Smart Home Blog

MSI demonstrated its new landline-VoIP phone MS-9A31. It’s based on Android and supports DECT, video conference call and instant messaging. The phone sports large color touchscreen, two Ethernet ports, one USB port and a card reader. No word on price or availability yet.

The MS-9A31 looks very promised. It can be used not just IP phone in your home automation system but as control panel too. If MSI will allow to install third party applications it’d be the best phone for LinuxMCE (if the Android Orbiter will be released and the price won’t be too hight, of course). In any case, I think we’ll see similar devices from different manufactures soon.

According to information for eHomeUpgrade the probably cheapest networked media player Xtreamer will have possibility to control it from iPhone or Android devices soon. Together with very reasonable price and wide functionality it’ll bring more users and fans to that cool player.

Watch the demonstration of the iPhone/Android remote on the video below.

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Popular open platform Android created by Google is expanded to set-top-boxes. ISB Corp demonstrated the first concept equiped with wireless keyboard and Bluetooth module at the 12th Embedded Systems Expo in Tokyo. It doesn’t support HDTV yet but the producer is working to implement it.

As I know currently there is no unified software and hardware for STB. Each producer offers its own proprietary solution. Hopefully using Android to build STB will turn that situation for the better.

eHomeUpgrade recently posted a nice example of using Google’s Android in home automation. The project is called AutoHTN and developed by Home Theater Network (HTN). The new software allows to consumers automate and control lighting, security sensors, cameras, electrical outlets, thermostats, streaming video from a HTPC, window blinds, and receivers from mobile phones. Sure the mobile phones should support coming soon Android.

To work with multiple automation protocols such as Z-wave, UPB, and X10 AutoHTN uses the xPL automation protocol. The video streaming is done with VideoLAN, which allows to stream video even via Internet directly to mobile phone with installed AutoHTN.

The AutoHTN looks really cool. But Android is not yet released, there is no any Android powered mobile phone and it isn’t clear will be AutoHTN is free or we should spend some money to pump our mobiles. In any case, it’s good example of application of revolutionary Google’s technology.

[via eHomeUpgrade]