Google's Android@Home Will Be Remote Control For Appliances

Google announced a number of upcoming features for the Android platform during Tuesday's I/O developers' conference. One exciting project, Android@Home, will bring the platform beyond the confines of mobile devices.

Android@Home will allow Android devices to detect and communicate with household appliances via WiFi.

Think of it as an Android-based remote control for your home's light switches, thermostats, kitchen appliances and more.

For example, Google's Project Tungsten brings remote music management and playback to Android, much like Apple's AirPlay or Sonos's wireless music system. Users will be able to stream tunes from Google's new cloud-based music service to speakers that are connected to the Android home network. Google also showed off NFC-equipped CD cases that, when touched to a Tungsten device, start playing the CD on the network's audio system.

Android@Home may be ready by late 2011, Google said on Tuesday.

Comments

[Buza Tech]

08:50 PM on 05/12/2011

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[CAZITech]

11:09 AM on 05/11/2011

Before embedding technology, consider how fast Moore’s Law evolves and how long major appliances last. It makes little sense, for example, to embed a touch-screen display in a refrigerator that can last 15 years when the display technology becomes obsolete in a year or two. An add-on accessory may be a smarter idea – use the display while standing at the fridge, or take it to the breakfast table or kitchen counter. The same concept applies to modules that measure and track power usage and report potential problems to a service company. Design them as add-ons for the huge market of existing appliances, not the tiny niche of new ones.

[CaptainObvvious]

06:01 PM on 05/11/2011

Its so true.

My brother has a touch screen fridge that when I first saw it years ago was amazing "It talks to you"

Now its laughable.

[frank day]

08:15 PM on 05/10/2011

Can I cook a meal while I stay on the sofa watching ball games?

[gdatomic]

04:34 PM on 05/10/2011

Streaming music around sounds helpful. But, the attempts to find a reason to connect home appliances has been pursued for a decade. The Houseware's shows of the early 2000's featured heavy connectivity. And nobody cared - at least not consumers.

So this sounds partially useful. But I hope Google finds wisdom (in rare supply over there) and gets rid of language about appliances...

[deluk]

05:08 PM on 05/10/2011

I agree, I love Android, but my first thought on reading this was "don't care".  I find it invigorating to get off my arse on occasion.

[James Pakele]

09:05 AM on 05/11/2011

Only reason I didn't go in on it before was the pricing for the components... if the components prices are reasonable and the learning curve is tapping on a touch screen phone... it has a good chance at being more successful than past attempts. What I'm more interested to see is what the developers do with this technology...