Why should only the TV, the blinds and the garage door be the only smart things in your home, when you could easily add the air conditioner to the list? All that you need to do is a small adjustment using the Sensibo smart adapter system.
To qualify for an upgrade, your air conditioning unit must be operable with a remote control. Supposing that this is the case, you can convert any unit into a smart one using this little gadget. The Sensibo smart hub that’s part of the system is able to control multiple Sensibo pods that correspond to the air conditioners from your home or office. In turn, the Sensibo hub relies on its built-in Wi-Fi connectivity to communicate with your router. The pods, on the other hand, are applied on the A/C’s surface and transmit signals over IR, hence the prerequisite from before.
The Tel-Aviv-based company that developed Sensibo claims that the smart adapter system does not only add intelligence to air conditioning units, but it also reduces the energy usage by up to 40%. How is that achieved? Integrated iBeacon technology can tell where in your home you are located, and can adjust the A/C unit accordingly. When you leave a room, the AC unit stops, energy is saved, and so is the planet.
In addition to that, Sensibo is able to adjust your air conditioner automatically depending on:
- Air temperature
- Relative humidity
- Weather
- Energy profile
The Sensibo smart hub can be controlled with an app that can be installed on iOS and Android devices, as well as on the Pebble smartwatch. Now that’s something that many developers aren’t taking into consideration when building a device for smartening up dumb devices: doing so using a wearable!
Sensibo is quickly approaching the $70K goal it established for the crowdfunding campaign that’s currently running on Indiegogo. At press time, there were 41 days left, and considering that the developers raised 58% in four days, chances are that Sensibo will hit mass production and will be delivered to the backers in January 2015.
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Sensibo: Make any air conditioner smart from Sensibo on Vimeo.
Duo kits are available for early birds for $139, and additional pods can be purchased for $69. People who only want a single kit, however, will have to back the project with $79. The hilarious ad that Sensibo made for this product (see above) should be more than enough to convince people that a smart adapter system for their A/C unit is exactly what they needed.
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