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Samsung introduces its Smart Home initiative, allows you to manage the home from any device

Delease date:2014-04-14 15:33:22 Source: eyprint

Back in January, Samsung was talking up plans for the company’s Smart Home initiative, as well as introducing a controller known as the Lumen.

Now, the company has officially launched the Samsung Smart Home service, but with a single app that’s designed to connect and control TVs, mobile devices and home appliances simultaneously.

For instance, users can simply say “good night” into the TV remote and predetermined, connected devices would automatically turn off. Other features would allow users to remotely control and monitor appliances, such as the laundry.

Samsung plans to roll out the Smart Home service in Korea and the United States, with additional countries getting the goods throughout the year. In the U.S., the service will be compatible with the Samsung Smart French Door Refrigerator, the Samsung Smart Front Loading Washing Machine, all 2014 Smart TV models, the Samsung Gear 2 and smartphones that have operating systems above Android 4.0, such as the Galaxy S5. The company plans to add Smart Bulb and Smart Oven options in the second half of the year, as well as functionality for “good night” voice recognition.

“We are excited that the launch of Samsung Smart Home makes the connected home a reality today and allows our customers to live a smarter life,” said Dr. WonPyo Hong, president and head of the Media Solution Center at Samsung Electronics. “Samsung Smart Home lets people live better, worry less and be smarter with their devices and appliances. We also have grand plans to enhance more and more parts of the home experience, especially with a view of expanding it to areas with high growth potential such as home safety and energy management.”

In the near future, Samsung hopes to extend the service to other smartphones, as well as products such as robotic vacuums and the Samsung Gear Fit—an Android based fitness smart watch.

Users can register for the Samsung Smart Home app with their Samsung account. Smartphone users can download the app from Samsung Apps and the Google Play Store. A separate app will be available soon for the Samsung Gear 2, with the app for Samsung’s 2014 Smart TVs coming sometime this month.

The news release doesn’t mention whether the system requires a central control hub or what wireless protocols the devices communicate on. The Samsung Lumen system demonstrated at CES utilized Wi-Fi and Z-Wave.