Apple have announced they are getting into home security with SIRI. Now you know how fond we are of Z Wave Devices being used for home security, but seriously SIRI can you trust it? Ask Jimmy Kimmel:
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Now with Amazon set to stock these controllable devices the sky is the limit as the ever gregarious Google gets in on a multi-billion dollar industry. Here’s the deal-breaker action straight from the Philly Inquirer.
On Tuesday, Siri’s corporate parent, Apple Inc., unveiled the first wave of home automation products sporting a “Works with Apple HomeKit” logo. Among them are light dimmers from Lutron, Elgato air and security monitors, an Ecobee thermostat, iHome SmartPlugs, and an Insteon smart home hub.Apple HomeKit features product compatibility with a new Apple-tuned communications and control platform built on the iOS 8 operating system for tablets and phones, plus a special chip in each HomeKit-branded device.
“But voice control is what really sets HomeKit apart,” said Matt Swatsky, product development manager for Lutron, the global giant in lighting control based in Coopersburg, and a participant in the HomeKit product launch.
“If you’ve activated the ‘Hey, Siri’ alert function on your Apple phone or tablet, you don’t even have to press the home button on the device, let alone open an app. A phone sitting on your night table will wake up and react to your voice when you say ‘Hey, Siri, turn off the downstairs lights.’ ”
That feat is achievable with Lutron’s “generation 2” Caseta Wireless dimmers, lamp dimmers and control bridge debuting this week in Apple stores – Lutron’s first products sold there.
“And with third-party apps on the way, you’ll be able to trigger several actions at once. Say, issue a ‘go to sleep’ command that also turns down a thermostat and makes sure all the doors and windows are closed,” Swatsky said.
During arecent HomeKit audition, the voice-activated Caseta light switching seemed instantaneous, even though the command “goes up to the cloud and back again,” Swatsky said. “It’s also possible to send HomeKit commands from a location out of the house, but to do so you’ll need a third-generation Apple TV to receive, then relay the messages.”
Meanwhile, Malvern product developer Zonoff, the brains behind the Staples Connect-branded home-control system, was not a party to the Apple HomeKit launch Tuesday. Still, Zonoff’s chief marketing officer, Kevin Garton, thinks heightened consumer awareness that Apple and other big players are bringing will help even the rivals and especially Zonoff’s “works with-almost-everybody” control system strategy.
“Last week, Google announced Project Brillo, a light, Android-based control system that could be cost effective for installing in small appliances,” Garton said. “Amazon and Microsoft will have announcements in the next few months. When large technology players get involved in a market, it’s ready for mass adoption. They’re not interested in a hundred million business. They’re interested in a billion dollar business.”
Are You Google Happy
So another venture into a potentailly lucrative market for Google then. Home security is all about security. Are you sure you would be happy sending all your personal data to Google’s servers? Everything Google does is about capturing data- for market research. Then they use that data to sell you products, to sell advertising space to their clients, for Google Adwords, the sponsored search results. Google are not an advertiser, they are the world’s biggest advertiser. They may sell products, they may have launched the watch, the failed Google glasses, and hope to push forward the future with the driverless car. Now home security.
I’m not so sure i would like all my personal data, pin codes, security codes and all that entails floating about in “encrypted cyber space”. Think i’ll keep my dog in active service duty as well as my alarm systems. Won’t be moving to a cyber dog any time too soon.