Items Tagged With carbon footprint

We've always been fans of AlertMe, the UK company has brought innovative products to the market over the last few years .  However a couple of things have always spoiled the party a little, the closed nature of the systems and the on-going subscription costs.  However, after a sit down chat with the AlertMe boys and girls last week it's clear the company is ready to embark on a new chapter.  They have decided to drop subscriptions (yay!) and launch new hardware.  But more significantly they have decided to embrace open standards for their Zigbee powered wireless hub.  The aim?  To become the gateway between the Internet and a whole host of services and controls in our homes... 

Here's another tiny PC with an appetite of just 14 Watts.  The ECOPC N.1A from Evo Technologies is fanless and silent and ideal for lots of home automation server duties. Best of all the bare bones unit is available direct from the manufacturers for $241 (around £150).  Full specs and PR after the jump...

We've always been fascinated by the energy harvesting wireless sensor technology from EnOcean.  The bidirectional self-powered 'green' devices do away with the need for cable in your walls for either power or bus signals.  Now the EnOcean Alliance have announced that their devices are now "fully interoperable with TCP/IP".  Siting the growing customer demand to manage and monitor building and home automation controls over IP networks, the EnOcean Alliance has added IP technology to their products.  Check out the full PR below plus a video that explains the tech...

Whether you're an off the grid environmentalist or just want to retro-fit electric blinds where there's no power outlet, then this new system from BTX may be for you.  Described as the first ever solar powered roller blind system, the makers say it only requires around 2 hours per day of 'average sunlight' to trickle charge its batteries and keep it working.  If you have lower light you can move the solar panel to a different position or link multiple panels too,  Check out the video of the patent pending system below...

Home automation has acquired a more legitimate mantel in recent years, helping lose its reputation as merely promoting a couch potato lifestyle. Tasked with helping us all monitor, measure and change our energy usage, manufacturers like Z-Wave have been quick to see the potential of the green market for their smart home products.  Here's the latest range from GreenWave Reality, giving users access to detailed electricity, gas and water consumption data as well as electric vehicle charging and time of day pricing...