As smart home devices work under a connected home environment, a telecom company who provides broadband service to sell smart home products seems to make sense.
As smart home devices work under a connected home environment, a telecom company who provides broadband service to sell smart home products seems to make sense.
Following its competitor ViewQwest, Singapore’s largest telecom, Singtel, has introduced its first smart home service with its own app.
The telecom has built an app called True-i with Singaporean smart home product distributor Hanman International. Users can control all the smart home devices provided through Singtel via this app. This saves the hassle installing different connected home devices and controlling them through various apps.
Singtel SmartHome service now provides two starter kits. Each kit comes with a central smart-home hub installed, which integrates and enables users to command devices such as cameras, motion sensors and smart locks. According to Singtel, the smart hub is compatible with more than 200 smart home devices.
The Contact Sensor kit costs $25 per month with a sensor which sends notifications as it detects movements. And the Smart Door Lock kit costs $45 per month with a Samsung smart lock.
If the home has more connected devices installed, the True-i app can also support live video streaming from the home camera or alert users as their kids return home from the school.
The smart home service is open for existing Singtel home Internet customers to sign up with a two-year contract. Non customers can also purchase the kits for a one-time fee, $650 SGD and $1,260 SGD respectively. The telecom also sells other smart-home products that works with the central hub, such as a wireless chip that lets users turn off the appliances and a remote control extender that allows user to control their smart TV or air-conditioning.
According to Singtel, there are more than 88% of households in Singapore are wired with broadband and smartphone penetration in the country has reached 83%. Under this circumstance, to set up smart home appliances in people’s homes shouldn’t be a big challenge.
The telecom also plans to extend its service into smart lighting, which will require installation of wireless receiver in the lighting appliances and allow user to dim their lights via the smartphone app.