Over the last few years, Gourmia has gone from being a kitchen appliance manufacturer to being a leader in kitchen automation technology. Whether the appliance be in the form of a multi-use device, Google Assistant enabled or even remote monitoring, Gourmia has put a lot of thought into their new line of products. At CES 2018, the company showed us the latest enhancements they have made to their product offerings.

First up is a Google Assistant powered coffee maker, an upgrade to the current line. Initially you might wonder, “What might voice activation do for a coffee maker?” Once you see it in action it all becomes clear. Being able to be in your bedroom and be able to tell your coffee maker in the kitchen to start up is a great feature. Being able to say, “Good morning Google” and have the coffee start, the lights turn on and wakeup music start to play is even better.

In addition to coffee, they have added Google Assistant support to their other devices, such as a sous vide immersion pod, also an upgrade to the current line. You can control or check the temperature of the water and start and stop the cooking process, all without being in the room. Or, you could put together a recipe and automate a large portion of the process.

But Google Assistant is for more than just speaking to your kitchen. In upcoming versions of their multiuse oven and air fryer, the company is adding cameras. The camera will allow you to get a live video feed of what’s cooking, so you no longer have to open the oven to see how your pizza is doing, or open the air fryer to check on your chicken. You can do it all from the palm of your hand, or from any Google Assistant enabled device.

The products shown, with their upgraded features, will be launching starting in Quarter 2 and continuing throughout 2018, so stay tuned to their website for updates.

Interview by Chase Lowery of PLuGHiTz Live Special Events.
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Home security is one of the most important things you can spend your money on. Now, one of the oldest and most trusted names in the business of home products, Carrier, has produced a line of smarthome and security products called Cor. This is a line of professionally installed systems that will alert you as a homeowner of any breach in security such as break-ins or fire. You can use up to 16 cameras and you have total remote access.

But Cor is more than just security; it also provides a wide range of smarthome products as well. From lights to garage doors, Cor can control a lot of the devices in your home. In an example at the booth, they used a wireless button to simulate arriving at home, where the garage door opened, the living room lights came on, and as the person moved through their home, the lights would com on in the new rooms and turn off where they had left. All of this provides a nice convenience for your home, to compliment the security and safety features of the system.

This product is best served as professionally installed because of the technology involved. The starter kit is priced at under $1000 plus installation. However, when you purchase this, you own it and there is no monthly fee because it is self-monitored. In addition to the existing products, Carrier will soon be releasing a doorbell camera. For more information check out their website.

Interview by Scott Ertz of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology.
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Watering your lawn and yard can be a frustrating chore. Not only do unexpected weather conditions play a factor, there is a matter of timing to turn it on or off. Now there is b•hyve, a line of smart timers for your lawn. These timers can be connected to the internet so you truly can “set it and forget it.”

b•hyve knows the weather up to 14 days in the future and, with that knowledge, will save you up to 50% water use. It is also aware of certain restrictions in your area, such as during a drought or flooding. It can check after a rainfall to see how much it has rained so it can adjust accordingly for the next cycle, preventing overwatering. The outside and inside timers are compatible with any brand of irrigation systems, not just with Orbit systems.

Another option is a spigot timer for your outside faucet. Many people water this way, and it’s not unusual to turn on the water and leave home, forgetting it is still on. It features a flow meter inside to let you know how much water you have used, as well as to limit the amount of water used. This is very helpful when you want to fill the swimming pool for your children or even fill a large aquarium.

These products are currently available at Home Depot, Lowe’s, Walmart or Amazon. Pricepoint for this system depends on how large of a system you need or want. Outside mount with 6 stations in a weather-proof box is $100. An indoor mount for a shed or a garage is $60 for 4 stations or $80 for 8 stations. There is also a hose tap timer to be use from the end of your hose available for $40 and if you need the hub to make it Wi-Fi, it’s $70 for the pair. For more information check out their website.

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Not the most techie person on the planet but still want awesome smart home features? Don’t worry, Oomi has got you covered. Their new additions make IoT easy for all of us, and without sacrificing features or safety.

