Have you ever been desperate for a cup of tea but can’t be bothered to boil up the kettle? Tefal have provided the solution with Quick Cup - an extraordinary invention that serves hot or cool water in 3 seconds.

It only heats the water you need and uses only a third of the energy of an ordinary electric kettle - so a great time, energy and money saver.

The stylish Tefal Quick Cup incorporates a patented Opti-Quick heating system ensuring a quality cuppa at any time of the day and includes a Claris Filter Cartridge that provides fresh filtered water on tap.

Other features include:

• Versatile, perfect for any hot or cold drink or instant snacks.
  Stainless Steel control panel.
  Flowstop system, manual or automatic flow.
  1.5L removable water tank Easy filling.
  Cool touch body.
  Anti-dust tank lid.

The Tefal Quick Cup is available from UK major retailers priced at £59.99 (RRP).

Web: http://www.tefal.co.uk/tefal

Opus Technologies recognise no limits in the pursuit of pure sound and offer home entertainment systems of superb quality; the company has released two Exterior Speaker models – the OE150 and OE165 premium, to open up their Opus 500 system to wider uses.

These corrosion resistant high performance speakers are designed for most outdoor conditions and afford hi-fi quality sound in the garden, barbecues and by the pool; most importantly they are able to cope with varying alfresco dynamics to perform consistently every time.

• Key features:
  OE165 premium exterior speaker – 1 x 6.5” injection-moulded cone woofer provides an even more commanding bass performance.
  OE150 – 1 x 5.25” injection-moulded cone woofer for a clean and powerful sound.
• Specifically designed for outdoor use and guaranteed weatherproof.
• Supplied in white and can be over-painted to match any décor.
• Both models feature a 1” treated anodised aluminium dome tweeter, which is adept at directing treble energy across a wide area.
• The OE150 is compact and ideal for small spaces such as the underside of eaves on smaller terraces, while the OE165 revels in larger environments and is perfect for bigger parties.

Like all Opus designs the OE150 and OE165 are easy to install and come with an adjustable mounting bracket, which can be installed either horizontally or vertically.

Available now - suggested retail prices: OE150 - £130; OE165 - £175 per pair.

Web: http://www.opus.eu/default.php

Amina Technologies Ltd is one of the world’s leading designers and manufacturers of specialist flat panel loudspeaker systems.

Amina SoundUnseen® is a loudspeaker, which is plastered in-wall where you would have ordinary loudspeakers; not only do all visual signs of the sound source completely disappear, but the resulting audio quality is astonishing and facilitates the creation of a striking interior design.

Amina has recently announced that its customers would now receive seven years standard warranty cover from date of purchase, increasing the existing period by two years.

In tandem with this they are introducing a unique compensation scheme viz. Should an Amina loudspeaker fail due to defective parts or workmanship at any time during the warranty period, a sum £125 will be paid toward the redecoration costs.

“In the six years since we invented the true plaster in-wall invisible loudspeaker, we have been delighted with the reliability of the product in the field” said Richard Newlove, Managing Director.

“Provided the product is installed correctly, which is very straight forward and is matched correctly with the driver amplifier and electronics, it literally does not fail.”

Web: http://www.amina.co.uk

Tel: (1480) 354390

Sonos the leading developer of wireless multi-room music systems for the digital home, has introduced an addition to the suite of products for the Sonos® Digital Music System – the Sonos ZoneBridge™ (BR100).

The new ZoneBridge is the easiest way to set up and extend an all-wireless Sonos Digital Music System.

The product provides a cost-effective, flexible solution to connect Sonos to the Internet to wirelessly control and play all the music you love, all over the house.

ZoneBridge delivers four key home entertainment benefits:

First, by connecting it to a router and pressing a single button, the ZoneBridge instantly activates SonosNet™, wireless mesh network, enabling wireless music distribution throughout the home.

Now, customers can access music wirelessly in any room by placing Sonos® ZonePlayers around the home.

For homes where the speakers have been run to a central location, placing ZoneBridges around the house will provide optimal wireless coverage for the Sonos® Controller.

