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EKVANBEL V5.3 vs. Apple Airpods: A Budget-Conscious Battle for Your Ears

2023-12-18

The wireless earbud market is a battlefield, with budget options like the EKVANBEL V5.3 Model A6L squaring off against tech giants like Apple and their AirPods (3rd Generation). Both promise convenient connectivity, clear calls, and immersive audio, but which reigns supreme? We spent weeks putting these earbuds through their paces to find out.

Design and Comfort:

EKVANBEL V5.3 (Model A6L): These earbuds sport a sleek, minimalist design with a comfortable fit. The earpieces are lightweight and sit snugly in your ears without feeling bulky. They come with three sets of ear tips to ensure a personalized fit.

Apple AirPods: AirPods are known for their iconic, stem-like design. While some find them comfortable, others struggle with their one-size-fits-all approach. They can feel loose and prone to falling out, especially during workouts.

Audio Quality:

EKVANBEL V5.3: The V5.3 boasts surprisingly good audio for its price range. The sound is clear and well-balanced, with decent bass and crisp highs. While they won’t blow audiophiles away, they’re more than adequate for everyday listening.
Apple AirPods: AirPods offer a richer, more nuanced listening experience. The bass is punchier, and the overall soundstage is wider. However, some users find the audio too bright or treble-heavy, especially at higher volumes.

Call Quality:

EKVANBEL V5.3: The V5.3 features dual microphones with active noise cancellation (ANC) for clear calls. We found that our voice was picked up well, even in noisy environments. However, the ANC isn’t as strong as on higher-end earbuds.
Apple AirPods: AirPods Pro offer superior call quality with their advanced ANC technology. They effectively block out background noise, making your voice crystal clear to the other caller. However, standard Airpods lack ANC and struggle in noisy environments.

Battery Life:

EKVANBEL V5.3: The V5.3 boasts an impressive 96 hours of playtime with the charging case. The earbuds themselves last for about 8 hours on a single charge.
Apple AirPods: AirPods offer a more modest battery life, with around 5 hours of playtime per charge and 24 hours with the charging case. AirPods Pro fare slightly better, with 4.5 hours per charge and 24 hours with the case.

Features and Connectivity:

EKVANBEL V5.3: The V5.3 supports the latest Bluetooth 5.3 technology for a stable and reliable connection. They also have touch controls for music playback, volume, and calls. However, they lack some of the advanced features of Airpods, like automatic ear detection and seamless device switching.
Apple AirPods: AirPods seamlessly integrate with the Apple ecosystem, offering features like automatic ear detection, pause/play on ear removal, and easy switching between Apple devices. They also support Siri voice commands for hands-free control.

Verdict:

The EKVANBEL V5.3 is a compelling option for budget-conscious listeners. They offer surprisingly good audio quality, decent call performance, and an impressive battery life. However, they lack some of the premium features and seamless integration of Airpods.

If you’re an Apple user who prioritizes convenience and advanced features, the AirPods are the better choice. But if you’re looking for a great value with solid sound and long battery life, the EKVANBEL V5.3 are definitely worth considering.

Ultimately, the best choice depends on your individual needs and budget. Consider your priorities in terms of audio quality, call performance, battery life, features, and price before making your decision.

We hope this review helps you choose the right wireless earbuds for your ears!

TRX Systems’ NEON® Personnel Tracker Solution Used by Houston Police to Ensure Public Safety During Super Bowl

2017-02-27

TRX Systems, developer of the NEON® Indoor Location Solution, today announced that the NEON Personnel Tracker application was used by the Houston Police to help ensure public safety in NRG Stadium for Super Bowl LI.

You can check out the Super Bowl example video here, but here’s a quick look at the technology:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwLHO-PP60A

NEON Personnel Tracker delivers mapping and location in environments where GPS is unavailable or unreliable such as inside large office buildings, in stadiums and underground. By delivering location in these “GPS-denied” environments, NEON improves both command effectiveness and safety for public safety and security personnel. NEON Personnel Tracker delivers location in both 2D and 3D and provides tracking and visualization of personnel in complex indoor and outdoor environments. Accurate tracking is accomplished using NEON’s patented location algorithms which leverage all available device sensors including inertial, magnetic, pressure, light, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and GPS signals (where available) to calculate location.

