HomeTech.fm

What can we say, it can't always be good news around here. Perhaps it's just the leeriness of those artic 40-degree days Seth has been battling in Florida. Or maybe it's the chest cold I've been battling. One way or another, this did not appear to be a very bright week in the smart home.

Topics discussed include a smart thermostat that leaves you out in the cold, a call to pull a popular smart home product from the shelves, a trough of disillusionment following CES, and a pretty glaring flaw in one particular wireless security system.

Sounds fun right? You may want to pour a drink for this one...

Talk to you next week, likely with some better news. Thanks for listening!
- Jason

Show Notes

• Vera Home Automation
• Comcast security flaw could help burglars break into homes undetected | Ars Technica
• SHMOOCON 2016: Z-Wave Protocol Hacked with SDR
• Nest Thermostat Glitch Leaves Users in the Cold - NYTimes.com
• Samsung's SmartThings Home Automation Platform Is So Unreliable, They Should Stop Selling It - Dan Rayburn - StreamingMediaBlog.com
• A Disappointing Consumer Electronic Show (CES) For Home Automation - Forbes
• NBA, BT Sport and Rogers to provide first-ever live NBA broadcast in 4K | NBA.com
• 4K BluRay Compatibility Chart
• #WhatsInTheBox?

What can we say, it can't always be good news around here. Perhaps it's just the leeriness of those artic 40-degree days Seth has been battling in Florida. Or maybe it's the chest cold I've been battling. One way or another, this did not appear to be a very bright week in the smart home. Topics discussed include a smart thermostat that leaves you out in the cold, a call to pull a popular smart home product from the shelves, a trough of disillusionment following CES, and a pretty glaring flaw in one particular wireless security system. Sounds fun right? You may want to pour a drink for this one... Talk to you next week, likely with some better news. Thanks for listening! - Jason

What can we say, it can't always be good news around here. Perhaps it's just the leeriness of those artic 40-degree days Seth has been battling in Florida. Or maybe it's the chest cold I've been battling. One way or another, this did not appear to be a very bright week in the smart home. Topics discussed include a smart thermostat that leaves you out in the cold, a call to pull a popular smart home product from the shelves, a trough of disillusionment following CES, and a pretty glaring flaw in one particular wireless security system. Sounds fun right? You may want to pour a drink for this one... Talk to you next week, likely with some better news. Thanks for listening! - Jason

At 170,000+ attendees, CES 2016 was truly a massive show. Trying to key in on significant themes through all the noise is daunting. Thankfully we finished digging out from under a veritable heap of news stories and press releases just in time to bring you this (massive) wrap-up special. Might want to consider listening at 2x speed here, tons of ground to cover!

Of course we couldn't kick off our wrap-up without diving first into the smart home at CES. We dissect the various strategies of the big players, including Amazon's nearly ubiquitous presence (not bad for a company that didn't even come to the show).

Like any self-respecting CES special we also include a comprehensive TV roundup, giving our take on the competing strategies of companies like Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and LG.

Be sure to tune in 'till the end as we wrap-up with something very special: the inaugural "HomeTech CES Awards". Join us for some fun as we round up the best stories from CES, and a few of the worst for good measure.

As always we hope you enjoy the show! If you'd like to support our efforts to bring you more episodes like this one please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes! It helps tremendously. You could also consider becoming a patron of HomeTech by visiting our Patreon page.

Thanks for listening! Talk to you next week!

Show Notes

• Next Market Podcast - Live at CES 2016
• HomeKit at CES
  • Lutron Caseta
  • CES 2016: 8 interesting HomeKit accessories
• Amazon Echo at CES
  • Vivint Announces Integration
  • Triby Bluetooth Speaker
• Google / Nest at CES
  • Where was Google’s smart home at CES?
  • Google IO 2016
• Remotes
  • NEEO Remote Showing at CES
  • SevenHugs Remote Control
• Car Control
  • Control4 Integrating with the Connected Car
  • Livio (completely useless website)
  • BMW Announces integration with SmartThings
  • Control4 Geofencing Driver
  • Ford SYNC Home Automation
• TVs at CES
  • LG 2016 OLED
  • Panasonic Invisible TV - [video]
  • Samsung 2016 Lineup
  • Sony 2016 XBR TVs
  • Panasonic DX900

