i-Bell, a WiFi-enabled camera doorbell, is among the connected gadgets to be approved as one of Apple's HomeKit partners, ahead of the launch of iOS 8.
As anyone who's ever come home to a Royal Mail red slip of doom can attest, missing a much-needed delivery is one of life's many irritations. But a new smart doorbell hopes to change the way we interact with our postman forever, under Apple's HomeKit umbrella.
First announced at the company's event in June, HomeKit is one of the key new features of impending operating system iOS 8. The new software is expected to be downloadable from Wednesday following Tuesday's 'special event' - widely expected to be the launch of the iPhone 6, and potentially the iWatch.
The framework has been designed to allow you to control your smart home appliances through your iPhone or iPad, such as turning off lights or locking doors. These products' apps can be grouped under HomeKit in order to work together, for example, setting your thermostat to lower at the same time lights are dimmed.
i-Bell is a WiFi connected doorbell complete with camera, which syncs with your smartphone, smart TV, laptop or tablet to alert you when someone's at your door. Once the bell is pressed, a call is made or text sent to the linked device, while live video is automatically streamed from when they approach (the guest / visitors cannot see the homeowner).
One of the main attractions is the ability to let callers know a safe place or designated neighbour you'd like your delivery left with, regardless of your location. It also has a night vision camera for visitors calling after dark.
The device senses a visitor is approaching through a motion detector, and will store images for security purposes in the cloud, explains chief executive Graham Kershberg.
"The images will be available for seven days for free, after which the user can pay to store the images for longer periods," he says.
The sensitivity of the detector can be customised for the location of your home, for example, those living on a busy street can opt out of being alerted when something or someone is detected as moving outside of a certain range, up to eight metres.
Users can also turn the camera on through remote activation to check if anyone's passing by at any time, Mr Kershberg says, helping to deliver peace of mind if you're abroard or wanting to keep tabs on who may be calling on an elderly relative.
Launched on KickStarter at the end of July, the i-Bell initially sought £30,000 to help make the project a reality. The project eventually raised over £60,000
"It was something I thought 'why doesn't this exist', and started looking for it, and I couldn't find it this time last year," he says. "It took us 10 months to get it to the stage when we could launch it on KickStarter, and we've now been working on it for a year."
Alerts are sent via the internet, meaning that while your phone will need to be connected via 3G/4G or WiFi, the i-Bell maintains a standard connection through your home's router.
"It's connects to the router inside your home, and if for whatever reason the broadband fails, or there's a loss of power, you'll receive an alert. It is battery powered as well, and you'll be notified once the power begins to run down and it needs to be recharged."
Mr Kershberg expects the product to go on sale around November, retailing at around £170.
In the future, the i-Bell could be used to grant access to properties through secure connected locks, outside lighting or home irrigation systems. Advances in facial recognition technology could also be used to alert owners to when family members or other specified individuals are outside their front door. From homeowners looking for peace of mind while on holiday, to workers who can't be at home all day waiting for a package, the i-Bell could be the gadget to banish the 'Sorry we missed you' slip from our future doormats.
Will you replace your security guard with an i-Bell?
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