The system’s two Ethernet jacks can also bring Internet connectivity to your set-top box, PVR, PC, and more.
ZoneBridge is priced at £69.

The Sonos multi-room digital music system lets you play digital music all over your house — controlled from the palm of your hand with a Sonos Controller, giving you access to millions of songs via your personal digital music collection, online music and radio services.

With Sonos ZonePlayers in your chosen rooms, you can play the same song in different rooms, or different songs in different rooms.

Web: http://www.sonos.com

Tel: (0808) 234 6596

The Residential Sola-boost home ventilation system is designed to address the current trend towards tightly sealed, highly insulated homes, which suffer from overheating during summer months.

This ventilation systen combines highly efficient natural ventilation and a solar driven fan to provide true energy free operation, which reduces household energy bills and improves the carbon footprint.

Since warm air naturally rises to accumulate at ceiling level, this system should ideally be positioned above the stairs or landing, to allow warm air to be vented naturally out to atmosphere.

Solar power is converted to electricity to drive an ultra-quiet, high efficiency fan, which carries an air stream down into the room below through a central duct.
Conversely, the fan can be designed to act as a solar powered extractor to expel air from the space.

Another feature of the system’s unique design is that free night-time cooling can be achieved in summer months, simply by leaving the dampers open overnight; this allows cool night air to flow down from the rooftop, while any excess heat build up, is naturally vented by the Residential Sola-boost unit.

 In winter, the dampers can remain closed or left 5% open to give trickle ventilation.

Simplicity of design enables the Sola-boost system to be fitted to any roof design and the top solar panel section is adjustable to suit any one of four angles.
The system is guaranteed for 10 years.

Web: http://www.monodraught.co.uk/windcatcher/index.php

Tel: (01494) 897700

Experience cinematic quality in the comfort of your own living room with the smart new Sharp HT-DV50H home cinema system.

With HDMI output and DivX enabled technology, the HT-DV50H is capable of reproducing images with stunning quality; it’s compatible with DVDs and supports the playback of JPEG, MP3 and WMA material via the USB port.

To complement the exceptional image quality, the home cinema system is also fitted with a 5-mode preprogrammed electronic equaliser, capable of adapting to and maximising any genre of sound.

The HT-DV50H provides crystal clear sound with high power RMS 250W speakers (75W per channel) and a 100W Subwoofer; supporting the latest Audistry by Dolby, the sound is enhanced with the press of a button, making it richer, bigger and better.

The technology is based on digital audio processing features that dramatically improve listening enjoyment, including intelligent volume control, to correct for sudden volume changes in music and movies and a natural bass enhancer for speaker systems.

The HT-DV50H also has two striking ‘tall boy’ speakers, which add a level of design sophistication to its sound reproduction capabilities.

Complete with an FM stereo digital tuner and a remote control, this home cinema system offers superb sound quality making it a must for any home cinema enthusiast.

The Sharp HT-DV50H home cinema system is now available in the UK with a suggested retail price of £399.

Web: http://www.sharp.co.uk.

Tel: (0800) 262 958

Opus Technologies is an award winning British designer and manufacturer of high quality multi-room home entertainment systems.

The company’s Opus 500 is a complete whole-house entertainment solution, which provides stunning quality music and video throughout the home and is extremely easy to install, use and service.

A single run of Opus’ own Balanced Transmission Cable (BTC) to each zone ensures simple installation and interference free reliable signal transfer.
Up to 5 sources of any make can be connected and then controlled by intuative touchscreen keypads.

With Opus, there are no ugly boxes of electronics; instead, the hub is hidden out of view – normally in a service cupboard.

This is joined by source equipment, including music and video servers, tuners and other music and video sources, which you will be able to fully access from keypads in each room.

Opus cables travel through the walls in your home to transmit audio, video, two-way command signals and power to the keypads, amplifiers and speakers in each equipped room.

The extent of Opus’ inclusion in your home is down to you; a standard system will serve four rooms plus an additional four other rooms with more limited access to sources.; however a capable system for larger properties can be specified.

iPods can integrate seamlessly as well as a wide array of third party controls, so that lighting, security systems etc. can also be controlled via Opus wall controls.

