CES 2007: Robin Visits the NextGen House

At CES there's always a next-generation house or two that captures the imagination by showing you what your life could look like if all this technology really worked and was really affordable. There's always the living room with TV and games, mood lighting, and the promise you'll never need to get off the couch...ever, to do anything. In the kitchen, the appliances joyfully obey your commands, even when you're not home, because they're all Internet aware. Your oven starts cooking dinner while you're gone, your refrigerator's TV screen display is the family's to-do list—the list goes on and on.

I visited the NextGen house built in the parking lot of CES, sponsored by HP, Exceptional Innovation producers of Life|ware, and Best Buy for Business. As in most demo houses, things look great on the surface, but there's a good reason that we all don't live in Jetson-tech houses. They require more technology than most small businesses need to operate. Still it makes for a great tour.

Life|ware is an interesting solution to watch because it takes the HP Windows XP Media Center PC and extends the functionality of the Media Center to include home automation, surveillance, lighting, heating/cooling, and more. So the same PC that stores your photos and videos can turn up the lights when the movie's over or remotely control your house temperature. The underlying technology is called Web Services for Devices, and it uses Ethernet to allow home appliances to be plug and play on the network. Life|ware is working with other partners like Samsung, LG, Lutron, Xbox, appliances makers—you name it.

Of course you can't go the store and buy this stuff; it's sold through builders and contractors. Those interested can order through Best Buy for Business (seems a bit funny to put your home in the business category, doesn't it?), and Best Buy will help with both new construction and retrofit homes. A basic package with entertainment and home control for temperature, surveillance, lighting, and all the network connectivity pieces you need will set you back $15,000 with support and training included.