Working closely with Harris County Central Technology Services and the Houston Police, TRX deployed NEON Personnel Tracker in a solution integrated with the Motorola LEX L10 Mission Critical LTE Handhelds. The NEON solution on the LEX L10 utilized the Harris County Public Safety Broadband network at NRG Park where each officer carrying the LEX L10 with the NEON application was able to be tracked in 3D from the command center throughout the nearly 2 million square feet of NRG Stadium. With real-time 3D visualization of first responder locations inside buildings, police and other first responders have improved situational awareness that helps ensure public safety. A short video showing TRX Systems’ NEON Personnel Tracker at NRG Stadium can be found here.

“Public Safety LTE is a reality and happening right here in Texas. Harris County is committed to enhancing public safety through the use of leading edge technology,” said Shing Lin, Director Harris County CTS. “Applications enabled by Public Safety LTE networks are part of our continuing investment to safeguard the public and effectively manage our resources at major public events such as the Super Bowl.”

CSRmesh™ Soon to Be Found in Retail Stores for GE Branded Smart Lighting and Home

2015-05-05

CSR and Avi-on Labs Add Simple, Seamless Whole-Home Control to GE Branded Lighting

CSRmesh™ IoT Protocol Soon to be Found in Retail Stores for Smart Lighting and Home Automation

Light Fair International 2015 kicked off today. As part of the proceedings, CSR announced that it has worked with Avi-on Labs to provide Bluetooth® Smart mesh connectivity in a new GE branded line of smart lighting from Jasco Products. These lighting and home control products, which are expected to appear in major retail stores this year, use CSR’s Bluetooth® Smart solution – CSRmesh™. The CSRmesh™ protocol allows an almost unlimited number of Bluetooth Smart enabled devices to be easily networked together and controlled directly from a “smart” switch or dimmer, smartphone or tablet.

This might indicate a bit of a change in direction for both GE and Jasco Products, both who have previously relied mostly on the Z-Wave wireless protocol. Certainly, CSRmesh™ offers a much simpler setup that will control a greater number of devices across multiple, “nested” networks. And because more devices already have Bluetooth built into them, a Bluetooth mesh network won’t necessarily require a centralized hub to control it all.

Gateway = Single Point of Failure

Delayed, disjointed dimming
Dumb devices fail when gateway/router fails
Gateway or panel required to operate a single light bulb or device

Avi-on Distributed Architecture

Eliminates single point of failure
Mesh smart devices operate with/without phone
Virtually unlimited programming distances
Optional Wi-Fi bridge enables remote access
Secures & expands CSRmesh™
Real-time dimming performance equal to wires

Jasco Products chose Avi-on Labs’ Powered by Avi-on turnkey lighting and home control platform, which uses CSRmesh combined with CSR’s Bluetooth Smart silicon. Avi-on’s complete residential and commercial lighting solution includes plug and play firmware, iOS and Android mobile applications, a secure cloud service, and a pre-certified module based on the CSR1010™ chipset, which together allows manufacturers to get to market quickly. The platform enables a number of features including real-time dimming, one-touch setup, grouping, schedules, timers and multi-user controls all from an easy to use mobile app.

“CSRmesh has the potential to disrupt the smart lighting market by eliminating the complex setup, pairing, and use of an access device, such as a router, needed with other connectivity solutions available today,” said Cameron Trice, CEO of Jasco Products. “By combining CSRmesh with Avi-on Labs’ software and support we are able to offer a lighting product line that offers an unrivalled user experience and secure connectivity to customers through our major retail partners. Working with CSR and Avi-on allowed us to get to market fast to meet growing consumer demand for these types of smart devices.”

The GE branded Jasco Products range will include “smart” switches, dimmers, an outdoor timer and a smart plug which will give consumers on/off control of virtually any standard home device or appliance.

