Episode 32: Amazon for the kitchen and Apple for the living room?

This week had so much connect home and internet of things news Kevin and I covered everything from a brand new way to turn your old smoke detectors into connected smoke detectors using a $35 battery replacement to new chip design from ARM that could make the Internet of things more secure. In the middle of all of that we talked about being able to buy the Amazon Echo in retail stores, the new Tag Heuer connected watch partnership with Intel and Gartner’s latest data on the Internet of things.

The Roost battery.
The Roost battery.

After Kevin and I run through the news, I turned to my friend Chris Albrecht, who was the emcee at the Smart Kitchen Summit held last week in Seattle. The event was awesome, and brought a good mix of old-school appliance folks together with Silicon Valley startups trying to remake the kitchen. Chris doesn’t love the connected kitchen, so he’s a good person to discuss what seemed worth buying and what seemed like hype. He also offered a bonus review of the Sonos Truplay feature at the end. That feature listens for your Sonos speakers’ sound quality in your room, and tweaks it so they sound as good as they can given their placement in the room. Find out what Chris says about it by listening to show (it’s iOS only, so Android lovers, need not apply).

Host: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Chris Albrect of OneHub

Episode 31: Walmart gets connected and this is what you want for Christmas

This week’s guest Rob Katcher is working with Wal-Mart to take a little of the pain out of grocery shopping with the Hiku connected fridge magnet. I chatted with Katcher to understand how he decided to create an entirely new category of deviceā€”a button that sticks to your fridge and lets you scan or tell it what you need. It then adds it to a shopping list that is available on a mobile app. With a new deal to link its magnet to Wal-Mart’s curb-side pick up in parts of the country and Peapod’s grocery delivery, Hiku is creating a service that consumers will love and a new revenue stream.

In the first half of the show, Kevin and I take a Mulligan on the SmartThings hub, after discovering a hub replacement solved many of my issues. We also discuss a new integration with the Ring doorbell, Google’s Brillo OS and finally talk about Kevin’s new toy. It isn’t connected, but you watch the snippets of him riding around above and tell me that you don’t want one of these things. Actually, I am sure I’ll hear from y’all. Please enjoy the show.

  • Replacing my SmartThings hub made it a whole new experience.
  • What is Google Brillo good for?
  • Self balancing scooters are pretty hot right now.
  • What it’s like to build a category defining device (you hope).
  • How to build a connected device and get paid.

Episode 30: My SmartThings hub must be haunted

Does your office need more conference rooms? Or maybe there’s wasted space where the printer and several reams of paper sit. In this week’s podcast we discuss how companies can use connected sensors in their lights to make better decisions about their real estate while also saving money on their energy costs with Joe Costello, the CEO of Enlighted. Before we talk to Costello, Kevin Tofel and I cover the SmartThings version 2 hub.

The SmartThings Monitoring kit.
The SmartThings Monitoring kit.

After the show aired I got on the phone with SmartThings and swapped out the hub, but my initial experience was terrible (you’ll hear). Since the show was recorded, I’ve since managed to join most of the sensors to the network using the new hub and will keep testing. Kevin and I also talk about Verizon’s plans for the Internet of things and a list the National Association of Realtors put together to help people sell their smart homes without compromising their data. You can find it here!

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Joe Costello, CEO of Enlighted

  • My SmartThings hub isn’t behaving like it should.
  • Learn about how to talk about your smart home to prospective buyers
  • Verizon has an IoT cloud and new pricing plans
  • Smart office buildings are coming and it starts with LEDs
  • How to solve conference room overbooking using sensors

Episode 28: Warm and fuzzy drones and living with Apple’s HomeKit

Several HomeKit devices finally arrived in the house and were installed with relative ease. I had the Lutron bridge that had come out earlier this summer paired with two dimmer switches, a lamp module and my Nest thermostat, the new Philips Hue bridge that is HomeKit enabled paired to five Hue lights and a Schlage Sense lock installed on my back door. It was a good smattering of devices, but unfortunately it was the wrong smattering, because none of the apps seemed to have a way to bring all of the individual devices together, unless it was through Siri. Listen up as Kevin and I discuss a full review of the products on this week’s podcast.

The outside-facing side of my HomeKit-enabled Schlage Sense lock.
The outside-facing side of my HomeKit-enabled Schlage Sense lock.

