Now that I’ve finally moved my smart home devices from the Wink Hub 2 to the Samsung SmartThings Link, it’s time to test some new HomeKit devices. First on the menu are two items from Fibaro, which sent us a $60 Door/Window sensor and a $70 Motion … [Read more...]
Podcast: Lennar’s smart home and why it dumped Apple HomeKit
Like the rest of the tech media, Kevin and I kick off the show with a discussion about data collection and privacy in light of the allegations against Cambridge Analytica. We also talk about smart home lock in, Alexa's new "brief" mode, shopping on … [Read more...]
Podcast: Mozilla’s IoT Gateway and LoRa Roaming
There was a lot of smart home related news this week as Mozilla launched IoT gateway software, Apple’s HomePod reviews came out and Nest was folded into Google. Kevin and I discuss all of that, plus Netgear spinning out its Arlo home camera business, … [Read more...]
WeMo Bridge review: $40 adds HomeKit support to most WeMo products
Announced last May, Belkin finally delivered its WeMo Bridge eight months later. This $39.99 device does one thing and one thing only: It brings Apple HomeKit support to WeMo switches and plugs. I bought the Bridge as soon as it was available, and it … [Read more...]
The smart home platform war pits logistics against context
It’s been a decade since the iPhone launched, beginning the race to win at the mobile web. Somewhere around 2012 the big internet and computing companies looked up and realized that the next wave of disruption was heading their way with the smart … [Read more...]