“CSRmesh is transforming the smart lighting and home automation markets by offering the blend of security, performance and ease of use that is needed to drive broad consumer adoption,” says Anthony Murray, Senior Vice President, Business Group at CSR. “We are seeing interest from a wide variety of lighting and home control device manufacturers and it is exciting to see some of the first CSRmesh home automation enabled products making their way to the shelves. Avi-on’s platform supports multiple lighting products as well as home and commercial automation devices. We are pleased to be working with them to further expand the CSRmesh ecosystem.”

“The ability to replace wires with software will transform the lighting and construction industries worldwide,” said Eric Miller, CEO of Avi-on. “Avi-on has delivered a cost-effective, simple, scalable and proven controls platform based on CSRmesh, and we are excited to move forward in partnership with CSR to provide Jasco Products and other manufacturers with a complete package for wireless lighting.”

Both CSR and Avi-on Labs will be exhibiting at LightFair International in New York City from May 5 – 7. Visitors can see CSRmesh at CSR’s booth #4079 and Avi-on will feature Powered by Avi-on in booth #3126. At the same time, Jasco Products will present its line of GE branded lighting controls powered by Avi-on and CSRmesh at the National Hardware Show in booth #4515 in Las Vegas.

Plantronics Expands Line with Voyager Edge UC

2015-02-11

Some Background

Plantronics recently introduced four new UC (unified communications) audio devices designed to deliver exceptional audio quality and noise management technology to help people effectively communicate and collaborate, regardless of workplace or location. Of course the one QTOOTH is most interested in is the wireless Bluetooth headset Voyager Edge UC. The other three offerings are the [easyazon_link asin=”B00SLP52YK” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”] Blackwire 725-M[/easyazon_link], the company’s first UC stereo headset with Active Noise Canceling (ANC) for those people who want to stay focused in noisy office environments; the [easyazon_link cloaking=”default” keywords=”Plantronics Calisto 610″ localization=”default” locale=”US” nofollow=”default” new_window=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″]Calisto 610[/easyazon_link], a portable speakerphone for instant anywhere conferencing, and the [easyazon_link cloaking=”default” keywords=”Plantronics Clarity 340″ localization=”default” locale=”US” nofollow=”default” new_window=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″]Clarity 340[/easyazon_link], designed for those who face vision, hearing, or dexterity challenges. Now, workers in the office and on the road have tools they can use to control outside noise that allow them to hear as well as be heard clearly.

“There’s been increasing emphasis on the importance of a reliable, high-quality, seamless user experience when communicating and collaborating today, and rightly so,” said Rich Costello, senior research analyst, unified communications, IDC. “The new Plantronics offerings not only address these important requirements, but also the surrounding noise factor on both sides of the call.”

“Everywhere is the new workplace. We know office noise is increasingly becoming a concern due to more open working environments that promote collaboration, but workplace noise isn’t just a problem for those in the office,” said Bill Loewenthal, vice president, enterprise product solutions, Plantronics. “You can’t always control your environment and you certainly can’t control your caller’s environment, so we help ensure workers have solutions they need to block out the noise, allowing them to have a high-quality communication experience wherever their workplace is.”

The shift to Smarter Working-style environments, though undoubtedly beneficial, creates new noise challenges for individuals and their colleagues which can often undermine productivity gains. The following are Plantronics’ new solutions that address the inherent ambient noise challenges and potential audio quality concerns associated with today’s Smarter Working scenarios and environments:

Voyager Edge UC

New wearing style for mobile UC users who need to be heard and want to use their Bluetooth® enabled communications devices (laptop, smartphone or tablet) together. The solution includes a small Bluetooth USB dongle that provides seamless wideband audio to your laptop. The latest addition to the Voyager line features a slim, sophisticated design that fits quickly and comfortably in your ear and comes with its own portable charging case. It boasts signature Plantronics audio technology that eliminates disruptive background noise and includes intuitive, responsive features that keep you moving by automatically answering calls as you place it on your ear.

