Posted Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 11:00 AM PST by Brian Hoss
The little plug creates a network that allows remote control of the home's outlets.
BeeWi is showing off a prototype of their Mobot at the Mobile World Congress, and the device has some intriguing possibilities. The Mobot consists of a master and its slave plug modules. By placing the Mobot between a devices plug and the outlet, the user obtains a host of scheduling options and new capabilities. From anywhere the user can use an app to connect to the master Mobot module, and set any of the Mobots plugged-in devices to be turned on or off, which grants the user the knowledge of what devices are in use. The Mobots also contain motion detectors, which can even manage to turn on a home theater's lighting whenever a viewer stands up.
More advanced features include fire detection, and the Mobot has a battery, so it can weather brownouts. The pricing for the impressive little devices is less than impressive, however, with the master Mobot costing close to $200. Each slave Mobot is $80, making a network of Mobots a serious investment, suitable for users that need a lot of control over devices when away.
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
The latest news on all things 4K Ultra HD, blu-ray and Gear.