RedRat FAQs - The irNetBox-II
The irNetBox-II is an updated version of the irNetBox,
released in September 2008.
– Why Develop a New irNetBox?
The original irNetBox used several components that were no longer made, so were becoming
increasingly difficult to find. Also, some of these components were not available
in lead-free (RoHS compliant) form. As a result, we had to redesign the irNetBox
with new components.
– Are There Any Improvements With the New Design?
We took this opportunity of making some improvements to the design. Physically,
the printed circuit board and its mounting is more robust with greater
immunity to interference such as static discharges. The main change in functionality
is that each of the 16 IR outputs has three power output levels:
LOW (standard), MEDIUM and HIGH.
– How Can I Tell the Difference Between the Two Versions?
The original irNetBox has a green power LED on the front, whereas the irNetBox-II
has a blue LED. Alternatively, you can look at the back panel which contains the
text irNetBox - Pro for the original version and irNetBox - Pro II
for the new version.
– I Use RedRat Software and the SDK - Do I Need New Versions?
All versions of the software and the SDK from versions 2.20 onwards support the
irNetBox-II. These versions do not yet support the new features of the irNetBox-II,
but support identical functionality to the original irNetBox.
– We Have Developed Custom Software Using TCP/IP - What Changes Are Needed?
The irNetBox-II is backwards compatible with the irNetBox, so in principle your software
should work with no or minimal changes. To use the additional functionality of the
irNetBox-II, such as changing the IR output power levels, then changes will be necessary.