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| Why is the browser a second-class citizen in smart homes? |
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| By Kevin C. Tofel |
As we've added more connected devices to our homes and more connectivity to cars, we’ve become locked into the app economy. What the heck ever happened to the good ol’ web?
I recently asked myself that question as I was testing a de-Googled smartphone; it runs the open source version of Android, or AOSP. I was also considering moving to a pure Linux handset. But as I quickly came to realize, because we’ve become an app-centic society, I really can’t move to either of them.
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| — The Home Assistant web interface. Image courtesy of Home Assistant. |
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My web question had begun to take shape when we bought a Tesla Model 3 last year, consolidating from two cars down to a single vehicle. (No haters please; this was before the Musk takeover of Twitter!) We love the car. Most importantly, my wife loves the car, and she’s only owned one other car that she felt the same way about. (That was a 2004 Acura TL, for the curious among you). But without the Tesla app on a traditional smartphone, the car is only just usable.
Sure, I can — and have — used the plastic key card that comes with the Tesla. That gets you basic functionality to go somewhere.
Don’t have the app? For us, that would have meant saying goodbye to all of the reasons we bought the car, such as pre-conditioning the cabin, remotely unlocking the doors or trunk, or planning a route with Tesla Superchargers along the way. There’s simply no way to use most of the car’s advanced features in a browser. Nor would we have been able to get any notifications from the car, or to view captured camera footage in case of an accident.
And for the most part, the same situation applies to the smart home today. Last time I checked our house, we were up to around 40 connected devices, which work with Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Home. A few work across all three, thanks to Matter. But how many can be used with a standard browser connection instead of a dedicated phone app? Far fewer than those that can’t.
Indeed, with very few exceptions, I need the specific mobile apps from the different brands of, for example, bulb, outlet, or light switch. Or I have to use the main smart home ecosystem apps, such as Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, or Google Home.
To manage my home network, I have to use my Eero app. Any routines or scenes in my smart home have to be done in an ecosystem app. I can’t view my connected cameras over the web, nor can I open my garage door in a browser when I’m nearly home. The list goes on and on. And while I wouldn’t want to use the web to turn on a smart bulb, it would be nice to see the current state of my devices or a live video feed from a connected camera using a browser.
As I noted, there are a few exceptions. Google recently introduced a feature to view Nest cameras over the web in a browser, for example. That said, I don’t have any Nest cameras, so it’s not helpful to me.
Perhaps the biggest exceptions to the rule of “smart homes require apps” are some of the third-party smart home hubs. Both Home Assistant and Hubitat, for example, provide a high degree of connected device access through the browser.
Yes, there smart home apps for both platforms available on the app stores. And yes, most people likely use those apps as their central smart home interface. But it’s not required, as most of the functionality these provide is available in the once mighty but now lowly web browser.
It might sound like I’m complaining about a first world problem here. And on some level, I’d agree with that criticism. We are, after all, in the age of the smartphone. But that doesn’t mean that the browser should be relegated to a second-class, at best, citizen in this situation.
I’d like to see more smart home device makers embrace relatively newer web technologies to bring the smart home experience from behind the fence of app stores. Progressive Web Apps (PWAs), for example, bring much of the app experience and functionality to the browser. While PWAs may not fully replicate an app’s feature set, there’s plenty they can do, such as provide notifications, be updated centrally, and behave securely, just like a smart phone app.
Until this changes, I’m locked into the app economy on either an Android or iOS phone. So no de-Googled or Linux handset for me. Once the fastest-growing king of the internet, when it comes to smart homes, the universal browser got kicked to the curb.
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| Therabody's smart glasses are nice, but not neccesary |
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By Stacey Higginbotham
Back in December, I ran across Therabody's SmartGoggles, a $199 device designed for "sleep, focus, and stress," and decided to give them a whirl to see if they helped my migraines or my husband's eye strain issues. The TL;DR version of this review is they didn't. And to top it off, because of issues the company said it had with its internal software systems, my efforts to return the item and get my money back took several emails and about a month.