Connectivity

The point of UC, or Unified Communication, is that one device can seamlessly work among several different communication sources, automatically switching from one to the next. This comes in handy especially in work situations, where you might be taking calls on your cell phone, your office phone system, and your computer using platforms like Skype or Microsoft Lync. In fact, there are actually two models available: the Voyager Edge UC and the Voyager Edge UC-M. If you haven’t guessed already, the “M” in the second model means it is compatible with Microsoft’s “soft phone”, over-the-pc, communication platforms. It’s a real treat to be listening to music one moment, taking a call on your phone, going back to your music, then joining an online conference call… all without having to reconfigure your system or re-pairing Bluetooth to the next device. Plantronics definitely has this experience down with the Voyager Edge UC.

Smart Sensor Technology

The Voyager Edge has built in Smart Sensor technology that senses when you have put the headset on and will automatically answer calls from either computer or mobile calls. When the headset is not worn, it automatically routes incoming mobile calls to your phone. Then, if you simply put the headset back on, your calls are automatically transferred back to the headset. If you want, any time you are wearing the headset and are on a mobile or computer call, your softphone service will automatically update your availability status.

One great feature of the Smart Sensors that we really appreciate is the call button is automatically locked when the headset is not worn. This eliminates any classic accidental “pocket dialing” that may occur, and certainly has for us, with other headsets.

We also really like the fact that our media pauses playback as soon as we take a call. It doesn’t work with all media players, but it certainly does with iTunes and other major media playback programs on the market. Pretty cool, though, to jump right back into the music, podcast, or ebook that we were listening to before we were so rudely interrupted… by work, no less!

Charging Case

Throwing in a charging case is something that Plantronics has been doing for a while with all of their premium headsets. It’s a great idea and we wish more companies did it. Most headsets of this quality are in very similar price ranges. The amazing thing is that Plantronics is doing this without charging you any more than their closest rivals do. The benefit? The headset typically has a talk time of 6 hours on its own. But if you store it in the case, which is more like a quick-deploy holster than a case, it is easy to get 16 hours of talk time before needing to plug in the headset or the case. There is also a cool little storage space for the USB dongle (more about the dongle in a moment). A thoughtful detail is the addition of a on-demand visual battery status indicator for both the headset and the case. Since between the two of them there is quite abit of charge time it’s easy to forget that they do indeed need to be recharged. The display is helpful in anticipating when to recharge before it’s too late.

Audio Quality

The audio quality in our tests has been great. They rate the background noise cancellation to work in environments of up to 80 decibels. We’ve found that to be easily true, at least from the receiving caller’s end. Even when it was too loud, easily above 80 decibels, for us to hear our caller, they said that they still had good results in understanding us. Be advised, although listening to music on the Voyager Edge UC is better than acceptable, that is not the ultimate use target of this device. Everything about it is designed to provide the best speech quality available. It does just that quite well.

Bluetooth USB Mini-Adapter

Plantronics has started to call this a “mini-adapter” versus a dongle. We’re cool with that. Most people who are super-techy may not be familiar with what a dongle is anyway! Either way, this adapter provides a better connection to your computer and helps allow for the seamless transition between one device to the next. It’s small enough to keep plugged into your computer’s USB port all the time, but it also has a cool compartment to itself in the charging case (as mentioned above).

Music/Multimedia

The Voyager Edge has built in A2DP, which let’s you listen to streaming media from all of your Bluetooth devices, including songs, video, turn-by-turn navigation and more.

Voice Commands/Alert

As all wearable tech and the Internet of Things (IoT) is moving in the direction of more voice control than ever anyway, it is good to see more commands being integrated into these devices to control their own behavior and functionality. This includes using your voice to answer incoming calls, check battery level/talk time, redial, put the headset in pairing mode, and more. There are also very handy voice alerts that tell you important things, like an incoming caller’s name (mobile only), remaining talk time, connection status, battery level, maximum, minimum, and mute levels, and more.

Battery Life

As we mentioned above, the Voyager Edge UC battery allows for up to 6 hours of continuous talk time with an additional 10 hours of non-continuous when paired stored in the case between calls. The headset by itself also has an impressive 7 days of standby time.

Comfort/Design

The Voyager Edge UC is quite comfortable, especially considering its size. The Voyager does not have the smallest of form factors when it comes to its physical presence. Luckily, it comes in at a mere 9 grams. That’s very competitive to other headsets out there that are also of the “on ear” design. by on ear, we mean that it mounts by wedging itself between the folds of cartilage on either side of the ear passage.

