Smart home technology has certainly come of age. I saw it everywhere at CES, the Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas last month. The Z-Wave pavilion was the largest one yet, with 30 partners sharing their solutions to integrate with home control systems. Z-Wave is one of the leading technologies for connectivity with an ecosystem of more than 2,600 wireless control products.
The show floor was scattered with a wide variety of connected devices, using Z-Wave and other technologies, from the usual to the bizarre: TVs, lighting, furniture, temperature control, air quality, windows, doors, security devices, speakers, appliances, locks, and mobile devices; to vehicles, clothing, toilets, jewelry, toys, healthcare monitoring devices, air ducts, mail boxes, and vacuum cleaners. Add to all of these, services offered such as notifications, alarms, and remote control — it’s a tangled spider web of connectivity that will confuse and frustrate the most patient and organized consumer. At the center of it is the home network, the “glue” that reaches out to the internet and connects everything together.