Motorola and Verizon team up for Z-Wave monitoring service, let you control your home as you roam
Do you have Verizon broadband and an overwhelming desire to dim your lights remotely and spy on the kids while you're out on a date? Verizon's mew Home Monitoring and Control service lets internet subscribers add Motorola's Z-Wave-based 4Home automation system to their existing package, enabling access to networked cameras, light controls, smart thermostats and door locks. With the $10 monthly service, you can monitor a collection of wireless cameras, unlock doors for family members or guests, or adjust the thermostat using a web-connected tablet or smartphone. The basic Home Monitoring Kit will run you $70, and includes a wireless camera and single light control. A $170 Energy Control Kit swaps the wireless cam for a connected thermostat and Energy Reader, while a $220 Home Monitoring and Control Kit includes all of the above. Door locks, window sensors and additional cameras are sold a la carte, making a complete system a rather pricey proposition. Jump past the break for a handful of man on the street customer testimonials (spoiler alert: they love it!).
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Motorola and Verizon Collaborate to Deliver Connected Home Services
HORSHAM, Pa. - Oct. 12, 2011-Motorola Mobility, Inc. (NYSE: MMI) has teamed up with Verizon (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) to bring you the connected home. Verizon announced its Home Monitoring and Control service- today. The new service leverages Motorola's 4Home technology to make your home smarter and provide useful insight into energy use.
See who's at the front door, on your phone. Turn off all the lights with the push of a button. Automate your thermostat to keep your utility bills down. A smarter house. Informed energy use. Peace of mind. Courtesy of Motorola and Verizon.
"We share Verizon's vision for a digital home that makes practical sense to the consumers," said Leon Hounshell, division general manager, Managed Home Solutions, Motorola Mobility. "With Verizon's service launch we're making this a reality for millions of households."
Motorola's 4Home software platform is powering Verizon's new services. It's the most versatile and practical way for Verizon and other digital home innovators to offer connected home services. No complex systems. No custom hardware. Just expertise from the team that pioneered the home automation industry and the company that has been helping carriers deliver new and innovative services for over 50 years.
The software platform is embedded into the gateway included in each Verizon service kit. The software communicates with Motorola's portal server solution to provide real-time support for the home monitoring, control and energy management services. The result is reliable connected home services for consumers that can be hosted and managed in real-time.
"The bandwidth-rich ecosystems Verizon networks create are enabling more and more connected devices in the home than ever before," said Eric Bruno, Vice President of Product Management, Verizon. "We're collaborating with partners like Motorola to design new services that can help people save time and deliver the borderless, digital lifestyle."
For more information on Verizon's Home Monitoring and Control service, visit:http://shop.verizon.com/monitoringcontrol
To learn more about Motorola's 4Home connected home service, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4pOGQHlkZw
To view a video of how one family is already using the service, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXa92FRptBM.
Overview: The Motorola 4Home Solution
Adding new services like home monitoring, control and energy management is easy with Motorola's 4Home Solution.
The solution is composed of two main elements: client software and a portal server.
The client software sits locally on the home network, embedded into a device. The server software resides in the cloud. These two components maintain real-time communication to allow carriers to remotely manage installations to their user base and to allow consumers to manage their home from anywhere with multiple user interfaces.
For more information on the Motorola 4Home Solution, visit: www.motorola.com/4home
