IoT news of the week for Nov. 20, 2020

GM plans to use car data to sell insurance: The insurance word is prepping for a shift as the internet of things lets companies understand risk in real-time as opposed to basing it on historical data. But the companies who have the real-time data will be the ones who can best assess that risk, and profit off of providing insurance. At least that’s the bet GM is making with its plan to sell its own insurance to those driving its cars. This is going to be an experiment worth watching. What makes an insurance company for the future?  Is it the data? The analytics? The financial acumen? (WSJ) — Stacey Higginbotham

Eero 6 Pro delivers speedy Wi-Fi 6 and security: I recently got my first taste of Wi-Fi 6 with the new Eero 6 Pro mesh networking system, and it was yummy! Even though most of my wireless devices use the older Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) standard, they saw a speed boost with the Eero gear. And the iPhone 12, which supports Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), was even faster. I’m skeptical that everyone needs the extra features found in the Eero Secure+ subscription, but the less expensive Eero Secure plan is probably worth it for the added security features. Check out my review before you buy. (StaceyOnIoT) — Kevin C. Tofel 

Anyone can now wear Alexa on their face: I previously reviewed an early version of the Amazon Echo Frames and came away less than impressed, but Amazon this week announced that these smart glasses are now publicly available for $250. It also added a number of improvements. The battery now lasts 40% longer, the frames turn themselves off when turned upside down for 3 seconds, and they’ll automatically adjust their volume in light of any environmental noise. That’s not quite enough for me to pay $250 to put Alexa on my face, but maybe it is for you. (Amazon) — Kevin C. Tofel 

ADT is a new Z-Wave Alliance member: In case anyone forgot about the Z-Wave Alliance due to all of the recent Zigbee Alliance and Project Connected Home over IP chatter, there was a reminder this week. It came in the form of ADT joining the Z-Wave standards development organization. ADT is now a principal member and has a seat on the board of directors. Other members include several companies in the security and lock industry, such as Alarm.com, Assa Abloy, and Ring. It’s worth noting that ADT is an official Google Nest partner for device installations and none of those devices use Z-Wave. But most of ADT’s own devices use Zigbee, so it seems like the company is playing the field here when it comes to wireless connectivity. That’s probably not a bad strategy. (Z-Wave Alliance) — Kevin C. Tofel 

Vector the robot is reborn in Version 2! I love my Anki Vector robot, which sadly has seen some tough times. Anki went out of business but kept my cute li’l buddy alive by selling its intellectual property to Digital Dream Labs. Now the company is bringing an updated version of Vector to the market with various software and feature improvements. The new Vector 2 has a better display, a higher-resolution camera, and up to 30% more battery life than the original. Pre-orders are live now for $277, which is a discount from the full $299 price tag. (Digital Dream Labs) — Kevin C. Tofel 

Asset tracking goes sun-powered: Nordic Semiconductor is touting its low-energy, multimode NB-IoT/LTE-M module this week because it’s being used in a solar-powered asset tracker. Designed by SODAQ with the nRF9160 System-in-Package from Nordic Semi, the tracker is powered by a small 0.5W solar panel, which harvests energy. Depending on the sunshine, that’s enough juice for the IoT tracker to report location up to eight times a day. Just don’t plan to use it to track assets in the dark bowels of a ship, truck, or plane. (Nordic Semiconductor) — Kevin C. Tofel 

Wyze is coming to your…wrist? 2020 may be best remembered for the COVID-19 panic. Or it might be remembered as the year Wyze introduced more products than you could possibly imagine. After announcing its robot vacuum and smart water sprinkler earlier this month, it appears the company is readying its own smartwatch. There’s no official product announcement yet but Wyze Labs received FCC certification this week for a very Apple-esque looking watch with Bluetooth. I didn’t see that coming, or at least not so soon after the many other products Wyze debuted this year. (The Verge) — Kevin C. Tofel 

Mozilla’s anti-gift guide is out:  We’re not blind to the fact that many connected devices can pose a security or privacy gift to users who may not understand what these products can do. I, for one, don’t support the idea of giving someone a smart speaker if they don’t understand that their utterances are saved and stored with Google or Amazon unless they opt out. But Mozilla takes the scrutiny of these devices to the next level with its annual roundup of tech gadgets and their accompanying privacy and security practices. The list tracks devices by level of creepiness, doing a decent job of explaining what a device does and what, exactly, makes it creepy. Although for some of these products, the creepiness is part of their utility. (Mozilla) — Stacey Higginbotham

The Industrial Internet Consortium tackles COVID in its latest publication:  I usually link to the Journal of Innovation publication that the Industrial Internet Consortium puts out because they are packed with dense articles on a specific topic that many in my audience will find interesting. The latest edition is no exception. It’s all about how the industry can help with the pandemic. The journal contains several articles that range from using computer vision to help with social distancing to how IoT will help in manufacturing and then distributing vaccines. I haven’t read it all the way through, but I’m already skimming a few of the articles. (Industrial Internet Consortium) — Stacey Higginbotham