For smart home newbies (and skeptics who believe that the dream of the intelligent dwelling far outpaces the available hardware and software), a common source of anxiety is the lack of a decent hub (a central command station) and simple way of getting various products communicating with each other.
Of course, big tech companies like Amazon, Apple, and Google have jumped into the fray, hoping to seize the moment and offer hub-esque products like Amazon’s Echo and its “Alexa” voice-operated interface, Apple’s HomeKit app (new to the recently released iOS 10), or Google Home (also voice-activated).
New smart home hub provides remedy for newbies
Wink, the New York City-based smart home company founded in 2014, is likewise doing its part to solve the question of exactly how to have all these disparate smart home products talking, and has announced an update to its hub offering. The Wink 2 features a sleeker design, with a thinner profile and a body that ditches early-aughts rounded edges for the sharper lines increasingly more tech is embracing today. “We really wanted to design something that was beautiful enough to put on a bookshelf or beside your TV,” Wink founder Nathan Smith recently explained. The latest hub also features updated hardware, which the company reports improves the device’s security; the new hardware makes use of cryptographic verification, a specific digital signature that makes it more difficult for unauthorized users to gain remote access to the hub.
The hub works together with several communication “protocols” a.k.a. the languages smart home products speak, which will help the less tech-adept among us make the best use of our smart bulbs, outlets, and even more, helping take a little guess work out of “what works with what,” says Smith. For now, there are actually 31 companies whose products work together with Wink, according to the Wink blog.
And, in a move the company hopes will assist the masses across the U.S. warm to the concept of a smarter home, Wink has partnered with Walmart to retail the new hub for $99. (Walmart stores will even start stocking Wink Hub-compatible products alongside the hub.) Additionally you can snag the hub on the company’s site, on Amazon, as well as Home Depot.
Nick & Cindy Davis have a great relationship with one of Tampa’s finest Smart Home Companies which can assist you here in the Tampa Bay and Surrounding areas. Several of the local builders offer smart home features as well. So if you are ready to get started finding your new home. We have a team of agents ready to assist you. We are always just a call to 813-300-7116 or simply click here and we will be in touch.