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Thai techies will soon be able to do more, by doing less, all on their smartphones
While the notion of “Internet of Things” (IOT) — an interconnectedness at all levels of life — is taking shape, the market will take some time to evolve. The idea is to link up several devices and harness the power of connectivity to the maximum, facilitating users in their daily navigation of life.
For instance, how about using the LINE chat app to remotely command your home devices?
Several companies are pursuing this approach to future lifestyles. Among them is LG Electronics, which has developed the Open smarthome strategy, which uses smartphones to improve connectivity between the user, who’s often mobile, and his home.
The goal is to provide a seamless interaction with the devices, “almost passively in the background”, according to Eugene Yoo, LG Electronics’s general manager for Strategic Alliances and Investments in the Smart Business Centre.
Yoo believes that it is integral to develop a standard communication protocol between devices, and explains that it will take some time for the entire market to reach that point. “Once the standard is made, I believe things will accelerate much quicker, the first step is getting all the devices simply to communicate with each other,” he said.
Speaking last week at LG Innofest 2015 in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, Yoo presented LG’s Open smarthome strategy of Open platform, Open connectivity and Open ecosystem.
The company has developed a cloud platform for many devices and smart appliances to become connected, and has also been working with third party platforms. This gives customers the ability to use a mobile phone application to remotely monitor and control LG devices, inside or outside the home.
One example of Open platform is HomeChat, based on the belief that the use of smart connected devices should be very simple and very intuitive. HomeChat service enables users to use popular messaging services, such as LINE, to interact with smart LG devices. Using natural language texts, users can control and monitor the home appliances no matter where they are. LG also extended HomeChat to wearables, including G Watch R with natural language processing and voice recognition that gives users the ability to speak commands.
LG embraced the Open connectivity standard to simplify decisions for customers. The company is a founding member of the AllSeen Alliance, the open-source software alliance that allows any device to connect, and a supporter of One M2M, the global standards initiative for Machine to Machine Communications and IOT.
“We continue to enable more and more product lines with connectivity or the ability to connect to the home network and other devices. So they can monitor and control through any application of smarthome system,” the manager said, adding that for the Open ecosystem, LG has partnered with leading service providers, retailers, product ecosystems, smarthome providers and services.
At the annual Asia-based event, LG showcased a diverse range of products under the theme “Innovation for a Better Life”. LG displayed a range of consumer electronics and home appliances — from televisions to new washing machine models — all equipped with the latest innovative technologies that have prepared the company for the next level of competitiveness.
Nipon Wongsaengarunsri, LG Thailand marketing director, noted that the company will focus on the “newness” of LG’s latest smartfeature products. Local consumers will be able to experience the latest smarthome products, like 4K OLED TV, G4 smartphone, washing machines and air-conditioners from the second quarter.