Iris smart-home-in-a-box with openness potential

Irisssss I remember writing about smart homes for Wired nearly 20 years ago and the technology just never seemed ready for primetime. I know that X10 has its evangelists, but from a mainstream perspective it almost felt like smart home tech was moving toward the retro-futurism zone of robot maids and, yes, jetpacks. But perhaps the prevalence of Wifi and the reality/buzz of "connected devices" is shifting that tide. At Institute for the Future where I'm a researcher, one of our clients is the DIY retailer Lowe's. Last night, they gave me a demo of their new Iris smart home system.

Iris is a plug-and-play product based around a hub that's outfitted with WiFi, Zigbee, and Z-Wave radios. The idea is that by having those three specs, the system can theoretically talk to almost any wireless connected device, from a thermostat and outlet that monitors energy usage to an alarm system and videocameras.

The entire system is controlled by a customizable mobile app that appears to be dead simple to use. (A helluva lot easier than my current alarm system that required me to tape a cheat sheet explaining how to set zones, etc. above the keypad.)

Now, there are two really intriguing things about this besides its apparently simplicity: The first is that the starter kits are relatively inexpensive. For $180 you can get the hub and either a basic alarm system package or an energy system. ($299 and you get both packages.)

But the real kicker is that the folks I met with told me that Lowe's' near-term vision is to really open up the platform for anyone to hack on. Remember our friend Mikey Sklar who implanted an RFID chip into his hand and no longer needs to carry house keys? Get that man an Iris.

Lowe's Iris

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

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http://profiles.google.com/keithdtyler Keith Tyler

Z-Waves?! Can you download them into a body blank and resurrect your dead girlfriend?
- David Pescovitz
  
  Perhaps if she looks like Rosie the robot maid.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=718945058 Kirsten Spitzner

So… Anyone besides Lowe’s carry this product? They have had a hiccup with bowing down to racists in relation to pulling advertising for a Muslim centered television show. No money for Lowes from my household.
sborgeson

Sounds potentially interesting, but hard to tell if this is a marketing come on or a legit endorsement. The Arduino compatible UK based Open Energy Monitor platform is much more Maker friendly: already based on open hardware and software and is designed from the ground up to be hackable.
http://shop.openenergymonitor.com/

They have international shipping…
- David Pescovitz
  
  If it was a “marketing come on” (i.e. paid advertorial) you would know. How? It would say ADVERTISEMENT at the top.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=582562804 Jamie Gallant

David – were you able to review the actual technical spec’s for these? 110v max… How many amps can the outlet switch? Without mounting screws, surge suppression or overload protection I can’t see how they could ever comply with ASHRAE and IgCC requirements for switched receptacles. And even scarier, their video shows it being installed below 3ft with no safety or tamper resistant features evident. So you can measure the amount of current running into you kid, I guess?
I work at SafePlug.com and we’re constantly testing products that are able to control our safe energy monitoring outlets. At first glance, Iris outlets look more like a dangerous toy than something I’d seriously consider putting electricity through. Thanks for the head’s up though – I’ll see if their gateway is compatible with our outlets!
Mike

No sale. The Services page: http://www.lowes.com/cd_Services_945017324_

“Basic: Review last 3 events in system history.”
“Premium: Access to your entire system history.”

“Basic: Nothing”
“Premium: Use Iris Magic to create custom rules for your system.”

Basic: Free
Premium service: $9.99/month.

How are they going to enforce that unless it’s a closed system? I can see paying for a monitoring service: break-in, fire, CO alarm. But to just read the full system log? Nope.

If I don’t pay my service fee on time, for any reason, then what will they do? Lock me out of my home? Raise/lower the thermostat until I pay?