Samsung has introduced SmartThings Tracker, a new tracking device that features LTE-M and GPS for tracking items like bags and keys. The system supports real-time tracking using an app available for Android and iOS. Even better, the tracking device can double as an arrival sensor to trigger certain Internet of Things devices, such as a connected porch light that turns on when you get home.
NVIDIA has a smart TV device called SHIELD TV which, as of this week, has a fourth individual bundle. A bundle includes the SHIELD TV itself and an assortment of controllers. This week the device was officially wrapped up in a bundle called "SHIELD TV SMART HOME EDITION" complete with a SmartThings Link. That SmartThings link otherwise costs approximately $40 on its own.
Samsung wants to tame your smart home and end your WiFi deadspots, with its new SmartThings Wifi mesh router system. Promising not only smoother internet access for things like online gaming, streaming media, and general browsing, the mesh networking system also integrates an IoT hub that could leave you spending less time jumping between apps and more time letting your connected home do the hard work in the background.
Samsung has a new SmartThings Mesh WiFi router, promising not only whole-home wireless coverage but control over your smart home too. The new router, which taps into Plume's WiFi mesh technology, arrives alongside a refreshed SmartThings hub for those happy with their existing router, together with a bunch of new sensors.
SmartThings is finally back online after the Samsung-owned home hub - which promises to tie together multiple IoT gadgets - left many users unable to control their connected lights, locks, and other hardware this week. The company reported on Tuesday afternoon that the issues it was encountering with the SmartThings Cloud had been resolved. However, at its peak, many users found they were unable to operate their smart home devices and were forced to control them manually.
Google just recently gave Android TV is own, dedicated YouTube app, perhaps years in the making. While there really isn’t much Android TV devices left to go around, it will naturally arrive on at least the one Android TV device that does matter: the NVIDIA SHIELD. The graphics chip maker has just announced the next version of its SHIELD Experience, now at version 6.1, that brings more than just the YouTube TV app to the US. It also reinforces the SHIELD’s potential to become both entertainment and smart hub for your home.
This year's SDC brought together several Internet of Things brands/groups together into one: SmartThings Cloud. Each of the following names is now part of one bigger group: Samsung SmartThings, ARTIK, Samsung Connect. All three are now under the brand SmartThings Cloud. Of important note - this SmartThings Cloud all-encompassing platform name is what Samsung suggests will be both connected and open - open to 3rd-party brands and developers of many sorts.
Samsung has teamed up with security firm ADT for a new home alarm system, borrowing the DIY automation cleverness of SmartThings and combining it with professional monitoring. Dubbed the Samsung SmartThings ADT home security system, it offers an alternative to the recently announced Nest Secure and today's Ring Protect system. Like both, it's intended to be installed by the homeowner themselves, rather than demanding professional installation.
Google and NVIDIA made a big splash when it announced that Google Assistant has just landed on Android TVs and, specifically, the NVIDIA SHIELD. But that's really only part of the equation. Sure, you'll be able control your NVIDIA SHIELD with just your voice, but if you want to do anything beyond the TV, you'll need another piece of the puzzle. That piece is Samsung's SmartThings Link that transforms the SHIELD into a makeshift SmartThings Hub. And while that dongle won't ship until next month, you can already pre-order one right now.
Today NVIDIA SHIELD's latest update brought with it Google Assistant in full effect. The results are much like we saw and experienced earlier this year at CES 2017. This means "OK Google" Google Assistant support - along with NVIDIA's implementation of the full-on latest version of Google's vision of the ideal smart TV environment using Android. This is also the "first-ever hands-free access to an Assistant for TV" - so says NVIDIA.
It was only a couple of months ago that Samsung first detailed its Connect Home WiFi router, and today the company is ready to talk release dates and pricing. Pre-orders for Connect Home will open later this week, but one thing to note is that Best Buy has landed itself an exclusivity deal for this device. This seems to be something of a timed exclusivity deal, so you won't necessarily have to go through Best Buy to outfit your home with a mesh network of Samsung Connect routers.
The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus were undoubtedly the stars of Samsung's Unpacked event today, but one interesting item that may not achieve the status of "showstopper" is Samsung's new Connect Home hub. Samsung is taking a page out of Google WiFi's book with this new product, but it comes with an interesting feature that could give it an edge against its competitors.