Armed with a smartphone and an app, you can control many aspects of your digital life. You can unlock your front door from afar with Lockitron, change the temperature in your home using a Nest thermostat or check in on what the nanny is doing with the kids using an easy-to-install home security camera.
Of course you need to remember the passwords to control and manage all those apps and devices. That's where AT&T wants to step in and help you control your digital life.
The company is entering the home automation space â€" launching its Digital Life initiative in 15 markets beginning Friday.
The company is entering the home automation space â€" launching its Digital Life initiative in 15 markets beginning Friday. Kevin Peterson, senior vice president of AT&T Digital Life says the IP-based system will make customers' lives easier by simplifying home management â€" allowing for customizable features accessible from any PC or mobile device.
The idea, which has been under development for over a year now, is for AT&T to offer pre-packaged bundles and monitoring of your home automation. The company wants to create that system for you by letting you shop for what you want â€" either online or in a retail location â€" and offering certified specialists to install the sensors and equipment.
There are different packages to choose from, depending on your needs. A camera package, for instance, will let you view video from inside or outside your home. The energy package controls your thermostat and lights while a water-detection package can check for water in your basement and alert you or turn it off.
AT&T will monitor it all for you and send you alerts via smartphone, based on your requests. Two monitoring centers are being opened in the U.S., one in Atlanta and one in Dallas.
There are two monitoring packages being offered for now. The Simple Security plan includes 24/7 home monitoring, a wireless keypad, recessed sensors and a keychain remote. The Smart Security Plan adds a choice of three of these features: motion sensor, carbon monoxide sensor, glass break sensor, smoke sensor or takeover kit. Smart Monitoring prices start at $39.99 a month, plus $249.99 for equipment and installation.
That means, of course, you need to use the equipment AT&T has certified for the home automation. So, if you already have a Nest thermostat in your home, you'll need to swap it out for the Honeywell version that works with their system.
When we asked about that, Glenn Lurie, AT&T’s President of Emerging Devices, told Mashable, "Nest is one thing with one app, ours aggregates everything in the home with one app." Lurie says they're hoping to work with OEMs in the future to grow the platform. For instance, it might expand to include healthcare and tech for aging in place, or NFC technology â€" but that's down the road.
For now, AT&T is hoping to entice consumers by creating a monitoring system that is much more specific than what a standard home alarm company offers. Since it's all IP-based, your alert can tell you exactly which window or door has been opened, not just a "there's a breach in zone 2" alert. This allows the customer to turn on the camera video and see what's going on in the home.
The app shows you a diagram of your home and breaks down areas for you to control, such as your living room or family room. You then select a location and can turn on or off appliances, open blinds, control the lights, and execute other commands depending on what you've signed up for. You can also schedule events, such as telling it to turn on lights and turn up heat when you come home.
Out of the house, using the mobile app, you'll be able to check back and make sure you really did close the garage door when you left in the morning â€" or if you didn't, you can close it remotely.
The system will run on AT&T's 3G network, but as Lurie explains, you don't have to be an AT&T customer to use it. You can add any broadband connection you like, and it will act as the secondary pipe which is done for both security and redundancy. There's also a 24-hour battery backup in the event of a complete connection failure
The initial launch markets for AT&T Digital Life are: Atlanta, Austin, Texas, Boulder, Colo., Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Philadelphia, Riverside, Calif., San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis and parts of New York and New Jersey. AT&T says it has plans to expand that to 50 markets by the end of 2013.
The mobile app will be available on iOS, Android smartphones and Windows Phones.
Would you like to have all your home automation devices controlled in one place? What would add to the list? Let us know in the comments.
Screenshots courtesy of AT&T
Mashable composite, images via iStockphoto, enot-poloskun and klosfoto
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