Imagine if you could check if your lights were still on at home - from your office, on your smartphone. This may soon become a reality if Microsoft capitalizes on its recent acquisition of id8 Group R2 Studios.
Initial reports indicated that Microsoft purchased the company with the intention of boosting its Xbox business technology. However, it is being reported that R2 Studios also brings another potentially interesting angle to the deal: it also develops technology that runs the home.
The convergence of smartphone and home is a tremendous point of future growth. Currently, there are few options available for surveying the entire home's systems at-a-glance. Security, appliances, electricity, utilities all run on separate systems, requiring you to be present to monitor them.
Forbes reports that R2 Studios' only current home tech product is a "$99 app for Android designed for the remote control of home functions." But given the ability of Microsoft to capitalize on technology - think of the Xbox and Kinect - and there are endless possibilities.
Of course, Microsoft faces pressure from its perennial rivals Google and Apple, who have both made forays into this field. Google has previously announced an "Android @ Home" project, although it hasn't made headlines recently. Apple has been aggressively trying to take control of the living room with its Apple TV product.
The development of Home technology could change the way that we interact with the home, including with our kitchens. Smartphone control can provide greater control over the oven, monitor the contents of the refrigerator, and even set the coffeemaker to start in the morning.
It is not a matter of if, but when, technology will be used to control the entire home. The question will be, whether you want your home to be a Microsoft, Google, or Apple home?
