A prominment theme this year at CES was the smart home
– there seemed to be value in connecting to the Internet every object
in the home. Another was wearables, which, in essence, turns the user
into a connected device. A noticeable trend was the slow death of “home
automation: as a buzzword. In its place, terms like “smart home” and
“connected home” became dominant.
Home automation has been around for more than a decade, but has remained relatively stagnant until recent years. Multiple factors contribute to the revisited interest. US telcos have poured significant resources into market education, helping consumers better understand how they can benefit from an automated home. Another reason the pace of development has accelerated is because of advances in manufacturing and wireless technologies. And the, of course, there’s price – no longer do smart home systems come with a hefty price tag and require professional installation. At its core, however, the smart home market has benefited greatly from the prevalence of smartphones and the emergence of th app economy. In many markets, more than half of the population keep in their pocket a powerful, handheld, multipurpose computer that features a large screen display, numerous sensors, and is always connected. The most obvious implication this has for users is inexpensive remote video surveillance that allows them to keep an eve on their home, whether they’re mainly interested in enforcing curfews for children, keeping an eye on pets, or for security purposes. With a little imagination, however, the possibilities are endless.
DEMONSTRABLE BENEFITS
One promise of the smart home is to make homes more intelligent, thereby enabling devices and service to offer convenience, comfort, security systems or safety. This is accomplished through sensors that give insight about the environment, services or devices that act accordingly. This year at CES, the potential of the smart home was highlighted by demonstrations of open standards like ZigBee, Z-Wave and AllJoyn. Qualcomm’s “Connected Smart Home” demonstration showcased how AllJoyn devices could send notifications to every other AllJoyn device on the network and trigger events. Some of the devices featured were an August smart lock that could be controlled via a smarthpone app, Lifx lights that change color according to the trigger, a Aaier air conditioner that responded to triggers sent by the aforementioned devices, and more.
ZigBee’s booth, while not as elaborate, also showcased how devices from different manufacturers could work together seamlessly to enhance day-to-day life.
Z-Wave touts the largest ecosystem of smart home devices, announcing late last year the 1,000th addition to its family of supported devices. Their booth focused on how the standard and Z-Wave devices have evolved over the years.
To be continued …
Home automation has been around for more than a decade, but has remained relatively stagnant until recent years. Multiple factors contribute to the revisited interest. US telcos have poured significant resources into market education, helping consumers better understand how they can benefit from an automated home. Another reason the pace of development has accelerated is because of advances in manufacturing and wireless technologies. And the, of course, there’s price – no longer do smart home systems come with a hefty price tag and require professional installation. At its core, however, the smart home market has benefited greatly from the prevalence of smartphones and the emergence of th app economy. In many markets, more than half of the population keep in their pocket a powerful, handheld, multipurpose computer that features a large screen display, numerous sensors, and is always connected. The most obvious implication this has for users is inexpensive remote video surveillance that allows them to keep an eve on their home, whether they’re mainly interested in enforcing curfews for children, keeping an eye on pets, or for security purposes. With a little imagination, however, the possibilities are endless.
DEMONSTRABLE BENEFITS
One promise of the smart home is to make homes more intelligent, thereby enabling devices and service to offer convenience, comfort, security systems or safety. This is accomplished through sensors that give insight about the environment, services or devices that act accordingly. This year at CES, the potential of the smart home was highlighted by demonstrations of open standards like ZigBee, Z-Wave and AllJoyn. Qualcomm’s “Connected Smart Home” demonstration showcased how AllJoyn devices could send notifications to every other AllJoyn device on the network and trigger events. Some of the devices featured were an August smart lock that could be controlled via a smarthpone app, Lifx lights that change color according to the trigger, a Aaier air conditioner that responded to triggers sent by the aforementioned devices, and more.
ZigBee’s booth, while not as elaborate, also showcased how devices from different manufacturers could work together seamlessly to enhance day-to-day life.
Z-Wave touts the largest ecosystem of smart home devices, announcing late last year the 1,000th addition to its family of supported devices. Their booth focused on how the standard and Z-Wave devices have evolved over the years.
To be continued …
没有评论:
发表评论