HomeTech CES 2016 Awards

Most Significant Product or Story

• Jason: UHD Alliance Defines Premium Home Entertainment Experience
• New “Ultra HD Premium” Specs Disqualify Most 2015 4K TVs
• Seth: Integrations about this year
  • Ring Door Cameras work with ADT
  • ADT Canopy API
• Seth: Security a big concern now
  • FTC Head Calls for Greater Transparency on Data Collected by Internet of Things
  • Now someone can steal your Wi-Fi password from your doorbell - (Already Fixed)
  • What lurks beneath the Internet of Things hype? Nagging security fears
  • VTech Security Breach Info

Coolest Product

• Jason: Dish Hopper 3
• Jason: Skreens
• Seth: Metra M3B

Most Innovative Product

• Jason: Prizm Speaker
• Seth: Sony Ultra Short Throw Projector

Most Intriguing / Ambitious

• Jason: SevenHugs “Smart Remote"
• Seth: Cassia Hub

Worst Of CES

• Jason: First Response BlueTooth Pregnancy Test
• Seth: Grillbot - Roomba for the Grill
• Baby Tech: $300 Baby Poop Scale

At 170.000+ attendees, CES 2016 was truly a massive show. Trying to key in on significant themes through all the noise is daunting. Thankfully we finished digging out from under a veritable heap of news stories and press releases just in time to bring you this (massive) wrap-up special. Might want to consider listening at 2x speed here, tons of ground to cover! Of course we couldn't kick off our wrap-up without diving first into the smart home at CES. We dissect the various strategies of the big players, including Amazon's nearly ubiquitous presence (not bad for a company that didn't even come to the show). Like any self-respecting CES special we also include a comprehensive TV roundup, giving our take on the competing strategies of companies like Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and LG. Be sure to tune in 'till the end as we wrap-up with something very special: the inaugural "HomeTech CES Awards". Join us for some fun as we round up the best stories from CES, and a few of the worst for good measure. As always we hope you enjoy the show! If you'd like to support our efforts to bring you more episodes like this one please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes! It helps tremendously. You could also consider becoming a patron of HomeTech by visiting our Patreon page. Thanks for listening! Talk to you next week!

At 170.000+ attendees, CES 2016 was truly a massive show. Trying to key in on significant themes through all the noise is daunting. Thankfully we finished digging out from under a veritable heap of news stories and press releases just in time to bring you this (massive) wrap-up special. Might want to consider listening at 2x speed here, tons of ground to cover! Of course we couldn't kick off our wrap-up without diving first into the smart home at CES. We dissect the various strategies of the big players, including Amazon's nearly ubiquitous presence (not bad for a company that didn't even come to the show). Like any self-respecting CES special we also include a comprehensive TV roundup, giving our take on the competing strategies of companies like Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and LG. Be sure to tune in 'till the end as we wrap-up with something very special: the inaugural "HomeTech CES Awards". Join us for some fun as we round up the best stories from CES, and a few of the worst for good measure. As always we hope you enjoy the show! If you'd like to support our efforts to bring you more episodes like this one please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes! It helps tremendously. You could also consider becoming a patron of HomeTech by visiting our Patreon page. Thanks for listening! Talk to you next week!

Production and recording schedules being what they are, this week we bring you just a small taste of what we've seen so far out of CES2016. The good news is that it didn't take long for the extravagant nature of the show to reveal itself. I mean, why wouldn't you need a 21.5" touchscreen on your refrigerator?

The so-called "Family Hub", announced by Samsung, is replete with cameras on the interior (viewable from an app of course). Maybe the tech press will finally stop speculating about the glorious day when, finally, our 'fridge can let us know when we're out of milk.

Far from the only story we cover this week, this episode also features other announcements out of Samsung, analysis of LG's late-to-the-party smart home strategy, and some pretty impressive new hardware from Dish. We hope you enjoy!