There are pluses and minuses, of course, to its overall shape and design. The headset has a longer and larger mic boom than many “on-ear” mounted headsets, but overall it feels quite balanced and allows for faster mounting and removal of the headset, which can easily be done one-handed. Part of the reason why the audio quality is better on this design with a longer mic boom arm is because the microphone is that much closer to the mouth of the user. However, because the longer mic arm moves some of the weight further away from the ear mount, it acts as a bit of a lever and may add a bit more fatigue to the soft parts of the ear that bear the weight. Once again, this is a slight issue at most and probably only relevant for those who wear the headset for extended periods of time.

he Voyager Edge UC is also protected against moisture damage by its P2i technology. P2i is a nano-coating applied during manufacturing and results in invisible liquid repellent properties and is intended to make the headset more reliable.

Colors?!

Now here’s something we don’t usually see out of Plantronics. Most of their devices,as Henry Ford once famously said, come in “any color you want… as long as that color is black”. Plantronics actually offers the Voyager Edge UC in three colors: black, gray and white:

Conclusion

There is a lot to love about the Plantronics Voyager Edge UC. To find out more about the vast ecosystem of support and apps that can leverage all that this headset can offer you might want to check out the comprehensive article we did on the Voyager Legend UC. Otherwise, this is a great choice for anybody who is on the move and needs a no-fuss headset to get it done.

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OORT, Bluetooth, and the Open Source Future of IoT

2015-02-06

While at CES 2015, I had the pleasure to sit down and have a wide-ranging talk with Radek Tadajewski, CEO of OORT. His company has been working mostly behind the scenes in the burgeoning Internet of Things market. They are making fast advances in directions that deserve attention.

So What Exactly Does OORT Do?

OORT is a manufacturer of wireless devices that can be directly controlled through Bluetooth Smart using a free app that is available for both smartphones and tablets. By themselves, without any hub or extra hardware, these devices can be grouped into virtual networks so that any number of them can be controlled by a single tap of a button.

However, if they are part of a network controlled by OORT’s hub, these same devices can also be controlled remotely from anywhere in the world via the internet. The hub is not available yet but it should be soon. OORT is expecting to receive their EU certification in early February and, having already secured three distributors in Europe, hope to ship shortly thereafter.

What Makes OORT Different?

This lack of needing a hub is at the core of OORT’s philosophy. Buy any single one of their components, download the free app, and you can start using it immediately. It makes the entry cost of getting your first SmartHome IOT device much more affordable.

Not only are the OORT components less expensive because they don’t require a hub, they are typically less expensive as a single component. For example, currently their [easyazon_link asin=”B00GC8LSPA” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]SmartLED BLE Enabled Smart Bulb[/easyazon_link] costs $39.90 vs. the [easyazon_link asin=”B00HNLQQ7K” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]Philips Hue Bulb[/easyazon_link] which starts at $60. The price for the OORT should fall even lower as they start manufacturing in higher volumes. They expect the price for their bulbs will eventually drop to below $30.

The app will also control and track data from other devices that OORT has in the pipeline, including beacons, pet trackers, thermostats, light switches, air quality sensors, and more. These devices can be organized into groups so that a single press of a button on a touchscreen will change the settings of all the devices assigned to each group. You can have as many groups as you want, and in as many locations as you want. That means you can set up multiple preferences by group for work, home, or anywhere you are using your OORT Bluetooth-enabled devices.

It is worth repeating: not only will it do this without a hub but it will also do this without the internet! Many, if not all, of their competitors require internet connectivity and rely on cloud services to make their magic. Not OORT! They allow a tremendous amount of functionality right from the start, with a single device and a free app from either Apple iTunes or Google Play. No registration, no creating an account, no surrendering of personal data… unless you want to. Currently there is a lot of concern among the general public about privacy and security issues. So, when it comes to starting your own SmartHome or Internet of Things network, QTOOTH feels like OORT’s approach will lower the resistance barrier to the point of a non-issue.