Normally I don't write about non-IoT gadgets (these goggles connect to your phone via Bluetooth, but that's about it) and especially if the item is just meh, but I keep seeing reviews of the device in tech publications that praise them and figured I should offer a counterpoint, especially since it was so hard to get my money back. So here goes. |
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| — The Therabody SmartGoggles combine massage, heat and vibration. Image courtesy of Therabody. |
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When I first saw the Therabody SmartGoggles, I was intrigued. They are essentially a high-tech eye mask containing a sensor that tracks your heart rate and matches a massage rhythm to that rate. The idea is that syncing the massage to your heart rate reduces stress and helps with relaxation. I checked out Reddit and a few folks said they used the SmartGoggles as a way to help stop a migraine or recover from one, so I purchased a pair.
Therabody offers a generous 60-day return policy on its devices, which is what made me feel comfortable paying $200 for tech that I felt was a bit dubious. Would matching my heart rate really change the massage pattern? Would this device really do more than the hot or cold compresses I already own? If the SmartGoggles worked, $200 was nothing compared to the $5,500 I pay every three months for Botox (worth it, and somewhat covered by insurance) and the roughly $45 per pill I pay for Ubrelvy, the only drug that makes a dent in my more intractable headaches. If they didn't work, $200 felt like a lot of money.
The SmartGoggles arrived and were a surprise. At 14.8 ounces, they were lighter than I expected them to be, and felt comfortable resting on my face, even when I had a migraine and was extra sensitive. They connect to an app via Bluetooth that helps regulate among three different preset settings, and there are physical controls as well.
The physical controls came in handy for me, because despite all of my best efforts, the SmartGoggles wouldn't connect to my Android phone using Bluetooth. I could connect it easily to an iOS device, so that may be an Android issue. And since I was so excited to test them out, I simply resorted to the physical controls for my first test.
I didn't wait for a migraine, I just laid back on the couch, popped them on my face and starting pressing buttons to test out the relaxation mode. The goggles have three preset modes: SmartRelax, which uses massage and heat to relax the eyes; Focus, which uses vibration between your eyes and heat around the eyes to "relax the mind" and aid focus; and Sleep, which gently massages your temples and provides "slow-wave vibration."
You can set your mode in the app, but since mine wasn't connected I simply toggled the buttons on top until I got into SmartRelax mode. There are three buttons on the goggles; power, vibration, and heat. To get to the SmartRelax mode, I long-pressed the power button to turn the device on, then pressed the same button until I got to the SmartRelax setting (indicated by an LED under an icon). There are also ways to create your own settings using the heat and vibration buttons.
And it felt nice. The heat was soothing and the massage patter hit my temples and right between my eyebrows. It reminded me of the shiatsu-style massage devices I have for my back. But it also was a bit frustrating. It felt good, but it would have felt better if the placement of the massage was a little more forward on my temple and extended a bit further around my eyes. Part of this is an issue with the shape of my face, and part of it is an issue you'll have with any massager. They can only circle the area they can circle, and can only do it at a few levels of pressure.
So for me, this was a little off, especially when I tried it later as a migraine was developing. I often massage my eyes to relieve pressure when I get a migraine, so I had high hopes. But again, the pressure wasn't enough and it wasn't quite in the right place. And no adjustment really changed that.
So as a migraine reliever, the device was a dud. But what about its real purpose, helping with eye strain or sleep? I tried the sleep setting for a few nights and found myself irked because I fell asleep with it on. Tracking my sleep during those nights when I tried the device with my FitBit didn't show any real difference in my deep sleep or the quality of my sleep. However, I am a good sleeper, so that wasn't a great test.
