Connect LaMetric (lametric.com) with Smart Things and use it as home display

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

Hi Smart Things community,

LaMetric is the smart ticker that tracks what’s important to you(more information - www.lametric.com).

We are curious to know how do you see Smart Things and LaMetric integration. We think it could be used as a smart home display.
LaMetric can be managed via email, so at the moment we see it as Smart Things + IFTTT + LaMetric.

Such combination helps to show whole family the following things:

• your pet leaves backyard (dog icon + e.g.“out”+ alarm sound)
• someone’s at the door (family member icon + name (e.g. John ) + personal sound )
• leaks and floods at your home (leak icon + e.g. “leak in laundry room”+ alarm sound)
• temperatures in different rooms

Additionally to IFTTT we are also discovering how to integrate LaMetric with SmartThings more deeply.

We are keen to hear your ideas.

[chrisb]

Hmm… that looks cool. Here’s my idea:

When I head to bed at night, I’ll ask my UBI to check the house. This will initiate a program that checks all my doors, windows, and locks. If any of them are open, it responds with a message saying something is open. Then the LaMetric displays what door or window or lock is open/unlocked.

Theoretically should be possible.

I’d do the same with weather… if I ask UBI the weather for today, it should be able to read that info to me, but then also, through SmartThings, display on the board.

Do you have any idea of price range yet?

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

Very nice idea, I’ve noted it in our backlog.

Reading your first sentence, I’ve got the idea show on LaMetric what’s not closed when you leave the house. Together with UBI and energy meter you can also ask energy consumption this month, get comparison to previous month and monthly sparkline.

At the moment we are defining the final price, we are going to launch Kickstarter campaign very soon, for early birds we are planning reward with less price. If you like the product, please leave your email on the site to be the first who know about campaign.

[differentcomput (Different Computers)]

Well now, my enthusiasm for this product is inversely related to its price, which isn’t mentioned. So right now my enthusiasm is almost zero.

Rather than going for specific SmartThings integration, consider IFTTT. Have you looked at that? Since you have a cloud API, it should be dead simple to do, and then you open up to the much larger IFTTT market with one development effort. And since ST has IFTTT integration, it would already be done.

[andy]

I’m with Different Computers mostly on this, I am excited, but the final price will be big for me. I agree that IFTTT should be priority number 1, but full ST integration after that would be dreamy!

[chrisb]

@differentcomputer,

They are specifically saying that it will work with IFTTT… kinda. It will be email based so you’d have IFTTT fire off an email at least initially.

But yeah… I agree… price is the big factor here. If we’re talking $25… well, SOLD! I’ll get three! But if it’s more in the range of $200 or $300… I’ll have to do a lot more research to see exactly what it can or can’t do and how I’ll be able to use it.

If it’s MORE than that… eh… probably out of my price range then.

[andy]

Agreed @chrisb in the $25-50 range I’d have these all over the house! At $100 and beyond we’re talking one in the kitchen or living room. Looks like a great product, I hope it’s well price and reasonably open for tweaking like mentioned on the website, lots of great applications for this.

[differentcomput (Different Computers)]

@chrisb, exactly what I was thinking. Considering that many people have old model iOS devices around that are relatively simple to repurpose for about the same thing, price has to be aggressively low to get me. Yeah, $20? I’d buy one for every room.

[chrisb]

Well there you go @smartatoms! Price it at $20-$30 and you’ve already got dozens of 'em sold!

(Yeah, I’m only kidding. I’m sure it isn’t going to be in that price range.)

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

@chrisb, @andy, @differentcomputers,

Thank you guys for your thoughts about the price, we will keep them in mind. Current calculations lead us to very fairly price that most of you would be happy. Sure, it won’t be possible to get every room price, but you definitely will be able to afford one device for kitchen or living room.

Comparing to old iOS devices, LaMetric has much better visibility from a long distance that makes information easy to read across the whole room, more powerful speaker, ready to go software that you do not need to write, and it does not require support to mount iOS device in the correct position. We believe that iOS devices are more personal, we designed LaMetric to work also as a family/team device.

[thrash99er (Morgan)]

The biggest thing for me is some of these would make sense, but the old iOS devices have more abilities after they displaying information.

If they were $20 or $30 bucks, I would definitely buy a few of these.

[beckwith]

I would consider using LaMetric as a replacement for a siren if it could produce enough volume:

Thus, $50.00 would make it competitive to this:

SmartThings.

However, I’ve always had problems with ticker displays. Real estate is limited and if price isn’t significantly less, you might as well use a full fledged display.

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

@chrisb, @andy, @differentcomputers,

Guys,

We’ve launched LaMetric simulator where you can try how it works and with your creativity generate new use cases for the device.

[differentcomput (Different Computers)]

I sure hope the actual device won’t require a Facebook login to function.

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

Sure, for not social use cases it doesn’t require Facebook login.

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

Btw, Facebook login is optional in simulator too (for creating new use cases)

[esung]

Personally I love the form factor, that it’s the opposite design direction of connected display these days. Big display with low res pixels, instead of small display with high pixel density. Susan Kare would love this device! Best of luck with crowd funding.
But having said that, I don’t know if I would need it as much as I like it. It looks like it’ll be competing with smart watches which is emerging from the other end of spectrum and I personally don’t see the need of a separate notification device in general. Fitness band maybe, notification watch/table clock no.
It does look cool enough to belong to the site like touch of modern, so like others if the price is right I would get one just for the coolness factor.

(Adding to chrisb’s cool idea, can it do a voice visualizing like KITT from Knight rider? This display is crying 80s!

[smartatoms (LaMetric)]

@Defcon,

Thanks for your feedback! LaMetric is easy readable both on personal desk and at distance. Designing LaMetric we wanted to create device that delivers numbers/notifications for group of people - family, office colleagues, passers-by. It allows to feel something all together in the same time(motivation, excitement, fun)

[esung]

Designing LaMetric we wanted to create device that delivers numbers/notifications for group of people – family, office colleagues, passers-by.

Again I salute you for going against the current, that in this day and age of personalized devices and individuals with their heads buried in their smartphone screens, I think it is fresh to come out with a device that encourages communal experience. But then again it is the problem, that device like lametric is something you don’t recognize until you actually use it and realize how much fun it is to discover something together as a group. Clever marketing with great price would be crucial, and perhaps kickstarter experience will be the first testbed for it.

[chrisb]

@esung,

As an avid smart watch user, I still see a place for a display like this. Personally, I see this more as a ‘family’ notification center vs. personal notification center (which is what I’d consider the SmartWatch).

@smartatoms,

What sort of interactions are going to be capable with this device? For example, can we trigger certain pre-set screens some how? When I ask UBI what’s the weather today… can UBI sent a REST command that tells LaMetric to display weather?

Or can I send specific text? For example, when my wife’s car comes home, can I have SmartThings send a payload for LaMetric to display?

Another thing that would be really cool (but perhaps too late in the design phase to make it work): Have a analog phone cord port on the device that I can plug in my home line. Then when there’s an incoming call have it display the caller ID info.