Ask not what you can do for your house, but what your house can do for you. Thanks to voice controls, the answer will soon be, “More than ever before.”
Lots of companies are getting into the space, from Amazon’s Echo to newcomer ivee. Using voice-recognition technology, the company has developed ivee Voice, a multi-room smart-home system. The product, which is now available for pre-order, allows users to operate other connected devices using verbal commands. It has over 10 partners, enabling the device to help with numerous everday tasks, from arranging an Uber pick-up to playing music on Spotify.
The 5-inch-by-3-inch device operates as a smart hub and looks a bit like an upside-down, oversized golf tee. Voice requests are processed from up to 15 feet away in any direction. Additionally, commands can be customized using a free app for iOS and Android. You could use a single phrase, like “bedtime,” for example, to make the blinds close, the lights turn off, and soothing music begin to play when you’re ready for your house to tuck you in at night.
Using open-source technology, ivee works with other smart products, including Nest, Hue, SmartThings, WeMo, Logitech, and more. “With ivee Voice we aim to make voice a mainstream interface in the home,” said ivee co-founder and CEO Jonathon Nostrant in a statement. “ivee Voice is the first device that is completely open and flexible and is able to connect with anything.”
In addition to acting as a smart-home hub, the device is also meant to be an assistant, letting you know what’s on your calendar and what the traffic is like. ivee Voice costs $99 and is available for pre-order through the company’s Indiegogo campaign, which launched Tuesday.