The hub can control 1000s of devices, allowing a variety of complex networks to be configured and to respond to the needs of many users. Hubs can also control things based upon proximity to connected devices using things such as wearables or embedded beacons.

We here at QTOOTH love most things open source, so we think it is a very smart move that OORT is the first to offer a truly open ecosystem of devices. Just about any Bluetooth device can be incorporated into the network. They have an open API and SDK (Application Program Interface and Software Development Kit, respectively) and supply development kits for anyone who wants to try their hand at adding their own Bluetooth controlled devices into the ecosystem.

Originally, OORT thought that they would be a consumer-facing company, selling their devices directly to the public. However, there has been a tremendously positive response to their approach from some pretty major players in the SmartHome market. Although selling their product to consumer is still very much a part of the plan, they have done a bit of a pivot to address the needs of the their business-to-business clientele. Even this has further segmented itself into more tightly focused opportunities:

First, OORT offers startup companies and independent developers an excellent end-to-end solution to make their products “smart”. By leveraging the hardware and embedded software technology that OORT already has in place, products can join the Internet of Things in 6-9 months.

Second, OORT is already already working with several major brands including an appliance manufacturer that will be coming out with a line of smart kitchen appliances by the end of 2015.

And finally, in a move that could have significant impact on many industries, OORT is currently helping to develop SmartHome-enabled set top boxes with several partners using OORT’s technology. This means that the same box that provide major utilities in the home, including power, internet, telephone, and cable, will also be acting as your hub for your connected devices. This will give these big players the opportunity to sell services that are targeted specifically to the end customer based on their known use habits. There may come a time when it will make more sense for these providers to give the hardware away for free but charge for cloud-based services. Another opportunity for OORT is that the information that each device collects is sent to OORT’s cloud for processing before being forwarded to the provider’s cloud.

The good news is that all of these business-to-business endeavors should not only help to increase the rate of adoption of OORT’s technology among developers, but to also hasten the availability of one of the more open-ended systems for consumers.

OORT is a member of the Bluetooth SIG’s SmartHome Market, the consortium of Bluetooth manufacturers that set the standards which all Bluetooth products must follow. It’s for these types of innovative approaches that OORT has been nominated for a 2015 Bluetooth SIG Breakthrough Award for Breakthrough Prototypes. Of course by the time the award winners are announced in March at the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona, OORT should be making some waves as their presence starts to be felt within the industry. OORT CEO Radek Tadajewski will also be a featured speaker at Bluetooth World in April.

On a final note, we were curious to know how it was to start a forward thinking company in a country like Poland. Was it an issue being so far away from some of the traditional centers for technology and funding, like Silicon Valley or New York City? No, according to Radek Tadajewski. Starting any company any where presents its challenges but it can also make for some unique opportunities. There are a lot of beacon companies already in Poland and, due to its centralized location in Europe, a lot of big companies have setup R&D (research and development) facilities there. And from a venture capitalist’s perspective the “rate of burn”, or how quickly a startup company burns through its investors’ money, is significantly slower. This gives the company more time to develop its product and market before needing another round of investment or just simply going out of business. This is due in no small way because the average pay for qualified employees is about 1/3 of what can be in more mature markets. Poland also enjoys a large base of highly trained engineers and other talent that are hungry for the jobs and the challenges that startups and hi-tech companies typically offer.

We are looking forward to seeing where things go for OORT over the course of the next year. Big things seem to be on the horizon for them and it seems like we all stand to benefit from their efforts and forward-thinking vision.

In the meantime, check out our review of a few of their currently available individual devices.

OORT Review – Bluetooth Wireless IOT with SmartLED, SmartFinder, and SmartSocket

2015-02-06

Here it is, our first OORT review! We’ve been tracking this company since we first took notice of them on Kickstarter last June. We’ve even had a chance to talk to the CEO, Radek Tadajewski, at the 2015 International in January. (Check out what we learned from that fascinating conversation here.) Now we finally own a few of their components and wanted to share our experiences with you.

