Home Automation: One iPhone to Control Them All

In a previous post, we covered how to stream music to multiple rooms in your house using the iPhone (or iPod Touch) and Apple’s Airport Express. In that article, I mentioned convention home automation: turning lights on and off, monitoring rooms, etc. I’ll explain a few options using inexpensive hardware and software combinations.

I’ve been using various home automation solutions for about 10 years. The only affordable solution used to be X10. It worked reasonably well and is still supported by a number of free software projects (Mr. House, Heyu, etc.). In fact, until just a few weeks ago, I used Heyu as a bridge between my homebrew web automation interface and my X10 serial controller. While the flexibility and utility were fantastic, a few nagging issues helped me decide to take the next step: Insteon. (If you would like to know more about X10, Heyu and Mister House, a quick search online will yield a few days worth of reading.)

Insteon is X10 evolved. X10 was a passive system that sent uni-directional commands from the main controller (CM11A) to various X10 modules throughout your house over existing power lines. Installation: very easy, reliability: ranged from fair to take-a-wild-guess. The problem lies within the fact that most X10 devices are “stupid.” They listen for a command, and (if you’re lucky) perform a simple operation: turn on, turn off, dim, etc. Also, each module needs a specific X10 “id” that is usually set by a knob. Insteon eliminates both of these issues by giving each module a unique identifier from the factory (think of it like a MAC address) as well as the ability to respond to commands so that the controller (in this case the Insteon PowerLinc) knows that the command was recieved and can even check a module’s current status. Each module also acts as a repeater to keep signals strong throughout large installations.

There are several ways to automate your home and use your iPhone (or iPod Touch) to control it all. I will summarize two of the turnkey options available.

The Easy Option

The Insteon SmartLinc Central Controller ($119 from Smarthome) is a self-contained Insteon Controller with integrated web server interface. It allows you to schedule, monitor and control a house full of Insteon (and compatible X10) modules without the need for a dedicated computer. It features upgradable application software, IP camera support for remote surveillance, internal and external network access and non-volitile memory. Summary: cheap and easy, somewhat limited expandability.

The Control Freak Option

Indigo is an OS X software solutions from Perceptive Automation that retails for $179.95 (upgrade pricing is available as well). It requires X10 or Inteon controller hardware, but has nearly limitless expandability and control options. You can create any number of custom web-accessible control pages ranging from a compact inteface for the iPhone up to detailed floorplan. You can create triggers (events that control a batch of commands, such as a motion sensor turning on all of the lights in a hallway or room) and scenes (slowly dimming lights and closing the blinds for a movie) or even control iTunes. Safari renders control pages extremely well and the built-in web server is very responsive while remaining light on resources. You need to have a dedicated computer for complicated operations, but the Insteon PowerLinc ($69.99 from Smarthome) can store scheduled events, triggers and scenes to allow computer-free operation. Summary: relatively inexpensive, endless expandibility, excellent customizable interface.

We’ve barely scratched the surface of home automation with the iPhone. Since this isn’t a home automation blog, I encourage you to search online for more information on all of the options available to you. The iPhones connectivity, browser support and touch screen make for an excellent control center whether you’re at home or on the go.

Would you like more iPhone home automation articles? Post a comment and let me know what you want to read about!

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Tags: home automation, Insteon, iphone, X10