring the COGS down and make it more competitive. Their 7" is also pretty ugly...I haven't been able to sell it in its current state (WAF factor)