First, a little backstory so you know why we are so intrigued by what OORT is bringing to the market. Unlike many other IOT systems (Internet of Things) out there that use proprietary or uncommon wireless protocols, OORT takes advantage of Bluetooth, something that pretty much all of us already own and use in the form of our smartphones and tablets. There may have been a time when using another form of wireless would’ve had its benefits. But now when it comes to low power consumption, longer battery life, the number of devices that can be on a single network, range, and a host of other attributes, Bluetooth, especially BluetoothSmart or Bluetooth BLE, either meet or exceed those other formats. The only way that these other wireless formats can be used is if:

The smartphone and tablet manufacturers start building their products with additional chips to handle the new wireless format
They use a hub that acts as a translator between devices and any networks

Neither of these are ideal, adding cost, compatibility issues, and unnecessary complexity. Luckily, we have companies like OORT that are choosing to use existing technologies that are already in place and keeping things open source so that anyone can add their own devices and apps to the ecosystem, keeping costs down and virtually eliminating compatibility issues.

In this OORT review, we’ll show you how easy they’ve made it to begin your own SmartHome network. OORT has an ever-expanding line of products in the pipeline which may soon be joined by other manufacturers’ offerings. For now, we’ll focus on what’s already available and what we ourselves own and use: the SmartLED Bulb, the SmartFinder tracking beacon, and the SmartSocket power outlet.

OORT SmartLED BLE Enabled Smart Bulbs

The [easyazon_link asin=”B00GC8LSPA” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]OORT SmartLED BLE Enabled Smart Bulbs[/easyazon_link] are already available on Amazon in the US. One of the great advantages of their bulb over the competition, like the [easyazon_link asin=”B00HNLQQ7K” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]Philips Hue Bulb[/easyazon_link], is that OORT’s bulb does not require a hub or a bridge to work. It can communicate directly with any device like a smartphone or tablet using their native Bluetooth capabilities. Sure, using the hub will expand functionality and allow remote control over the internet but it is not required. We think that’s pretty cool! Best of all, because it’s an energy-efficient LED light, it will last up to 40,000 hours.

We were going to make our own videos showing how easy these things are to use, but the following videos are so short and to the point it seemed redundant to make videos that basically looked the same. Here is the OORT SmartLED Bulb in use and how to set it up right out of the box:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEnL4aBTepo

We’ve had a lot of fun with the OORT bulbs. They are capable of displaying millions of colors and have a variety of presets settings that make the bulbs perform a variety of tricks, from the useful to the fanciful. Here’s a list of what those modes are and what they do:

Sleep – Sets a timer so the lamp will automatically shut off at a set interval (5s – 8m)
Reading – The perfect light for reading
Love – We were a bit confused by this one at first. It’s effect is initially very subtle. It has a timer that can be set from 50 seconds to 5 hours. The light starts with a kind of rose color (perhaps to give your partner an attractive, healthy skin tone?) and slowly turns purple and eventually emits an ever deepening blue… and then snaps off! You know, it just might work. At least it removes the excuse for cuddle time by someone saying, “Sorry honey, I’ve gotta shut the light off!”
Dance – Party Mode! The light cycles through every color option. How long it displays each color is set by a timer that can range from 1 to 20 seconds
Snore – Allows you to pick a color, set an interval of 2 – 20 seconds, and then start the light to snoring, similar in effect to the sleep mode indicator lights on most devices like a laptop. Soothing. Might be even better if we could match it with the Sleep mode so it would shut off after we drift off to sleep.
Flash – Warning? Or Party Mode Part Deux? You decide! Pick the color and get it to flash at intervals between .25 – 2 seconds.

