We Still Don't Live Like The Jetsons, But Here's How Close We Are
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1. If you want Rosie, the housekeeping robot, get a Roomba.
We reviewed the Roomba 880 right here and loved everything about it except the price. It's such an impressive little device that vacuums your house for you, and if the price tag turns you off, there are more affordable models available.
2. If you want wireless video communication, use Skype or FaceTime.
Jetson family members would communicate and read news by way of a "televiewer." Nowadays we have essentially identical functionality in our smartphones with a number of videochat and news apps.
3. If you want your house to learn how to regulate its own temperature, use Nest.
Tony Fadell, noted "father of the iPod," turned his attention to in-home technology and started a company to reimagine and redesign the thermostat. The Nest will learn your heating and cooling preferences over time and begin automatically managing the temperature for you.
Fadell recently appeared at IGNITION 2013 to discuss his latest project – to reinvent the smoke detector.
4. Our every-day cars don't fly yet, but Tesla's figured out how to shun gasoline.
Entrepreneur superhero Elon Musk founded Tesla, the car company that makes sporty looking vehicles that run on 100% electric energy. He's also spearheading a campaign to get a network of solar-powered electric "filling stations" around the country that would effectively make it possible for Tesla owners to drive across the country without needed a drop of gas.
5. You can remotely control your home's lights and door locks by mobile app with SmartThings.
"The Internet of things" is a semi-buzzy catchphrase that gets at what happens when your home and appliances can communicate with the Internet. Using SmartThings hardware and the company's mobile apps, you can manage all kinds of aspects of your home from anywhere in the world.
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