Homeowners can send commands to home appliances from any Web-capable device a PC, laptop or handheld computer or a mobile phone. The Home Automated Living company in Maryland offers the HAL 2000 system that accepts voice commands from owners via the telephone. A Space Odyssey, the system also uses voice recognition and speech synthesis technology to talk back to homeowners, acknowledging that lights or appliances have been turned off or on. Smart-home systems do not require a lot of new wiring, so they generally are affordable. Special electrical outlets and adapters that are compatible with the system can be purchased at retailers such as RadioShack and Lowe s Home Improvement Warehouse, Vice President George Snyder said.
Some analysts don t think so.
IBM recently aired a television commercial that featured a repairman arriving at a house unannounced. A futuristic refrigerator with smart technology did a self-diagnostic test, uncovered a problem, and called a repairman. The commercial wasn t a huge hit with consumers, said Kurt Scherf, an analyst with Parks Associates, a Dallas firm that follows emerging home technology. That might make a lot of sense in restaurants and warehouses, he said. And Scherf said he believes that it s only a matter of time before hackers break into smart home systems.