Thanks as always for listening! If you like what you hear please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes. Be sure to tune in next week for a deeper dive into CES, including the first ever installment of the "HomeTech CES Awards"!

Show Notes

• Julie Jacobson's 102-page CES Guide
• Sky Q 4K Info
• Dish 4K Hopper 3 with 16 Tuners, Quad-View, HopperGo Mobile Drive
• South Park - Simpsons Did It
• Highlights of Samsung Press Conference at CES 2016
• Smarter Fridge Camera
• LG adds funky-looking hub to its SmartThinQ home automation system
• August 2015 - LG’s new smart sensor aims to turn dumb appliances into slightly smart ones
• WiFi HaLow

Production and recording schedules being what they are, this week we bring you just a small taste of what we've seen so far out of CES2016. The good news is that it didn't take long for the extravagant nature of the show to reveal itself. I mean, why wouldn't you need a 21.5" touchscreen on your refrigerator? The so-called "Family Hub", announced by Samsung, is replete with cameras on the interior (viewable from an app of course). Maybe the tech press will finally stop speculating about the glorious day when, finally, our 'fridge can let us know when we're out of milk. Far from the only story we cover this week, this episode also features other announcements out of Samsung, analysis of LG's late-to-the-party smart home strategy, and some pretty impressive new hardware from Dish. We hope you enjoy! Thanks as always for listening! If you like what you hear please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes. Be sure to tune in next week for a deeper dive into CES, including the first ever installment of the "HomeTech CES Awards"!

Production and recording schedules being what they are, this week we bring you just a small taste of what we've seen so far out of CES2016. The good news is that it didn't take long for the extravagant nature of the show to reveal itself. I mean, why wouldn't you need a 21.5" touchscreen on your refrigerator? The so-called "Family Hub", announced by Samsung, is replete with cameras on the interior (viewable from an app of course). Maybe the tech press will finally stop speculating about the glorious day when, finally, our 'fridge can let us know when we're out of milk. Far from the only story we cover this week, this episode also features other announcements out of Samsung, analysis of LG's late-to-the-party smart home strategy, and some pretty impressive new hardware from Dish. We hope you enjoy! Thanks as always for listening! If you like what you hear please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes. Be sure to tune in next week for a deeper dive into CES, including the first ever installment of the "HomeTech CES Awards"!

With the Holidays in full swing, and tech companies nose-down prepping for the Consumer Electronics Show, news on the home technology front was a bit sparse this week. No matter! We're still bringing you a pertinent, if slightly abbreviated, episode.

We start off with a brief chat about CES, making a few predictions about the madness about to descend on Las Vegas. Our conversation rounds out with a discussion about Control4's new consumer finance offering, and analysis of CEDIA's recent "State of the Association" webinar.

We want to take a quick moment to thank you for a great 2016! It's been a pleasure to share our thoughts with you all year, and we appreciate your listenership tremendously!

We'll talk to you next week (err... year)!

Show Notes

• Vera Lite
• CES 2016 - January 6-9
  • CES 2016 will be full of wearables
  • Amazon Echo
  • HomeTech E46 - CES 2015 Wrapup
• Control4 Announces New Consumer Financing Options to Its US Dealer Network
  • C4 Dealers can sign up in Jan 2016
  • Financing not limited to C4 projects but could fund the whole job
  • Not necessarily an effort to increase the bottom line but a "dealer lubricant" to help speed up the sales cycle
  • GreenSky financial services
    • Bills themselves as a "Home Improvement Financing" company
    • Limits up to $55,000
  • From Press Release: "As smart home technology has increasingly become a part of the infrastructure of a home..."
• CEDIA 2015 State of the Association Video
  • Vin Bruno - CEDIA has more "swagger"
  • Coldwell banker says a home w/ automation more valuable by 18%
  • Requirements in England that to quote you must be a CEDIA member
  • City & Guilds Accreditation in the UK - "Government Accepted" Training body
  • Bigger emphasis on marketing certifications ESC-T,D,N
  • AV Shop Talk Podcast - Prepping For CTS-D
  • Phillip "HiPhi" Cordell - Fully Automated