Samsung has agreed to acquire SmartThings, an open platform for smart home devices. The plan is to plug Samsung’s sources into SmartThings platform to develop more home appliances that communicate with each other and connect to the Internet. Smart appliances can perform a myriad of tasks, like remotely turning on air condition or closing blinds from a smartphone.
Not only can SmartThings control appliances, from your lights to your door locks, it can notify you when people are home and when they’ve left. SmartThings launched as a Kickstarter project in 2012. Their intention was to create a user-friendly tool to enable customers to control their smart home devices with one app. Several new partners have jumped on board since then, including Belkin, Sonos and Philips.
CEO Alex Hawkinson told CNET, “A 100 percent requirement for me in this process was we were going to stay all open. We’re retaining the brand, and our approach is all the same. … We wouldn’t have moved forward if that was not the case.”
On the SmarthThings website, a five-pack of light sensors to automate and monitor your lights from your smart phone costs $225. The Presence Sensor tells you when people leave and arrive, when your spouse pulls into the driveway. Additionally, you can program your home to turn lights off when family members leave. A pair cost $60. SmartThings Multi-Sensors can send PUSH notifications when someone has tried to access dangerous or valuable items, such as gun cabinets or jewelry boxes. They’re sold in pairs for $95.
With the new acquisition, SmarthThing’s headquarters will move from Washington, D.C., to Palo Alto, California. Most of SmartThing’s employees will make the move.
Featured image via facebook/smartthings
