The day is coming when smart won’t be enough in the connected home, said a Monday Strategy Analytics report, saying future devices will have to operate independently of the user, using artificial intelligence. Current-generation devices offer limited value vs. non-connected counterparts, said SA, with apps limited to command and control. The “real value of connectivity lies in intercommunication, automation and the ability to visualize and interpret the data in meaningful ways,” said the researcher. Networked devices could leverage AI from edge computers to provide unique use cases that adapt to a user’s schedule without their intervention, it said. “For connected objects, the impetus should be on creating a quick, seamless and valuable experience,” said analyst Mathew Alton. If an interface is necessary, it should be simple and focused, Alton said, with voice and touch obvious solutions because they can provide a natural human-machine interface that’s “nearly invisible.” Using AI, the dynamic exchange of information between connected objects in the home and beyond would allow the devices to adapt to the user instead of the user having to adapt to them, said analyst Chris Schreiner.

Ring is working with community-building campaign National Night Out to connect neighborhoods and local police departments in a crime reduction effort using the Neighbors app, said the company Wednesday. The neighborhood watch app provides real-time local crime and safety information, said Ring, noting some U.S. police and sheriff’s departments are joining the network to share information with their communities. A Ring survey showed 75 percent of homeowners said neighborhood crime is a problem, 45 percent have a neighborhood watch and 30 percent reported someone in their neighborhood had been a home burglary victim in the past year, with average value of stolen goods $2,000. National Night Out in the U.S. will be Aug. 7.

Comcast launched its parental control feature enabling parents to set a Wi-Fi usage time limit. Noting kids spend more time on devices during summers, Comcast cited Wakefield Research finding three-quarters of parents want a way to turn off their children’s Wi-Fi access whenever they want. When a kid is close to reaching the allotted time limit, the parent can receive a push notification, text or email alert and extend the time or pause Wi-Fi access.

Kwikset began selling a touch-screen electronic deadbolt called Obsidian ($229), its first “keywayless” deadbolt that’s said to remove the threat of lock picking or lock bumping possible with pin and tumbler locks. The lock uses a capacitive touch screen with a white LED display and has a dedicated lock button for one-touch locking, said the company. The Z-Wave-based electronic lock has wireless security features that reduce vulnerability of a network during enrollment, said the company. Its SecureScreen feature can help prevent “smudge” attacks, where pass codes can be discerned by detecting password patterns on a touch-screen surface, it said.

Guardzilla introduced a 360-degree, indoor/outdoor HD security camera with motion detection, automatic arming, night vision, a 90-dB siren and two-way communication. Additional features include instant motion detection phone alerts and a weatherproof design said to withstand extreme weather environments, said the company Tuesday. The camera launched through Best Buy at $229.

Bang & Olufsen said AirPlay 2 will be available for 10 products via an over-the-air update starting August and September: BeoPlay M3, M5, A6, A9 mk2; and the BeoSound 1, 2, 35, Essence mk2, Core and Eclipse. Apple’s release of AirPlay 2 has also unleashed multiroom audio capability for compatible audio systems from Bluesound, Bose, Bowers & Wilkins, Denon, Libratone, Marantz, Marshall, Naim, Pioneer and Sonos. With AirPlay 2, Apple users will be able to ask Siri to play music in any room, group of rooms or the whole home, said the tech giant. For HomePod, AirPlay 2 features are automatically supported, and music can be streamed around the house without the need to manually group speakers. AirPlay 2 controls are available across iOS within any app and in Control Center for quick access to what’s playing in every room, on every speaker, Apple said. Apple Music subscribers can ask Siri to play different songs in different rooms or the same song everywhere. Apple’s HomePod smart speaker will be able to communicate with other AirPlay 2-enabled speakers when they become available, said Apple.

Comcast expanded its xFi Pods offering Tuesday -- from tests in Boston, Chicago and Denver -- to its 15 million internet customers nationwide, the latest in an effort trending among networking and security companies to make residential Wi-Fi more robust. Comcast’s xFi internet service had three goals when it launched last year: (1) improve Wi-Fi speed, (2) bring coverage to “every corner of the home” as consumers connected more devices to a network and (3) offer parents control, Patti Loyack, vice president-IP services and home automation, told us. The xFi pods, available in three- and six-packs starting at $119, are configured in a mesh network design with the first pod connecting close to the xFi gateway and others placed as needed to reach more remote areas of the home, Loyack said. When network congestion occurs, a dynamic channel algorithm ensures devices move to the right channel to avoid network slowdowns, she said, and having more pods ensures the Wi-Fi signal reaches all areas. Most homes are covered by three pods, she said. On whether the pods pack security features, too, Loyack said, “Not yet.” The xFi platform has safe browsing as a “first line of defense against phishing and malware,” she said: “Over time, we’ll look to evolve the roadmap.” Comcast will offer features “similar to things that Norton offers today in coming months,” she said, and that includes making sure anything connected to the home network is protected.

Ninety percent of respondents to a Metova survey said they own a connected home device such as an appliance, TV, Amazon Echo or Google Home, said the company Monday. Nearly 70 percent said they had an Amazon Alexa- or Google Assistant-controlled device; 74 percent said they think connected home devices are the way of the future; 30 percent of those who don't own a connected home device plan to buy one within a year; and 58 percent of those who own a connected device are concerned about privacy. The survey was administered to more than 1,000 U.S. consumers covering a range of demographics and geographies, said the strategic services company.

Silicon Labs' Z-Wave acquisition from Sigma Designs, completed last week, will add about $8 million revenue in Q2, and about $40 million for the year, said CEO George Tyson Tuttle on a Wednesday earnings call. The addition of Z-Wave into Silicon Labs’ sales channel and portfolio increases the company’s position in the smart home, where it's also strong with Zigbee and Bluetooth connectivity, said Tuttle. On how the technologies will integrate, Tuttle described a user commissioning a device with Bluetooth via smartphone, getting on to a Zigbee or Thread network, and “over time we anticipate that multi-protocol capability to be part of an extension and acceleration of the Z-Wave roadmap.” The Z-Wave addition extends Silicon Labs’ access to a “diverse range of ecosystem partners” including Amazon, Alarm.com, ADT, Samsung SmartThings, Yale, Vivint, Google Home, Ring and Comcast, said the executive. Z-Wave’s focus on product interoperability combined with Silicon Labs' Gecko platform and “multiprotocol expertise” will allow Silicon Labs to “accelerate the Z-Wave road map while enhancing features and capabilities,” he said. Q2 revenue was $205 million vs. $201 million in Q4 and $179 million in the year-ago quarter, said the company.

Among the 73 percent of U.S. broadband households without a home security system, 19 percent are “very likely” to buy one if it can be monitored and controlled via a smartphone, said a Tuesday Parks Associates report. The same percentage said they would be likely to buy a home security system if it doesn’t require a long-term contract, Parks said. New market entrants like Nest, technology enhancements like voice control, and creative business models are contributing to shifting consumer expectations and pressuring the traditional security industry to innovate in both technology and business strategies, Parks said. "Smart home adjacencies have helped revitalize the traditional security industry but also create new competition," said analyst Dina Abdelrazik. She referenced Vivint’s Streety app (see 1801180050) that allows neighbors to share video clips and live feeds from their home security cameras. Traditional security companies account for the majority (72 percent) of all professionally monitored subscribers, but that share is declining, said the analyst. Some 16 percent of U.S. broadband households are highly likely to acquire a security system within one year of the survey, and half plan to buy a system that they can install themselves, Parks said.