My teenager doesn't get to sleep well, so I asked them if they wanted to try it, and they did, but found the light from the sensor irritating. I never noticed it. So then I turned to my husband. He actually has eye strain, which led him to go to a doctor for drops and a compress that he warms up and wears when his eyes hurt too much.
He was my next guinea pig. He tried the SmartRelax mode and said it felt nice, but it didn't help as much as just laying there with a warm compress. I also had him try the sleep mode, but he lost patience with it. Each session takes about 20 minutes, which is a long time to lay still, I suppose.
Since no one in the house found any life-changing results from the device, I decided to send it back. Both my husband and I found it to be a nice experience, but ultimately it didn't help with our eye/stress issues and we don't really struggle with going to sleep, so I started the returns process.
And here's where things took a turn for the worse. Starting the return was easy, and involved putting in my order number and my email and letting Therabody know why I wanted a refund. I then got a label to print, packaged up the device in the original packaging, and set it back via FedEx. I sent the package on Jan. 21 and got the notice it arrived on Jan. 27.
Great. Then I promptly forgot about it for two weeks. But just after Valentine's Day, I remembered that I needed to check and see if I had a refund. I didn't. So I sent a message through Therabody's customer service web form to find out where the refund might be. Within 24 hours, I heard back from Sergio, who said:
"Stacey, kindly be advised that Therabody is undergoing an internal system modification/outage which we anticipate will be completed by the end of this week. Once we are fully operational, we will ensure to have your refund processed and confirmed to you. We appreciate your patience and understanding. Please allow me 24-48 business hours to provide you with an update."
True to his word, Sergio followed up the next day to let me know Therabody was still experiencing its "internal system modification/outage" and apologized. Four days later, on Feb. 21, he emailed again, saying Therabody was still having issues and asking for 24-48 more hours. At that point, it had been a week since my original inquiry and three weeks since my package had arrived at Therabody's offices. So I replied saying that this had gone on long enough, and that if my refund wasn't processed that week I would dispute the charge with my credit card company. Two days later, on a Thursday, Sergio told me the refund had been approved but it would take 2-3 business days to process.
I set a reminder on my calendar to make sure it went through and thanked him. And on Monday, Feb. 27, almost two weeks after my first inquiry and a month after Therabody received my package, I got the refund. Curious, I checked online to see if others had experienced this incredible lag and needed to follow up on their Therabody refunds. I discovered that for at least the last three months Therabody has been blaming a systems outage for lost returns, missing shipments, and more. This seems less like a system outage and more like a way to hang onto someone's money as long as possible (hey, interest rates are high right now).
Based on this entire experience I would tell folks interested in this particular device that if you have $200 to spend on a mediocre eye massager, go for it. But if you have a real issue and hope this might solve it, then by all means try it out, but prepare to struggle if you have to return it for a refund. Personally, I'd recommend the NodPod if you want a lux eye stress product. It doesn't vibrate, but you can warm it up in your microwave (or chill it) and it feels great on your face. And it's $34, which is fancy but definitely won't break the bank. |
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| Episode 412: Playing with ChatGPT on Home Assistant |
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| Details about how the U.S. government plans to disperse $39 billion in funding for chips was announced this week, so we discuss the details and what the funds mean for the IoT. Mobile World Congress took place in Barcelona this week, and amid the news about 5G networks there were several IoT-related bits worth mentioning such as Qualcomm outlining plans for millimeter-wave spatial sensing and Wi-Fi 7 updates. In satellite news, Qualcomm announced that its upcoming 5G modems would have satellite capability, and said several phone companies would use it to add emergency text messaging. Those modems will also find homes in IoT devices. Deutsche Telekom also announced satellite capability on its network thanks to a partnership with Intelsat and Skylo. Then we discuss whose responsibility it is to secure the smart home, and what you think depends on where you live. And in smaller news, we cover a new chip that provides wireless power for wearables, wireless security cameras that don't use batteries, an update on the Google Nest deal with ADT, and the launch of fall detection on Pixel watches. Plus, I get salty about Google's Fitbit acquisition. |
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| — Image courtesy of the World Economic Forum. |
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| Our guest this week is Paulus Schoutsen, founder of Home Assistant, the DIY, open source smart home platform. Schoutsen explains why this year is the "year of voice" for the platform and how to build an AI for users to speak in their own language for triggering automations (all without sharing data with third-party providers). He also shows off two new features; the first is using a HomePod to talk to Google Assistant over Home Assistant, and the second is using a generative language model like ChatGPT over a HomePod to create stories. We also talk about Matter and Home Assistant's plans for a smart speaker or voice-capable device, as well as why you can't easily buy Home Assistant Yellow, a pre-packaged box that already has the radios and software a beginner needs to run Home Assistant. It's a good show. |
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This week on the IoT Podcast Hotline, we answer a listener question about how to help someone in assisted living notice they have a phone call.