We also cover August smart lock’s new video doorbell, keypad and access plans and Savant’s new DIY home automation system. But most of our time is spent on HomeKit, Apple and little bit of comparison between that and other solutions on the market, such as the Amazon Echo. Our guest for the week covers the topic of helping people age in place through the use of drones. In recent years, drones such as the Mavic Mini have soared in popularity thanks to their HD recording capabilities. Drones in general have flown off the shelves as their potential grows and grows, with people finding a multitude of different uses for them. They are not only used for photography and videography now, although you can see some of the amazing videos people have made with them at dronesuavreport.com. However, in the podcast we talk about a whole different use for these consumer electronics. Yes, we are not talking about your typical surveillance drone, but a warmer, fuzzier version that is autonomous. Naira Hovakimyan, a professor in Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois discusses her research in developing autonomous drones that work with people and don’t frighten people. Listen up to find out how she plans to transition from farming to helping the elderly.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guests: Naira Hovakimyan, a professor in Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois

Episode 26: A skeptic’s view on the smart home and how to build services, not products

This week I invited my husband to replace Kevin Tofel (it’s only for this week, y’all) to get a viewpoint from someone who isn’t exactly enamored of the connected home. Andrew Allemann (my husband) talks about the devices he likes and the things he doesn’t. If you’re building a product,he’s worth listening to, although his complaints are probably familiar to anyone whose spouse is tired of living with a bunch of gadgets in perpetual beta.

Some of Andrew's favorite products are the Hue lights.
Some of Andrew’s favorite products are the Hue lights.

Our guest is Nandini Nayak, who is with Fjord, and she came on the show to share research and insights about transitioning from selling products to selling services, which almost every single company building connected products will have to master. Nayak has helped create the concept of Living Services and Living Brands, which she explains on the show. The basic idea is that once connected, products can become personal and adapt over time to the needs of the buyer be it a consumer or a corporation. IT’s a powerful one and we explore it in depth. Please listen to the show for more.

Hosts: Andrew Allemann and Stacey Higginbotham
Guests: Nandini Nayak, Fjord

  • The perils of living in a smart home plus some of the perks.
  • Why this device is my husband’s favorite?
  • How do you define a living service?
  • Will startups or big companies be better at creating connected services?

What will happen with Wink and a review of Zuli’s presence-promoting smart outlets

In episode 25 companies are spending billions trying to figuring out how to use wearables to help seniors age in place so we asked Philips Digital Health solutions’ Liat Ben-Zur on the show to discuss some of the things the health giant is doing to rethink medicine for a connected era. She discussed how the venerable Lifeline program must adapt and why today’s wearables aren’t providing enough context for doctors to use them in healthcare settings. We also talked about medical clouds, data analytics and a bit about the looming healthcare crisis. Good times.

The Zuli smart plugs in action.
The Zuli smart plugs in action.

Meanwhile Kevin Tofel and I discuss the not-so-shocking bankruptcy of Quirky and what it means for Wink. So far Quirky has a $15 million bid for Wink from Flextronics, the company that built the actual hub, but there’s still too much uncertainty for me. And after more than 18 months I have gotten my hands on the $160 Zuli smart plugs that offer Bluetooth-based presence in the home. Listen up to learn what I thought about them.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Liat Ben-Zur, Philips

  • Why Flextronics isn’t going to try to destroy Wink
  • What are the best hub options if Wink does go down
  • Zuli smart plugs are a good way to bring presence into your home. But they could do more.
  • What’s next for Lifeline in an era of ubiquitous wearables and DIY
  • Why your wearable isn’t good enough for a doctor’s eyes just yet.

Episode 24: HomeKit surprise and no more passwords for the internet of things

Apple didn’t cover HomeKit in its massive event last week, but Kevin and spent a good chunk of time explaining what we we knew. Sadly, it’s not a lot, but it should be worth downloading iOS 9 and waiting a few more weeks. In enterprise news, we covered Salesforce’s IoT Cloud news, which will compete with IBM’s IoT foundation cloud. We also talked about a new access point from Samsung that adds Zigbee and Bluetooth to the mix before delving into a review of the OnHub router from Google. You’ll have to listen to the show and Kevin’s review to see if it’s worth the $199 price tag.

The OnHub router. Image courtesy of Tp Link.
The OnHub router. Image courtesy of TP Link.

After all of that, Paul Madsen, who works in the office of the CTO at Ping Identity, came onto the show to discuss the future of an identity layer for the Internet of things. This may sound esoteric, but it’s really important for all of us who hate having multiple passwords for every app on every device we have in the house, if you are one of those people, you may want to read more into these reviewed password managers. It also could help with guest authentication. The conversation gets a bit techie, but its worth it to understand how we may access our devices in the near future. He does threaten some kind of two-factor authentication for our smart home, guys. Enjoy.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guests: Paul Madsen of Ping Identity

  • HomeKit gets new tricks as part of iOS9 but where are the devices?
  • Comcast and AT&T are supporting new third-party devices.
  • Salesforce gets into the Internet of things and here’s why.
  • Does Kevin like the Google OnHub router?
  • Managing identity for smart home might look a lot like the web.
  • Are you ready for two-factor authentication in your home?

