At CES this year Belkin is focusing on expanding WeMo, its lineup of home automation products that allow you to control power outlets and connected products using an iOS app. We reviewed the company’s original WeMo kit, but it’s come a long way from just the socket and motion detector it first launched. Today we got a look at three new WeMo products coming soon, including: smart LED lightbulbs, a Crock-Pot slow cooker, and a new DIY kit dubbed “Maker”.
While the WeMo LED Lighting Starter Set ($129) sounds like a Philips Hue competitor (and it is), the company tells us it actually envisions its bulbs as an extension of sorts even for those that already own the Philips system. The idea is essentially the same minus the colors: LED bulbs that are controllable over wifi via an iOS app. The bulbs are 60-watt equivalent with 800 Lumens and 3000 Kelvin, and will be sold in a pack of two with the necessary WeMo link wifi bridge for $129. Belkin will sell individual bulbs for $40 each after that to expand to a setup up to 50 bulbs on a single bridge. Belkin talked about a few unique features coming to its WeMo app for the bulb, including a vacation mode to turn lights on and off to make it seem like someone is home, and a dim to sleep mode to gradually dim the lights as you fall asleep.
Belkin also showed of its new Crock-Pot Slow Cooker ($99) tonight at the CES Unveiled press event. But it’s only the first of many app controlled home appliances under the WeMo brand including a smart coffee maker, an air purifier, and a space heater all controlled via the WeMo iOS app.
Finally, Belkin will soon release a new Maker DIY kit (pictured above) that lets you create a WeMo solution for just about any device controlled via a DC switch— think garage door openers and sprinkler systems.
All of the products will launch sometime in the spring alongside an update to the WeMo iOS app in February.
