Logitech updated its Circle 2 home security cameras to allow users to see a wider range of home coverage and get discounts for subscriptions covering multiple cameras, it blogged Wednesday. Notification Snapshots, available for free for Android and iOS apps, gives a visual “snapshot” of an event or scene triggered by motion inside or outside the home, said the company. With a subscription, users can see a zoomed view of the object or person that triggered the image, along with storage history and motion zones. Subscriptions start at $3.99 per month for one camera and top out at $17.99 per month for five.

Belkin's Linksys announced it’s expanding its Velop whole-home mesh Wi-Fi line with a dual-band offering incorporating Intelligent Mesh technology that’s said to deliver Wi-Fi via the fastest path to the internet using hardware and software. Features include advanced parental controls with website category content filtering, block overrides, network traffic monitoring and website blocking. Automatic network traffic security monitoring guards against malware, phishing and malicious websites, it said. Pricing will be announced when the router ships later this year. Belkin’s Wemo brand is shipping a HomeKit bridge, enabling Wemo users to control devices via Siri on an iPhone or iPad. The $39 Wemo Bridge connects to a Wi-Fi router via an Ethernet cable, using the router to communicate between HomeKit-enabled devices including mobile devices and Apple Watch, it said. Linksys also announced a router for the Xbox due next month at $299.

Cognitive Systems announced availability of its latest Aura home monitoring system, which uses Wi-Fi and beacons to detect motion by monitoring the disruption of wireless signals caused by movement. The expandable system uses algorithms and machine learning to distinguish among people, pets and mechanical motion, such as a fan, said the company. Using three or more beacons unlocks mesh motion sensing, which allows users to be notified where and when motion occurs in their home via app. Users can create scenes with IFTTT (If This Then That), using motion as a trigger to turn on connected devices such as lights and Wi-Fi cameras. Aura is compatible with Alexa and Google Home for voice control. Use cases are family alerts to let parents know when kids arrive home from school, go to bed or “try to sneak out at night” and for elderly care to keep tabs of an aging parent when motion isn’t detected, said the company. Future smart home integrations will be enabled through software upgrades, said the company. The starter kit is $199 for a hub and one beacon; additional beacons are $99 each. The system is available at Aurahome.com and will be available from Amazon in coming weeks, Aura said.

Select Microsoft stores in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico and Australia are showcasing Suitable Technologies’ Beam telepresence systems, said the companies Tuesday. The Beam units will provide communication for retail store management and showcase the technology’s potential use in the home for personal connections and interactions. Beam units are billed as a way for people to “enjoy dinner with their families while traveling on business” in a way that offers more personal interaction through "eye-to-eye" connection than is possible via video chat. Consumers can see the units in stores and buy them on Microsoft's e-commerce site for $2,140, they said.

T-Mobile is the latest wireless carrier to jump into home security, announcing Wednesday a Nest-based security pack due in stores Friday. Available for a limited time, the T-Mobile Nest plan is $240 down and $10 per month (after monthly bill credit) on a 24-month equipment installment plan, said the carrier. That includes a Nest Guard base with keypad, motion detector, alarm and cellular backup service, two motion and open/close sensors, two Nest Tag key fobs and a Nest indoor security camera with Nest Aware service. Homeowners can arm and disarm the security system three ways: by keypad, app or fob. Nest Aware provides alerts and 10 days of continuous video recording, said T-Mobile, which is the exclusive cellular backup connectivity provider for Nest Secure. A T-Mobile spokesperson said professional monitoring isn't available “at this time;” and the service doesn’t include emergency response or police dispatch. Nest Secure was designed as a modular security system, and the Nest website itemizes system components: indoor camera ($99); door, window and motion sensors ($59 each); and key fob ($25). A starter pack is listed for $499 at nest.com, without service. Customers who cancel T-Mobile wireless service before meeting the 24-month term of the contract have to pay the balance of the package total, which T-Mobile gives as $698.

Altice will make its Altice One platform interface available starting next week on New York's Long Island and roll it out across its footprint in coming months, the company said Thursday. The cloud-based Altice One interface ties video, broadband, Wi-Fi and phone services together and offers features including voice search and access to such apps as YouTube and Pandora, it said.

Two-thirds of respondents in a recent survey believe consumers aren’t confident in their ability to do complex smart home installations on their own, said a CSG International report Tuesday, based on a survey of 2,000 consumers in the U.S., Australia, Brazil, Malaysia and Mexico. Survey results indicated "professional, technical resources will play a significant role in bridging the gap between consumers and the world of devices around us,” said Chad Dunavant, vice president-product management, CSG, a platform provider for managing field-service operations for pay-TV providers. “There is a clear opportunity for Pay TV providers to evolve the skills of their field service technicians to capitalize on the growing consumer-based IoT market,” said Dunavant. Findings showed most respondents expect to connect home security and monitoring systems (49 percent) and smart home automation devices such as remote light controls and door locks (48 percent) in the next three years, but consumers want help -- both online resources and in-person installation assistance -- for simple and complex connections. Some 84 percent said consumers will want help from a professional to connect two to five devices. Just over half of respondents said finding a reputable company for technical help was their most important criterion, outweighing on-demand access and finding the lowest-cost option, it said.

Fifty-five percent of respondents in a Parks Associates survey of U.S. broadband households found voice control appealing for managing connected devices or viewing their status, said the researcher Tuesday. “Waking up” a personal assistant by saying a name is a “natural and intrinsic” way to interact with devices, said analyst Dina Abdelrazik. "The strong consumer response” to voice technology is driving ecosystem players to expand voice offerings for smart home products, and integrating voice-enabled capabilities and features will lead to more smart home adoption throughout the U.S. and Europe, she said. Separately, Parks scheduled its Connections Europe conference in Amsterdam Nov. 1-2.

Ring is taking on the traditional home security channel with a low-cost do-it-yourself home security system, Chief Inventor and founder Jamie Siminoff, wrote in a Sunday blog post. Ring Protect product bundles start at $199, and professional monitoring with unlimited camera storage will run customers $10 per month or $100 per year, said Siminoff. Ring Protect has no long-term contracts “or expensive fees for cancellations or extras for using cameras, sensors or mobile apps,” he said. The starter bundle has a keypad, base station, door/window sensor, passive infrared sensor and Z-Wave extender. The system can be integrated with Ring’s doorbells and cameras to create a “Ring of Security,” he said.

Close to half of consumers in Western Europe broadband households are concerned about the security of smart products, said Parks Associates Tuesday, and nearly half of consumers in similar U.S. households rank security and privacy as their biggest concerns about connecting devices to the internet. "Smart home devices bring immense value, but they also create new vulnerabilities and added stress for consumers," said Parks analyst Brad Russell. "The smart home provider that can demonstrate and deliver IoT benefits safely and securely, especially in these early stages of the European market, will open significant business opportunities." Parks is holding Connections Europe Nov. 1-2 at the Amsterdam Marriott Hotel.