Welcome To The Future
Soon, every device in the world will be able to talk to each other
and take decisions – without us getting involved at all
I T’S THE sad but consistent rule of
technology that all cool future inventions must be given really terrible,
confusing, complex and obtuse names. The first time electronic products like
washing machines and dishwashers got their own brains and were able to figure
things out for themselves, the name given to that technology was Fuzzy Logic.
The first time computing and storage power was taken offsite and made available
from a remote location, the simple name it was given was Cloud Computing. This
was heralded as the new technology that would change the world. And now the
latest buzz is that soon each and every device, machine and sensor in the world
will talk to each other and take smart decisions with zero intervention from
you. The awesomely simple name for this future technology? The Internet of
Things (IoT).
The Internet of Things is coming at
you from all directions and at the speed of light. All this category needs is a
better name
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Granted, the name is terrible. But
it’s so much better than the terms that techies came up with before this:
Machine Learning, Machine to Machine and the absolutely killer Supervisory
Control and Data Acquisition (or the far friendlier acronym, SCADA). But
whatever it’s eventually called, the future of IoT is very bright. The
prediction is that, in a few years from now, more than 100 billion devices will
talk to each other, analyse, take decisions, change things and perfect our
lives without us getting involved. That, is serious power. And glimpses of that
power are about to reach you right here in India. I played with a few IoT-ish
devices in the last few days.
THE STUFF OF DREAMS
Think about every nightmare
associated with setting up an Internet-accessible security camera system: wires
all over, complex set up, the difficulty in installation, the rocket-science
degree required to operate it, and the almost-impossible task of installing
outdoor cameras.
Well, Netgear’s Arlo just took all
of these nightmares and turned it into a dream. It is completely wireless, runs
for about six months on batteries, and can be set up by literally anyone in
about five minutes. The cameras are weather-proof and can be set up outdoors or
indoors. It also provides actual high-definition picture, great wireless range
of about 150 feet, perfect clarity even in the dark, magnetically mounted
cameras that are easy to monitor from anywhere in the world and finally, the
whole system is motion-activated. I had my two-cam system set up in a few
minutes.
You take the main hub and connect it
to your home router with an ethernet wire, then press a button on the hub and
on each camera one by one. And it’s good to go. I set one camera to monitor the
front door and the other to monitor the front gate with no hassles of running
any power cords. The app on my phone allowed me to record only when it detected
motion from 10pm to 6am. Any movement, and a video was sent to me along with an
alert. It worked perfectly as a baby monitor, a pet monitor and especially as a
vacation home security system. With email and app notifications, I knew at any
given time who was at my house while I was two continents away. Arlo also puts
it all on a cloud server for you to monitor whenever you like. The system also
talks to other devices and the cameras can be used for other IoT activities. It
could turn your house lights on as soon as the cameras recognise you as you
enter. It could integrate with LiFX LED light bulbs and eventually also with
your home’s front door lock. You could turn on air conditioners and coffee
machines before you reach home or wake up.
It’s not all good though; this is an
expensive system at about ` 35,000 for two cams and the smart hub. Also, there
is no audio which is a huge omission. Battery life may also not last the
promised six months depending upon how you set it up and how far away the
outdoor cam is. I’ve also used another product, Dropcam, which has audio, but
isn’t truly wireless. And that is a deal-breaker in the new world of Internet
of Things.
THE GADGETS ARE COMING
Xiaomi has had a head start on its
IoT ambitions with a slew of new launches: the Mi Smart Weigh Scale that
records BMI and other health parameters along with your weight, talks to your
phone and fitness band (yes, Fitbit and Withings have similar features but this
one talks to a whole lot of other devices and costs about $20). There is the
Yeelight Bedside Lamp, which is completely controllable via your smartphone,
throws out light in 16 million colours, can be controlled by gestures and will
soon recognise your presence in the room and turn on. The Smart Air
Conditioner, in partnership with Midea i-Youth, which can also be controlled
through your smartphone and Mi Band. If set up the right way, it will switch on
as soon as you enter the room wearing the Mi Band and switch off as you leave.
This is just the start. The Internet
of Things is coming at you from all directions and at the speed of light. All
this category needs is a better name.
Rajiv Makhni HTBR21JUN15
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