This week’s SmartHome roundup features the rollout of a new smart home platform, a fresh Kinect sensor for smart home control, and a clip-on meter to help homeowners mind their watts.

Samsung’s Smart Home Service

 .

At CES 2014, Samsung unveiled its Smart Home Service, a platform to enable smart TVs, home appliances, and smartphones to be connected and controlled via a single, integrated hub. Now the platform has started its global rollout.  The Smart Home Service will first debut in South Korea followed by the US, and will eventually roll out to other countries.

In Korea, the platform will work on Samsung’s 2014 smart TV models, the Q9000 air conditioner, the Bubbleshot 3 W9000 washing machine, the Samsung Gear 2, and smartphones that run Android 4.0 and above.

As for the US market, the platform will work with Samsung’s Smart French Door refrigerator, Smart Front Loading Washing Machine, all its 2014 smart TV sets, the Samsung Gear 2, and handsets with Android 4.0 and above.

By the second half of 2014, Samsung will introduce a feature that will allow users to tell their TV remote control “good night” to automatically trigger other connected devices, such as smart light bulbs, to turn off.

Kinect smart home

 .

Owners of the Xbox One already know of the Kinect v2 is, since it’s included in the package when you purchase the game console.  It offers more interactive game play experience, allowing gamers to feel like they’re actually swinging a sword to defeat their enemy in a battle scene.

Soon, even those without an Xbox One will get to enjoy the benefits of using Kinect v2, as Microsoft announced at BUILD 2014 that the sensor will soon be available for desktops and notebooks running Windows 8.

Microsoft is not stopping there, as it aims to one day make Kinect a crucial piece in smart homes.  It can be used to control connected home appliances such as smart lights, smart thermostats, smart plugs, or even connected door locks.  Currently, Kinect relies on gestures, but in the future, voice control may be used for home automation.  The Kinect sensor could very well become integrated with Cortana, a Siri-like digital, personal assistant that was recently announced as part of Windows Phone 8.1.

“With more devices that are now aware and controllable through software – and we’re doing it with the Internet of Things here at Microsoft – developers will be able to plug into that ecosystem,” Microsoft’s Michael Mott, general manager of Xbox applications and developer relations, said. “So, with the hue lights for example, there’s no reason why you can’t just be sitting down and say “dim the lights.” Or say, “hue, match my mood” and hold up the color of your drink, so you want your mood to go Mai Tai that night. So that’s more in the way of “Hey, I’m engaged but I’m just controlling the environment.””

Reter

 .

Quirky is one of the community-driven web outlets where you can find smart solutions for your home needs.  Solutions found there can be as simple as the Pivot Power, a flexible electrical outlet that supports more than the standard two devices, or an air conditioning unit like Aros‘ that helps you save up on your electric bill.

image via Reter

Another interesting smart device found on Quirky comes from Reter, which makes a WiFi enabled device to help manage energy usage in the home. Reter attaches to the electrical cord of appliances such as an air conditioning unit, measuring wattage use over time.  It works with the Wink app, allowing users to monitor how much electricity a certain appliance is using, giving homeowners the data they need to more efficiently manage utilities.

The current specifications of Reter, even the look, may change once the device goes into production.  No news yet as to when Reter will be available for consumers in general.

feature image: samsungtomorrow via photopin cc
photo: tandemsystemsltd via photopin cc