Inside Out London: Review and Photo gallery

The custom install industry celebrated en masse at the first Inside Out industry networking event last night. A sold out crowd comprising installers, manufacturers, developers and designers shared anecdotes and insights, trading business cards and quips in equal measure.

Many attendees, sponsored by Crestron, Leaf, Marata Vision, Rako, JVC, Wyrestorm and Pulse, arrived from the nearby CEDIA Tech Forum and AGM, but equally it appears just as many came into town exclusively for Inside Out. One such was Charlie Mertz, formerly with media server innovator Imerge but now with Janus Technology, specialist in app development and control software. “It’s great to be back in the CI industry,” he told Inside CI. “I’ve missed the people and events like this!”

HDanywhere MD Chris Pinder described Inside Out London as “awesome.” Indeed the venue, Mary Janes, was so buzzing plans to announce the raffle had to be abandoned. So for those that have been waiting, here they are in full:

Inside Out London raffle winners
Sony Playstation 4, won by Alicia from Kensington AV
Sony Playstation 4, won by Martyn Goody from Marquee Home
JVC sport camera, won by Lisa Audley from CEDIA
JVC sport camera, won by Stuart Tickle from AWE
Pulse Cinema night for 8, won by Paul Wright from AVICCI
Apple iPad Mini, won by Mark Taylor from Invision UK
RAKO demo pack, won by Mikkel London from AV Solutions
Leaf extender kit, won by Ian Martin from Cinema Rooms
Wyrestorm matrix, won by Mark Reynolds from Twenty Two Integration
Crestron PYNG Hub, won by Alan Treacher from Harpend Electrical

Technology, of course, was the main topic of conversation. 4K, from distribution to product sales, was deemed the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity. While concerns of HDCP 2.2 cropped up time and again there was no doubting that Ultra HD is here to stay. “There’s great awareness for 4K,” revealed Simon Gregory, director of Cinema Rooms. “Customers are coming in and asking for it, so we can sell cinemas with big 4K panels or Sony projectors.” However it seems that other hot topic, Dolby Atmos, has yet to make a similar impact. “There’s no consumer awareness for it at all,” we were told.

The mood was upbeat. Adam Whistler, business development manager at new home automation company Fibaro, told Inside CI that the business was already booming. “We’re expanding and looking to hire!” he said.

However it seems the industry is still coming to terms with smaller jobs, driven primarily by advances in Smart Home technologies. “We used to handle big projects with Crestron touchscreens, today system control can all be done on an iPad.” Some installers have diversified as a result, bringing automation knowledge to libraries and institutions. Manufacturers and distributors too are moving into new areas. Security and surveillance seems increasingly important. Peter Alloway, from Invision UK, revealed that a CEDIA Tech Forum presentation focusing on Lilin held earlier in the day, which showcased the latest cameras featuring 4K resolution, 120fps and covert design, played to a standing room only crowd. he was also ebullient about Invision's signing of nest, announced earlier in the day. Chris Pinder also promised that there would be big news coming from HDanywhere early in 2015.

Stay tuned to Inside CI for more Inside Out news. Fire up our Photo gallery below for highlights from the event...