Ed OswaldFreelance contributor, TechHive
Ed is a technology journalist, music nut, and gadget geek who hails from the somewhat small town of Reading, Pennsylvania.
IFTTT competitor Stringify gets a major update
The objective was to make the powerful app easier to use and easier for users to share 'flows,' the equivalent of IFTTT recipes.
Netatmo adds smart-home features and cloud storage to its home security camera
New door/window sensors can trigger Netatmo's Welcome camera to capture a clip and upload it to a Dropbox account.
House-painting company Paintzen debuts a new online service for do-it-yourselfers
Provide dimensions, pick your colors and finishes, and Paintzen will deliver everything needed for a DIY paint job in 24 hours or less.
The DCS-8200LH boasts a 180-degree field of view and can be integrated with existing smart-home platforms. The company plans to develop HomeKit-compatible cameras down the road.
New features could render this camera a stronger competitor.
Food will practically cook itself in Jenn-Air's new smart ovens
Appliance manufacturer Whirlpool teams up with Silicon Valley startup Innit to build foolproof kitchen appliances.
Libratone adds two new portable Bluetooth speakers to its lineup
The company's Zipp line of Bluetooth speakers offer great sound with an attractive design. It's pushing the design envelope yet again with the One Click and Too, although with much lower price points.
Sling TV adds new channels from Viacom and Fox as it launches on Apple TV
Alongside a new version of Sling TV for the Apple TV, Sling adds a dozen new channels from Viacom and three from Fox. Most are available on both the single and multi-stream service.
While a la carte menus remain elusive, SFN TV will offer various skinny bundles that can soon be mixed and matched.
Nvidia will soon incorporate Plex Media Server into its Shield Android TV set-top box
This move eliminates the need to run a server or NAS box in addition to streaming client devices and will deliver superior real-time transcoding abilities for enthusiasts.
808 Audio rolls out four new Bluetooth speakers
After selling nearly 1.5 million of its Canz Bluetooth speaker, 808 expands the line to include both larger models for bigger sound, and more compact ones for increased portability.
Is there still time for 2016 to be the year of the smart home? Maybe
While just one in five broadband households own a smart device, and only one in ten purchased one in 2015, a significant number plan to consider a smart home device this year.
Amazon's Alexa digital assistant has mad skills; more than 1000 of them, actually
Third-party developers are rushing to capitalize on Amazon's efforts to make it easy for them to tap into its cloud-based Alexa Voice Service.
Netatmo Weather Station review: the weather station for the connected home
Netatmo's station surprised us with its accuracy and focus on connectivity. Out-of-the-box support for smart-home platforms makes it a great choice despite its price tag.
Oregon Scientific Pro Weather Station WMR89A review: A solid option for casual observers
This weather station doesn't have a lot of flashy features, and there's no mobile companion app; but many will find its low price tag compelling.