Since August of last year I have had a Ring Pro Doorbell which I bought from Amazon, (Ring are in fact owned by Amazon), - https://amzn.to/2IbmBZN. And currently this is priced at about £200, but with Amazon it always seems to pay to watch an item for a while and wait for price fluctuations. I say this because I managed to get this for about £60 cheaper - it always pays to be a little price savvy. There are also other models available, but the Pro was the only one that would fit where I wanted it.
It was easy to install, and if you do need assistance there are loads of helpful guides on YouTube that will help you with the process.
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So I'm a big fan of IoT, (Internet of Things), and over the last couple of years have done various things to my house to enhance my living environment. The main things been introduction of Tado controls to the central heating and hot water system so I can control that remotely and the addition of a few Belkin WeMo electrical sockets and their movement sensor. I have also added a LIFX wireless bulb for the front of the house that is remotely controllable.
The big advantage of most of these things is that they can be connected together using the IFTTT service so there's a certain amount of logic that can be controlled when each device is used.
However the biggest problem with the whole IOT environment currently is that there is no universal "glue". A certain amount of things can be done outside the appointed IFTTT channels by using their maker channel which sends a web hook off into the cloud and you can invoke another service, just by using this more freehand way of doing stuff. However the big issue is that currently there is no central home hub that somehow pulls all of the stuff together. If there is an API available, with a number of these devices I have also created proprietary Windows apps in C# to make them do stuff that is of more use to me.
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Recently I took delivery of a Microsoft Band in order to improve my fitness and lose weight and so far so good! I'll probably do a more in depth write up when I have had a chance to really get to know the device.
You can alter the devices settings through the associated app on your phone, but they don't seem to have publicised the Windows app. Interestingly this is a desktop download rather than a "modern" app, but I think is a pre-cursor to Windows 10 apps being universal.
You can download the app at https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=44579
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Just a quick post after my visit to the gadget show yesterday. I thought I would just show a couple of pics of the devices to my fellow backers on the Indigogo campaign.
I spent about an hour talking to Edd and Robert and briefly with Ronnie. The enthusiasm of these guys for this project really shines through, it's actually incredible that they have got the product this far.
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A new project on to Kickstarter is the LILA and although the headline feature is security, it is really multifunctional. With the appropriate sensors questions such as "did I remember to shut that window?" or "did I remember to turn the iron off?", can easily be answered with most iOS, Android and Windows Phone devices supporting Bluetooth 4.0.
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Just love this new project on Kickstarter for a neat little tablet stand. In it's travel state it's no bigger than an iPhone, but will expand out with a little flick to fit pretty much any tablet that is currently available on the market.
It has multiple angles it can be set at and rubberised feet so it doesn't slip around - ingenious bit of kit.
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Another recent acquisition was the WeMo switch from Belkin. In essence this switch allows you to turn on or off anything plugged into it from anywhere in the world.
There is a free app available for Google or Apple devices on which you can set up various timebased rules to switch the device on or off. There is of course an override switch on the device itself, so that if you really feel the need to get up and turn it off manually then you can do that as well…
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My latest bit of kit is the Logitech T650, and I've been so impressed with it I thought I'd better write a short review.
This device is a trackpad intended primarily for Windows 8, but can be used with Windows 7. However the full value of the product comes out when you use it with Windows 8, because of all the other gestures that have been introduced to this version of Microsoft's operating system. Of course Windows 8.1 is supported as well.
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So, I've had my latest toy delivered and it's called the Leap Motion.
What is the Leap? In the words of the manufacturer "With a wave of a hand or lift of a finger, you’re about to use your computer in a whole new way. The Leap Motion Controller senses how you move your hands the way you naturally move them. So you can point, wave, reach, and grab. Even pick something up and put it down. Just like in real life. It’s an amazing device for the things you do every day and for things you never thought you could do."
Basically, think of the film "Minority Report" where Tom Cruise interacts with a large screen by gesturing in front of it. That's kind of the gist of the device.
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