Discrete and stylish in-ceiling speakers offer almost invisible hi-fi quality sound. powered by maintenance free amplifiers.

Web: http://www.opus.eu/default.php

Marmitek, specialists in the field of X-10 home automation, has introduced the CM15Pro computer interface, which along with the supplied ActiveHomePro software enables you to control and operate affordable home automation on your computer.

Marmitek brings comfort and safety to your home in an innovative manner, using the very latest techniques in the field of multimedia, video surveillance, home automation and security:

Once your settings are programmed in your computer, you can save them in the memory of the CM15Pro and it can be turned off:

• Your lighting and appliances are easily switched on and off with the CM15Pro and appropriate receivers.

The choice of settings is limited only by your imagination – random switching of your lighting, create a home movie theatre, control your exterior lighting, or have your coffee ready when you wake.
 
Using macros you can programme your preferred environment e.g. the main lighting in the living room only switches on when someone enters the room, its dark outside and the atmospheric lighting is off.
 
Furthermore the CM15Pro has more extended programming possibilities and a memory for about 1400 macros/timers, with which you can expand your home automation almost without limitation.

• The mutual compatibility of Marmitek products is one of the main benefits, allowing you to construct your own ideal system, adding the latest user options at any time in the future.

The recommended retail price for the pioneering CM15Pro (Computer module + ActiveHomePro Software) is £59.95 incl. VAT.

Web: http:// www.marmitek.com
 

LG Electronics, a global leader in consumer electronics is once again making a bold statement in the world of fashion, with a new cutting edge TV collection, enabling the home to stand out on the technology catwalk of 2008.

Anthony Yang, LG’s digital display product manager says, “This year we have accentuated our design credentials by paying even more attention to the collection’s look and feel:

The flagship model - The HD Ready 1080p LG6000 featured here, has a striking, slim silhouette and a unique red-coloured back; a round LED light aperture gives the set a soft red pulsating glow, making it the epitome of elegance.

Styling continues to run through the range, as its Hero Plasma model, the PG6000, incorporates a slim, elegant frameless design, which mimics the appearance of a pane of glass creating a sleek, sophisticated look.

LG is the first manufacturer to adopt a new invisible speaker system, specially tuned by audio legend Mr. Mark Levinson, on it’s LCD and plasma screens.

The unique system incorporates speaker actuators around the perimeter of the bezel, eliminating the need for traditional speaker drivers and associated grills; this not only allows for a sleek, finished look, but also offers a wider sweet spot by creating a virtual wall of sound.

The LG6000 is a CES 2008 Innovations Honouree.
The PG6000 was awarded a Best of Innovations video display honour at CES 2008.

Web: http://www.lge.co.uk

Tel: 0870 873 5454

Meridian Audio Ltd, is a British award winning, high-end home audio-video systems manufacturer - from loudspeakers, complete music centres to home cinema.

Meridian is about to hit the big time; until now, its status has been a closely guarded secret amongst enthusiasts and specialists, but this is all about to change.

The company is now being supported by Richemont, part of an investment consortium, which provides the perfect platform to further reveal Meridian’s attributes, to a discerning class of customers who need the highest possible level of performance at home.

From CD players to bespoke home theatre installations and complete systems to additional individual components, Meridian systems can deliver both exquisite style and exceptional performance.
For example, the Iconic speaker in our picture:

The Iconic Meridian DSP8000 Loudspeaker, is designed to reproduce sounds at up to full natural level, while providing all the resolution required via sources of up to 24bit and 192kHz.

Created to deliver outstanding performance for decades, capable of reproducing the sound of a Steinway - well known as the supreme challenge for an audio system.

The speaker retails at around £28,750 and a complete music centre is priced at around £150,000; however, they do offer systems of equal sound and style quality but more compact, at an affordable price.

Meridian is a multi-award winning company gaining much critical and industry acclaim as a world-leader in digital and analogue audio reproduction; winning 135 awards for 156 products/innovations to date, including the coveted British Design Council Award for Outstanding British Products three times.

Meridian systems and components are available at selected stockists of luxury hi-fi equipment across the UK.

Web: http://www.meridian-audio.com.