Josh Hendrickson
Ecobee just launched a new $180 Wi-Fi camera and set of $80 smart sensors designed to secure your home proactively. By working together, the sensors can turn on your camera when you leave, and back off when you come home. And if you have an ecobee thermostat, the sensors will adjust that too.
The new ecobee SmartCamera isn’t just a Wi-Fi security camera. It also functions as a full-featured Alexa device. You can ask for weather reports, use Alexa intercom functions, and stream music (though we can’t imagine it would sound nice). You can secure it with two-factor authentication, and check on the camera stream from your Alexa display devices, like the Echo Show, or an app.
If you pair the SmartCamera with ecobee’s existing SmartSensors ($80 for a two-pack) or new SmartSensors for windows and doors ($80 for one), the system can work together. When you leave, the sensors will notice and turn on your SmartCamera and set your ecobee thermostat to away mode. Come home, and it will reverse the process.
All the products tie into ecobee’s new smart home monitoring service called ecobee Haven. For $5 a month, you get professional monitoring, 14-day video history with your SmartCamera, and family recognition. The SmartCamera will learn who lives in your house, recognize them, and disarm the system automatically. If it doesn’t, you can use voice commands to deactivate. No keypads required.
If you want to monitor more than one SmartCamera, the price goes up to $10 a month for an unlimited number of cameras.
via Engadget