They also wanted to build in entertainment control to the system. In the past, this hasn’t been so easy in a touch screen environment because you’re looking up at the TV when the controls you need to view are down in your hands. So they developed tactile controls that can be programmed to your specifications to control all of your entertainment. Because let’s face it… we all need buttons sometimes.

The best part about this new in-home, whole-home controller is how easy it is to set up. It has a small orange button on the back of it. And each companion product also has a small orange dot. To pair everything together, you simply connect the dots and voila, setup is complete. They use NFC in the pairing process to make it extremely simple and user friendly. The touch screen has also been designed to be easy to use. You just name the rooms and the devices and you’re ready to go. The system is also able to accept some third party smart home devices, such as Amazon Alexa.

All of the new items are available now except the touch switch module which will be coming soon. It’s the only one that will need installation as it is also a scene controller in an elegant design that looks like a traditional wall switch.

To easily get started, kits are available, which come with the Oomi Touch controller, Oomi Cube hub and a set of sensors. The Lighting Kit retails for $499 and comes with 2 Oomi Bulbs and an Oomi Plug. The Automation Kit retails for $499 and comes with an Oomi Bulb, an Oomi Plug and an Oomi Door/Window Sensor. The Security Kit retails for $400 and comes with an Oomi Door/Window Sensor, an Oomi Multisensor and 4 Quick Tags. Other accessories are also available to expand your smarthome.

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The progression of the smart home went from manually adjusting your lights and thermostat, to being able to make changes on a mobile device, to using voice commands to control these and many other items in your house. How can it get any better than that? Well, if crea.vision has anything to do with it, it can get a lot better.

crea.vision is developing a product that will enhance your intelligent home without the need for a screen controller or even voice command. It will work quietly in the background, yet still be available when you need something. It uses a computer vision sensor that is capable of knowing the identity and location of the people in the home, works with long distances and combines all of this data to automate all of your connected devices.

This new hub will intelligently manage your lighting, climate and entertainment, by learning every user’s preferences and then personalizing each service. So, wherever you walk into the house, the system will make adjustments to your smart devices automatically for you. For example, if your phone is charging and a call comes in, the system will notify you wherever you are in the home and allow you to take it hands free. It will seamlessly follow you as you walk around the house, as will your music or TV shows. So when you are busily getting ready for work, you won’t miss a minute of your media as you move about the house. All connected devices that can be safely connected to the system will be able to autonomously adapt to each individual user.

Creators are designing it around all platforms. It is being built with the user in mind, to be as easy as possible, by integrating in many of the existing third party devices. Current development for consumer use will track as many as 10-15 people within the home. And based upon feedback, they are looking to expand into enterprise solutions as well as enterprise security solutions.

This whole new way of interacting with technology is still in the prototype phase. It should be on the market in about 6 to 8 months. Pricing is still pending, but they will be updating their website throughout the development process. Stay tuned to www.crea.vision for more information.

Interview by Allante Sparks of PLuGHiTz Live Special Events.
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In the beauty industry, there are a lot of gadgets. Whether you’re curling your hair or your eye lashes, there’s a device for everything. A lot of these devices, however, have remained unchanged for a long time. Take, for example, the blow dryer. The heating element used requires so much power that a special adapter is required to use one out of the country, and the cords are usually just long enough that you’re tethered to the wall while in use.

Ryan Goldman of VOLO Beauty has set out to change all of that. Their new cordless blow dryer is one of the first of its kind, but distinguishes itself in other ways, as well. Ryan didn’t just want to bring the same old dryer to market without a cord; instead, he wanted to make sure that the dryer was more energy efficient, so that it would last its longest on a charge. So, rather than a traditional heating coil, VOLO has designed an infrared heating bulb system, which uses 600 watts rather than the more traditional 1800 watts. As an added bonus, the infrared system dries the hair faster, and more evenly, making the product more healthy for the hair.

The product will be launching on Kickstarter this Spring, and will be available afterward on Indiegogo On Demand. The retail price will be $388, with discounts for preorders. You can also sign up for their waitlist so you can find out when the campaign launches.

Interview by Daniele Mendez of The New Product Launchpad.
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