ETC had demos of both a PC and
Mac interface at
LDI. The smart
fade doesn't have an on board video card so you have to
plug it into another computer to use the
screen. So yes there is now an option to add a video
screen to Smartfade. I'm not sure if you have to buy a new Smartfade to get the video option or if it's simply a software download to make your old Smartfade work with a computer.
This story is a little unfair but at the same time I think it makes a
point. At
LDI, there was a young lady doing demos of the Smartfade (I think she was one of the
ETC scholarship winners). She had apparently been trained by one of the
ETC experts on the whole sales
pitch and she offered me a demo. I'm a skeptic but I'm ready to give it another shot so I said sure. In the back of my mind, as an educator, I'm also curious to see how a younger person handles the board. Three times in the middle of her demo she went to do something and it didn't work because she was some how in the wrong mode, and had to go back and hit a couple of buttons to get her to the right mode to be doing what she wanted to do. True she was young and had not had an extensive training on it, but I think her demo makes the
point of what's wrong with Smartfade. She is obviously a knowledgeable and skilled young technician to have gotten the
ETC scholarship. She had also obviously been well trained by an
ETC expert on how to use the
console... but she still has a hard time using it without getting lost in color changing confusion.
Now to be fair to the young lady at
LDI... I've seen one other demo of Smartfade, and one of Smartfade ML both done by
ETC sales reps. In the other two demos the rep also made mistakes and got confused about what mode they were in. At the same time I've seen demos of Congo, Jr,
Eos, and
Ion... some by
ETC reps and some by dealers. In all those other demos I've never seen the confused "oh no what does that color mean, I think I'm in the wrong mode, but how do I get to the right mode, I've got to make this work without looking like I don't know how to use this board" deer in the headlights look.
Sorry
ETC I hate to be critical of you guys. I love your company, your service, your attitude, all the employees I've met have been wonderful people, and I am happy to recommend ALL your other products.