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Neothings and OWLink Give a Reason to Prewire with Fiber
Devices that extend HDMI, component video, control signals and 100 Mbps Ethernet over a single, nearly invisible fiber, may resurrect interest in fiber-in-the-home.
Exhibiting with Neothings at EHX, OWLink demonstrated its transparent fiber-optic cable which is ideal for retrofitting the Neopro LightSpider A/V extenders.
Neothings and partner OWLink may single-handedly revive fiber-in-the-home, a movement that fizzled about five years ago.
At EHX Spring 2009, Neothings debuted the Neopro LightSpider, which delivers HDMI, stereo audio, and control signals over 300 feet or more over a single fiber optic cable.
We previewed the product – which uses technology from OWLink -- before EHX, but didn't have a price at that time. At EHX, Neothings CEO Bill Paul said the product (transmitter plus receiver) would retail for $1,299.
That may seem pricey for a point-to-point solution; however, for longer distances, it should end up cheaper than Cat 5-based HDMI extenders, which require repeaters and other signal-enhancement devices.
Paul said a light-bulb went off in the heads of several integrators who visited the Neothings booth at EHX.
"Dealers were pulling fiber five years ago and then stopped because the products never materialized," he says. "They're saying, 'Now I can go back and use the fiber.'"
Plenum-rated fiber costs about twice as much as Cat 5+, says Paul, so it's worthwhile to prewire with it, especially to media-intensive locales.
The LightSpider HDMI extender, expected to ship in about two months, is just one of the products in Neothings' fiber portfolio. At EHX, the company showed a component video version of the product. It offers a pass-through so users can stack multiple devices.
Neothings also plans to deliver an HDMI-only (no stereo audio) solution that will cost less than the LightSpider's $1,299.
In addition, Neothings is working on a LightSpider model that adds 100 Mbps Ethernet support to the HDMI/stereo/control solution – and still requires only a single run of fiber.
OWLink assures us that other companies besides Neothings -- some especially large CE firms, they tell us -- are rising to the fiber cause.
OWLink representatives at EHX say they expect to launch the DLI Consortium soon, with prominent firms who plan to implement OWLink's Digital Light Interface in a broad range of products.
OWLink says it is unique in its ability to pass HDMI with HDCP over a single fiber. Other solutions, the say, require both fiber and Cat 5 cables.
It's possible that fiber solutions will make more sense for retrofit than their wireless counterparts.
Wireless HDMI solutions currently cost about the same as Neothings' LightSpider, but they are less reliable and certainly cannot support the long distances that fiber can.
Because a single fiber optic cable is so thin, it can easily be hidden along baseboards, door frames and molding. Plus, fiber can tolerate extreme bends, unlike Cat 5 and other types of cable.
Best yet, OWLink offers transparent fiber that practically disappears against a wall.
The company suggests the transparent fiber be used, among other things, for flat screens TVs mounted above a fireplace.
What do integrators think? Are you currently prewiring with fiber? Using it for retrofit? Considering it?
Please leave your thoughts in the Comments section below.
At EHX Spring 2009, Neothings debuted the Neopro LightSpider, which delivers HDMI, stereo audio, and control signals over 300 feet or more over a single fiber optic cable.
We previewed the product – which uses technology from OWLink -- before EHX, but didn't have a price at that time. At EHX, Neothings CEO Bill Paul said the product (transmitter plus receiver) would retail for $1,299.
That may seem pricey for a point-to-point solution; however, for longer distances, it should end up cheaper than Cat 5-based HDMI extenders, which require repeaters and other signal-enhancement devices.
Paul said a light-bulb went off in the heads of several integrators who visited the Neothings booth at EHX.
"Dealers were pulling fiber five years ago and then stopped because the products never materialized," he says. "They're saying, 'Now I can go back and use the fiber.'"
Plenum-rated fiber costs about twice as much as Cat 5+, says Paul, so it's worthwhile to prewire with it, especially to media-intensive locales.
More Fiber Products to Come
The LightSpider HDMI extender, expected to ship in about two months, is just one of the products in Neothings' fiber portfolio. At EHX, the company showed a component video version of the product. It offers a pass-through so users can stack multiple devices.
Neothings also plans to deliver an HDMI-only (no stereo audio) solution that will cost less than the LightSpider's $1,299.
In addition, Neothings is working on a LightSpider model that adds 100 Mbps Ethernet support to the HDMI/stereo/control solution – and still requires only a single run of fiber.
OWLink assures us that other companies besides Neothings -- some especially large CE firms, they tell us -- are rising to the fiber cause.
OWLink representatives at EHX say they expect to launch the DLI Consortium soon, with prominent firms who plan to implement OWLink's Digital Light Interface in a broad range of products.
OWLink says it is unique in its ability to pass HDMI with HDCP over a single fiber. Other solutions, the say, require both fiber and Cat 5 cables.
Fiber Ideal for Retrofit
It's possible that fiber solutions will make more sense for retrofit than their wireless counterparts.
Wireless HDMI solutions currently cost about the same as Neothings' LightSpider, but they are less reliable and certainly cannot support the long distances that fiber can.
Because a single fiber optic cable is so thin, it can easily be hidden along baseboards, door frames and molding. Plus, fiber can tolerate extreme bends, unlike Cat 5 and other types of cable.
Best yet, OWLink offers transparent fiber that practically disappears against a wall.
The company suggests the transparent fiber be used, among other things, for flat screens TVs mounted above a fireplace.
Do You Do Fiber?
What do integrators think? Are you currently prewiring with fiber? Using it for retrofit? Considering it?
Please leave your thoughts in the Comments section below.
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Article Topics
News · Product News · Networking · EHX Spring · Multiroom Video · Networking ·About the Author
Julie Jacobson, Editor-at-large, CE Pro
As a co-founder of EH Publishing in 1994, Julie has edited and contributed to all of the company's publications at one time or another. An authority on home automation, networking, integration, digital convergence and the CE pro channel, Julie speaks often about these subjects at industry events. She graduated with a B.A. in Economics from the University of Michigan, and received an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin. Julie is a washed-up Ultimate Frisbee player.
2 Comments
I am currently in the process of rejiggering my entire house and since the house is down to bare studs, i have decided to prewire all my rooms with a drop point of 2 CAT6, 6 fibers and 2 3-GHz RG6 Coax (total of 12 drop points all routed to a central server closet). While Fiber has become pretty darn cheap, the termination and other costs are unknown. I just want to prewire now and not have to look back in 3 years and wonder why i missed the opportunity, when you can get 6 fibers for as cheap at $0.72/ft (made in the US no less).
Why I went with the 6 fiber option, primary because I don’t know the success rate of running fibers without destroying them in homes and i’m hoping i’ll have 3-4 usable fibers left even with some damage, etc. and that can be used for broadband internet (not sure i trust WiFi beyond a point), digital video, digital sound and who knows what else in the future.
My biggest biggest issue right now is there is a lack of documentation, information and most importantly devices and terminators for the home fiber market, but I’m willing to live with the uncertainity at the moment, hoping things like OWLink will change things hopefully soon.
Page 1 of 1 comment pages
Good stuff! The bugaboos among dealers regarding fiber have always been the cost and the terminations. It sounds like the termination issues have certainly been solved with these products. Also, fiber isn’t as delicate as it used to be so pulling it isn’t a crapshoot anymore.
There are still cost concerns. But the more consumers become enamored with high-quality fiber-to-the-home solutions like FiOS outside of the home, the more drawn they will be to the idea of fiber inside the home, and hopefully, they will not be deterred by the higher cost.