A new Apple HomeKit accessory can help you control your entire smart house with the tap of a button.
Logitech introduced the Pop Smart Button on Tuesday, and it works with Apple HomeKit-enabled devices, like smart blinds, light bulbs and more. Tap it, and you can have the smart devices in your house execute pre-determined tasks.
Trust me, it's a lot different from a light switch. As we rely more on our gadgets, it's easy to control anything from around the house. It's harder, however, to control multiple devices at once. And what if your phone is on another floor? That's where the Pop Smart Button comes in.
The Pop Smart Button is just a tiny device, about the size of a small coffee-table coaster. You can place them all around your house — on your bedside table, on the wall, on the counter — and program them to do all sorts of tasks.
Maybe you want to set the lights to dim in the dining and living room at night, for example, while also locking the door and activating your alarm. A couple taps of the Pop Switch can do all of that. It can also be programmed with Sonos to play certain tunes or stations, or configured with a Logitech Harmony remote to start movies on your TV.
The kit, which will retail for $59.99, includes a bridge that connects to an outlet and each Pop Smart button. Each button can store up to three different commands, so you can assign actions to one tap, two taps or a press-and-hold gesture on the button. Better yet, the Pop Smart Button has up to five years of battery life, so you won't need to worry about charging it or replacing the batteries.
The Pop Smart Button is launching in Apple Stores and on Apple.com soon, with wider availability planned for later this year.