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by humancell 5150 days ago
I agree completely ... it's not really interesting when it just goes to twitter. That's why it's designed to talk REST, EventedAPI, and MQTT to other software. The real value begins to grow when more complex rules systems can be applied to larger numbers of sensors, and then integrated with sensor data from your mobile phone, etc.

You leave home ... the security is enabled ... home environment reflects you being "away".

It's when all of this begins to reflect a more "neural" pattern that things get really interesting!
1 comments
huhtenberg 5150 days ago
Really interesting in a geeky kind of way (to which I can relate completely), but practically speaking though - home automation has been around for a long time, and it didn't really go farther than thermostats, motion sensors + lights and security systems (that still need a hook up to the monitoring services to be useful). I remember tinkering with X.10 almost 10 years ago. Nothing much has changed, it's still engineers designing for engineers. Admittedly I haven't closely looked at the scene for a couple of years, but I researched the subject back then and remember seeing no home automation system that was designed with a notion of usability in mind. Lots of options - sure, plenty of buttons - you bet, perhaps a hierarchical menu with the depth of Cameron's dive - oh, that's a deluxe version :) It seemed that whoever designed those systems didn't actually use any of them.

(Not to hijack the thread)

There shouldn't be a remote, an existing iPhone should suffice. It should know which room I am in, and it should have relevant options based on that. Default to the electrical/heat/blinds and show all outlets and sockets. Allow to switch to other rooms, ideally in form of a floor plan. Make the remote work when I am not at home.

Sell this as a kit of sockets, pass-through junctions, wall switches and a small form-factor controller box. Put it all on WiFi, and give me an iPhone app to control the box. Make it easy to pair the box with devices (show a list of available devices and let me claim them). Allow hooking up the box to the Internet service for out-of-house access (charge me for that too, that's a fair deal).

Finally, put an effort into designing the UI and all visible physical parts. Not to be Nest-slick, but designed nonetheless. [1] is an example of what is not designed, but engineered. Feel the difference. Go to Europe to get inspired, if needs be.

Basically build a system only if you actually have a personal need for it, and not because you have a handful of assorted sensors. And "they will come" :)

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[1] http://www.lutron.com/Products/StandAloneControls/Dimmers-Sw...

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