The hotline is brought to you by Very. Harness the power of IoT with Very. Our design, development, and data experts help you work through the complexity of IoT engineering to deliver business value rapidly. Click here to learn more. |
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| News of the Week |
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Ring's founder steps down as CEO: Jamie Siminoff, the founder of Ring, which was purchased five years ago by Amazon, is stepping down as the CEO of the business to become a chief inventor. He will be replaced by Elizabeth Hamren, the chief operating officer at Discord, who was a former Meta and Microsoft executive. The transition takes place March 22. It's a bittersweet thing to say goodbye to Siminoff, who I've known for almost a decade. From going on SharkTank to hawk the DoorBot and getting passed over, to meeting Richard Branson in an elevator and pitching his idea, Siminoff is the quintessential founder. He had an idea, and then continued to build on it. Hearing him pitch his idea for a "ring of security" around your home and neighborhood was exciting because he was so excited. And like most founders, he could sell that vision even in the face of reporters and experts pointing out the inherent flaws. After the Amazon acquisition Siminoff helped develop the plans for what became the Amazon Sidewalk Network in another feat of entrepreneurial vision. And yes, I'm aware of the flaws associated with Ring in particular and video doorbells in general, but video doorbells are now everywhere and Siminoff managed to define the product even if he wasn't the first or only person wandering around in 2012 pitching a camera on a doorbell. So I hope he actually keeps inventing, because to me, this move signals that connected video doorbells and connected security are pretty much so mainstream that they are boring. Siminoff isn't the guy to run an established business. He's a guy who builds something new and sells it to the rest of us. (Ring)
Here's an update on the Zephyr RTOS: There are dozens of real-time operating systems (RTOSes) used in embedded computing, so it's no joke when we discuss fragmentation and the challenges that presents for software developers trying to build IoT devices. One of the rising stars of the RTOS world is Zephyr, which has been gaining big-name supporters such as T-Mobile, Meta, NXP, and Google. And now we have an update noting that three new members have joined the Linux Foundation's Zephyr Project: Blues Wireless, IRNAS, and Sternum. As part of the update, the Zephyr Project also notes that it's in use on more than 450 different boards that use a vast range of instructions sets, from ARM to RISC-V. (Embedded)
What's next for microcontrollers? As a chip nerd and an IoT nerd, this story was tailor-made for me. It asks what's next for the microcontroller, which has historically been a low-performance chip used in embedded computing. However, over the last decade, as the IoT has expanded and computing has once again become more niche, microcontrollers have widened their scope and can range from 8-bit (are these still in use?) to multicore gigahertz behemoths. This story asks where the once-humble microcontroller is heading, and the answers are not surprising. The big investments are in lowering power consumption, adding cores dedicated to machine learning, and a focus on microprocessors (MPUs) as opposed to microcontrollers (MCUs). And if you're wondering what an MPU is, it's a more complex chip that runs its own OS (as opposed to an RTOS) and can handle more advanced software and peripherals. (EETimes)
Citizen science meets the IoT: One of the things I think is so compelling about the internet of things is that the democratization of computing and sensors means that anyone can participate in gathering data and sharing it. This is huge for citizen science, whether it is an organization trying to measure the temperature in various parts of a city or a global effort to track earthquakes. This story focuses on folks using a Raspberry Pi and seismology sensors to track the Earth's movement, and is so cool. I actually think my mom, who was a geophysicist, might enjoy getting a Raspberry Shake sensor as a present. Note that these are still pretty pricey, ranging from $175 to $800 depending on the configuration. Citizen science is cheaper, but it isn't always cheap. (Tempest News)
