Third of Broadband Homes Find Voice Control for Thermostats Appealing, Says Report

Roughly half of U.S. broadband homes want the ability to monitor and adjust thermostats remotely, and a third find voice control very appealing, said a Parks Associates report Tuesday. Voice control is “transforming the smart home user experience” and offering a way for companies to expand consumer engagement with their services and solutions, said Parks analyst Patrice Samuels. In the past six months, 2-4 percent of U.S. broadband households purchased an Echo, said Parks, saying both the Echo and Google Home have the ability to drive adoption of multiple smart home and energy management products. The research firm scheduled a panel, “Leveraging Voice Control and AI in Energy Management,” at its Smart Energy Summit next week in Austin.