Episode 23: Smart home breweries and Amazon’s konnected kitchen kabinets

I hope you’re hungry for some smart kitchen news because this week I have smart home analyst and the host of The Smart Home Show podcast Michael Wolf coming on to discuss Amazon’s plans for the kitchen and some really awesome technology he’s seeing in that room of the house. Wolf, who is hosting a conference on the topic Nov. 5 (you can register using the code IOTPOD and get 15% off the conference fee) wrote his take on the news that Amazon is building a connected device for the kitchen called Kabinet, that was leaked in a Wall Street Journal story. Wolf and I discuss what the Kabinet might entail as well as some other connected technologies he’s seen and how the smart kitchen will evolve. Some speculate that with the rise of electronics in the kitchen (with many looking for the best electric induction hob) so too will rise interconnectivity between them.

The Amazon Echo in my kitchen.
The Amazon Echo in my kitchen.

Before Wolf and I get started, Kevin Tofel and I share the latest on this week’s news with the Nest outage over Labor Day weekend, ARM and IBM’s partnership to bring the internet of things to more industrial users and introduce our own idea, which is that Google should buy web service If This Then That. The one thing you won’t find is Apple’s latest announcements because we recorded the show the day before Apple’s announcements. We just give you a reason to listen next week. In the meantime, please enjoy the show.

Host: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Michael Wolf, The Smart Kitchen Summit

  • The Nest outage shows that once again, we shouldn’t rely on the cloud.
  • In which we find a buyer for IFTTT.
  • IBM and ARM team up for the industrial internet.
  • Inside Amazon’s plans for the smart kitchen.
  • Connected home brews, tea and other trends in connected cooking.

Episode 22: The new Nest and behind the scenes with SmartThings’ new hub

This week has a bunch of updates on old favorites for the smart home with a third generation thermostat from Nest and a new home hub from SmartThings. We start the show with Kevin and I discussing the slimmer Nest thermostat with a bigger screen and software upgrades. Our decision? There is no need to upgrade, but the Nest is still a winner. We also review the reviews of the new router from Google and Kevin decides if he can find one, he’ll try it out and report back. But the biggest news on the smart home front is probably the upgrade to the SmartThings hub, which I’ve had in my home since 2013 and is getting an upgrade on Thursday.

The new SmartThings hub and smaller sensors.
The new SmartThings hub and smaller sensors.

Our guest is SmartThings CEO Alex Hawkinson, who covers some of the changes and the new services model the company first unveiled at CES. We also talk about how it is handling Apple’s HomeKit and competition after its acquisition by Samsung last summer. The company has handled the challenge of being open while also trying to make a consumer-friendly product, which isn’t easy, as any Android user can tell you. This iteration may be the one that pushes it into the mainstream. Listen up and see what you think.

Hosts: Kevin Tofel and Stacey Higginbotham
Guest: Alex Hawkinson, CEO and founder of SmartThings

  • The new Nest is skinner and can double as a clock with Farsight.
  • Reviewing the OnHub reviews. Should Kevin buy Google’s router?
  • SmartThings’ new hub is finally here!
  • How to walk the line between open and usable.
  • Why SmartThings isn’t supporting Apple’s HomeKit.

As a note to this show, there’s a slight ghosting on Hawkinson’s voice that I couldn’t quite take care of in editing. I apologize.

Episode 21: Here’s what Amazon’s Echo will and won’t do

We connected our lights and locks to the Internet and frankly, we don’t seem to be much better off. In this week’s podcast I talk to Claire Rowland a user experience consultant and lead author of Designing Connected Products about why that is, and who actually is better off. We also discuss what she’s discovered about making friendlier designs and why she’s optimistic about the smart home.

The Philips wireless dimmer kit.
The Philips wireless dimmer kit.

In the here and now, Kevin and I discuss how I connected my Wink and SmartThings hub to the Amazon Echo and what we can and cannot do now that we’re linking our hubs into a larger hub. We also do a little review of the latest Hue light product from Philips–a $40 wireless dimmer kit. I even managed to fix a lingering problem with my Wink setup and now I have porch lights that go on when my garage door opens. It’s a known issue with scheduling on the Wink, so listen up to see if it might apply to you.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guests: Claire Rowland, Designing Connected Products

  • So what can you do on the Amazon Echo with SmartThings and Wink?
  • Should you buy the Philips new wireless dimmer kit?
  • Adding the internet to consumer products isn’t enough.
  • Connected devices are turning out to be great for accessiblity