More info on a pretty awesome presence detection sensor: At CES this year, we were excited to learn about a new presence sensor from Aqara that would use millimeter-wave sensing as opposed to infrared, making it more accurate. The Verge has seen specs from the sale of the sensor in China, and shared more information on its capabilities. They are pretty compelling. The sensor can track up to three people in a room and can also track if they are sitting, standing, or lying down. This information will be invaluable in providing more context to a smart home's "brains" when it comes to automations. For example, if someone is lying down in a room when another person enters it standing, the smart home may decide not to turn on the lights so as to avoid waking the person lying down. For more info, including cost, check out the story. (The Verge)
Yes, cars are computers now: Mercedes-Benz previewed its own operating system for applications running on its cars last month, and is planning to roll it out next year in its new E-Class vehicle. The MB.OS will sit between the hardware and all of the vehicle software and manage entertainment, dashboards, and automated driving features. I understand why Mercedes wants to control its own destiny and own its OS, but it's going to fragment the world of computing even more. I am curious if we'll see the development of startups building containers that integrate easily with vehicle OSes. Or maybe Platforms as a Service designed to handle apps for cars? (Car and Driver)
Hologram is bringing fallback capabilities to its new SIM: Hologram, a connectivity provider for the IoT, has launched a new global eUICC SIM that will connect devices to carriers in the U.S. and Canada, and will also offer fallback capability. That means if the device loses its initial connection, it will fall back to a second, pre-selected network. This turns the concept of roaming into a thing of the past, because manufacturers can choose direct connections with carriers using Hologram, and if those fail, the device can switch to a different network. This is the power of SIMs that aren't tied to a specific carrier, and also indicative of the importance of connectivity. Because it's increasingly not OK to have a blip in your internet connection. (IoT Business News)
Unabiz's unified LPWAN is coming into view: After Unabiz won control of Sigfox's assets, it promised to create a unified low power wide area network (LPWAN) business that combined LoRaWAN and Sigfox's proprietary technology. That vision is coming into view at Mobile World Congress with Unabiz signing a deal to bring in The Things Industries LoRaWAN software and devices into it's Unabiz platform. Unabiz has also launched devices that combine LoRaWAN and NB-IoT cellular connectivity with other companies. It's clear that so far there isn't one LPWAN to unite them all, so Unabiz is instead trying to unite multiple connectivity options under its platform. (RCR Wireless)
Semtech is also buying into a unified LPWAN: Also at Mobile World Congress, Semtech, the LoRa chip provider which just closed a deal to buy cellular IoT module maker Sierra Wireless, signed a deal with The Things Industries to combine LoRaWAN and cellular LPWANs. The next step for many of these unified LPWAN companies will be adding satellite connectivity as well. (RCR Wireless)
Rockwell Automation buys Knowledge Lens for data analytics expertise: Industrial automation and equipment company Rockwell Automation said it has acquired Knowledge Lens, a Bengaluru, India services company. Knowledge Lens deals with data science and AI, helping customers combine data from enterprise applications and manufacturing data to generate some kind of business insight. Since figuring out what to do with data is tough, data services are an essential element for any company that wants to sell connected factory equipment and software. Knowledge Lens will join Rockwell's Kalypso digital services business. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. (Rockwell Automation)
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