Debuted in 1998, this system provides an intelligent link between commonly available home systems like security, lighting and heating and cooling. The system can produce distributed home entertainment, a local area network for all the home's computers and real-time energy management. But, all this comes at a price. While fully integrated systems are now for the likes of Bill Gates, there are other smaller systems that are more affordable for the average consumer, Stockard said. Media rooms are the hot sellers these days in Abilene, she added.
Consumers can go high tech with their media without ending up a pauper.
Of course, the more high tech gadgetry is introduced, the more consumers are clamoring for it. If the average home now had been built in 20-30 years ago, only a few people would have been able to afford it. Things like theater rooms, gourmet kitchens and a bath for every room were only what rich people could afford. The technical aspects of homes are even extending to such mundane things as faucets and floors. Stockard, who recently returned from the National Home Builders Show in Dallas, saw faucets with computerized workings that will balance pressure or set water temperatures.