Reblogged from Old House Web, Article by Matt Grocoff
Steve Jobs used design to change the world. He created the products needed to get us to a future he imagined. Jobs brought us the iPod, iPhone and iPad to engage in the same basic functions as other products.
But, these products let us enjoy these tasks in ways that were simple, elegant, and beautiful. The interfaces were so intuitive that even a child could use them.
Steve Jobs insisted that, like a refrigerator, Mac products were appliances; you shouldn’t need to know much to use one.
While at Greenbuild International Conference in Toronto last week, I found three products to handle simple home tasks with Jobsian ease.
Each of these products serves the same purpose as existing technologies. Simply, they are nothing more than a thermostat, a light bulb, and a light switch. What makes these products worthy of your home is that they are easy to use, they save energy, they make your life better, and (unlike a Mac) they cost less over their usable life.
1. ecobee Smart Thermostat
They’re are plenty of programmable thermostats on the market. But, if the interface feels like you are looking for a secret passage in an old Donkey Kong game then they are useless. The ecobee Smart Thermostat is designed so that you can actually use it. It makes your home comfort intuitive and simple to control.
The Smart Thermostat is a WiFi enabled programmable thermostat with a full-color touch screen with helpful icons to make it almost fun to use. The convenient program Wizard guides you through the initial setup and programming.
The feature that puts all those hair-pulling, crazy-making thermostats to shame is the ecobee’s ability to remotely control your heating and air conditioning system from your smart phone, iPad or Android tablet. Forgot to turn down the thermostat after leaving for vacation? No problem. Crank up the ecobee app and program your HVAC to save some energy and money while your gone and give you comfort the moment you return home.