Voice Controlled Homes: Not Just All About What You Hear

It’s hard to notice anything special about this Kentucky home, but if you pick up a phone or walk up to any computer mic in the house, you can control music, thermostat, security and lighting.

The company behind the main software, Home Automated Living, named their product HAL (yawn yawn yawn). And with this software, Electronic House says you could say something along the lines of “open music, open Led Zeppelin, play Black Dog,” and just like that, you get Black Dog. HAL also works with the Leviton lighting system, the GE security system and the HAI thermostat—all over voice.

If you need a bit more futurism in the house, the HAL system will even speak the name and number of a caller when the phone rings, iPod shuffle style. Electronic House didn’t go into the pricing of a system like this, but it’s probably such a demoralizing figure that we’re all better off not knowing. [Electronic House]