Stories by Paul Lilly

Smart Labs heads to Indiegogo with Halo WX, a smarter smoke detector that can also warn of natural disasters

One of the pitches Smart Labs makes on its website promoting Halo WX, purportedly the smartest smoke alarm ever created, is that "safety shouldn't discriminate." The company's referring to Halo's ability to connect with most smart-home systems including Iris, iControl, SmartThings, and Apple's reportedly delayed HomeKit, but it could have just as easily been in response to Mother Nature's indiscriminate tendencies when it comes to natural disasters ranging from hurricanes, floods and tornadoes.

Paul Lilly | 15 May | Read more

Connected homes can be easy targets for hackers, says cybersecurity firm

Nearly all the fancy hardware in your connected home is inherently flawed when it comes to security. That's one of the painful takeaways from a new report by Synack, a subscription Security-as-as-Service (SaaS) startup in Menlo Park, California. The company's analysis will be a rude awakening for anyone who thinks they have a bullet-proof home-security system, whether it's a DIY project or a pricey custom job.

Paul Lilly | 14 Feb | Read more