Advantage of having smart switches is that they are convenient, easy to control, and cost effective.

- Rajesh Nandwani

Business Unit Head of Wiring Devices, Panasonic Life Solutions India

How do you assess the change in trend or increase in acceptance of modular switches by customers? What role has the Covid pandemic played in the evolution and shift towards modular switches?

With the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, we see more people working from home. Thepandemic has accelerated the adoption of smart devices as people have started spendingmore time indoors and are gravitating towards technology that can not only improve theirquality of living but also helps in simplifying the daily household chores.  People wantproducts that are easy to install and simple for use. Smart switches are the modification ofconventional switches with an innovative technology that allows you access to smartphones to control lights, fans, and other electrical appliances. It also provides the ease tocontrol through voice by using virtual assistant like Alexa, Echo. The advantage of havingsmart switches is it is convenient, easy to control, and is cost effective. 2022 will be a bigyear for smart products, with a whole wave of next-generation technology making a fast,efficient, fully functioning, and interconnected smart home a reality.

Such modular switches come at a higher price due to its advanced technologies and features. Your take on the same and how is the industry and company planning to make it more affordable for customers?

The home automation sector in India has been gaining immense traction over the last fiveyears, buoyed by increased cognizance of IoT solutions, increased spending on homeappliances led by positive changes in consumer behaviour, and the emergence of home-grown companies. Despite the growing awareness and inclination towards smart homesolutions, there persists a myth that smart homes are expensive and requires a lot ofmaintenance. In reality, turning your home into a smart one neither requires a large sum ofmoney nor extensive effort. A little planning in choosing the products that fit your budgetand preferences can go a long way in making your living space smarter. As a market leaderin wiring devices, Panasonic Life Solutions India have been continuously working to providemore affordable solutions that would fit in every budget.

Tell us about your offerings in the space and the technology deployed. Also, can you share your plans going forward on introducing new products/ features especially during the festive season?

We have developed solutions as per customer's needs & requirements right from the luxurysegment to basic affordable home automation. Our luxury offering is Thea IQ HomeAutomation Systems which is wired KNX based & enables you to control comfort, energysaving, safety, and security systems in any kind of building.

Vetaar is a Zigbee based solution which helps you to upgrade your home to smart homewith host of devices like smart plugs, switches, controller & sensors like motion, gas &smoke. The Zigbee wireless technology makes it superior for use in Home Automation as itcan control devices in larger area and in homes with multiple rooms without the use of anyadditional routers. Vetaar smart devices can be installed by anyone without the interventionof any electrician. Simply plug in your electrical appliances to Vetaar Smart plugs and thenoperate them remotely using Vetaar Smart Phone app or by just your voice using Alexa Echodevice.  This revolutionary smart plug consumes low power, avoids multipath, and supportsmesh-networking and multi-hopping making it flexible and expandable over a long range. Italso has an advanced security layer making it immune to cyber-attacks. The solutionprovides controls like ON/OFF, scheduling, voice control, and IFTTT logic function with thehelp a smart mobile device.

For the mid segment we offer Monoblock retrofit solution - Roma Smart Digital. It is a Wi Fibased solution that can be controlled via Panasonic MirAIe app. It comes with 3plus1,5plus1 & 6plus2 variants which provides controls like ON/ OFF, fan speed control, dimming,curtain open & close. It can also be controlled via remote control and supports voicecommand. We also have modular touch Switches available with/ without remote control. Itprovides ON/OFF, Fan Regulation, Dimming & Curtain Control which is suitable for existingresidential & commercial wiring making it easy to install & use.

Our latest offering in the entry level home automation is Wi Fi based Smart Retrofit Controllers. The Smart Retrofit Controller gives you the power to automate the existingwiring devices installed in your home. Make an existing device smart by connecting theSmart Controller to your mechanical switch without changing the wiring at all. It is a backend module which fits behind the switch, inside the metal boxes. Best buck for thepeople who want to automate their existing wiring devices without much complexinstallations. It comes with controls like ON/OFF, dimming, scheduling, scenario control &provides cloud connectivity to control devices from anywhere, voice command supportthrough Google assistant & Amazon Alexa.

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