Two things that we feel people should know:

The color picker can be difficult to master. It works, but sometimes getting an exact shade can be difficult. It’s also helpful to know a little bit about color theory so that we know how the controls of the color wheel (hue or color), saturation (the amount of color vs. white) and brightness (overall level of light) interact. Knowing how to get it to display a true red, for instance, can take some time, at least initially. We did notice that the color wheel (hue) seems to jump a bit when it goes between colors instead of a seamless transition. Not a big deal and it seems that the other controls of saturation and brightness help achieve those in-between colors. A feature we would love to see? It might be impossible to calibrate precisely, but it would be cool if we could enter a color’s hex or RGB value to achieve the color that we want. For our example of true red, that would mean values like #FF0000 or (255, 0, 0). No one is doing this though, so we are not taking OORT to task for this. Just a wishlist-type of thing. However, it would be great to have shortcuts that brought us straight to the primary and secondary colors (red, blue, yellow, violet, green and orange).
These lights are not super powerful. They are rated at 9.5 watts, which is roughly equivalent to 35 watts in a traditional bulb. Unless you use a few bulbs in a single fixture or in some type of lighting array, we feel that they are mostly for accent lighting, ambience, or illuminating a specific area, like a table or work surface. However, there is one setting that is not featured in the above video that we particularly enjoy: the Reading mode. If you use it as a reading or desk lamp, the OORT SmartLED gives off a particularly soothing light that manages to keep things crisp and clear on the written page… that is, for those old timers who still read things from the medium of paper!

OORT SmartFinder

Also currently available is the [easyazon_link asin=”B00QVYY5XM” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]OORT SmartFinder[/easyazon_link], a smart tracking device that can help you locate any item to which it is attached, even if that “item” is a person or pet! Of course, the range of the tracking feature is limited to the current Bluetooth spec of 30 meters (approx. 100 feet). Here’s a video showing setup and some use-case scenarios:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB1DtzcR7gA

The version that we have is same as what you saw in the above video. It looks like this:

We’ve been told by OORT that they have a new version coming out that is quite a bit smaller, about one third the size, and should be easier to mount on a variety of different objects, including the classic keyring. The current version would require something like a [easyazon_link asin=”B0083D7DG0″ locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]carabiner clip[/easyazon_link] to attach it to smaller objects.

So, how does it work in the real world? We did have some occasional issues where we had to be almost right on top of it before it started to register strongly on the finder window in the app, but overall it worked quite well. For us, the fastest way to find it was to press the speaker icon in the middle of the app’s screen. This triggers a little alarm tone on the SmartFinder beacon that we could easily hear in most environments. After all, as long as they are working, two of the fastest, most powerful location devices that we have at our disposal are the human ears!

OORT SmartSocket

The [easyazon_link asin=”B00OG897MY” locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”uneomediacom-20″ add_to_cart=”default” cloaking=”default” localization=”default” popups=”default”]OORT SmartSocket BLE Enabled Smart Plug Energy Meter[/easyazon_link] is one of our favorite things. It is the fastest way to add other devices in your life into the Internet of Things. Plug it into any standard power outlet, find it and connect it on the OORT app, and you can immediately start to schedule all kinds of tasks from your formerly “dumb” appliances. Check out the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stOq7eSj_CQ

Not only is it simple to use but it can save you significantly on your utility bills by scheduling automated on and off times for appliances throughout your home or office… or both. There is also a screen on the app that allows you to track power consumption so you know exactly what devices are drawing the most power. It even allows you to attach a dollar amount to that devices power consumption. Just check your utility bill’s cost per kilowatt hour and enter it into the appropriate space on the app and voila! You now know exactly how much it costs to run that extra space heater in the spare bedroom!

One thing people should know about the OORT SmartSocket:

The OORT SmartSocket is pretty much a perfect product. The one thing it doesn’t necessarily do is instantly turn on or off. It is very fast, but it is not the same as flicking a switch on the wall. There can be a slight, variable, delay between when you tap the button on the app and when the SmartSocket actually responds. For almost all applications this will never be an issue. We just thought we’d warn you if you are trying to turn on or off a device where the timing is critical or involves any health or safety issues.

The OORT APP

The power of OORT’s system is that you have incredible control over these devices before ever needing to invest in a hub or any other type of “bridge”. They can all communicate directly with your smartphone or tablet using its built-in Bluetooth capability. It is also possible to create an unlimited number of virtual networks using the app’s “Group” function. Assign devices to a group and in one touch of a button you can either turn on or off each device in that group, depending on what you have assigned each device to do.

Examples? Press a button and the outside lights of your house go off and all of the interior lights come on. Press a button and the stereo goes off and the TV comes on. Getting the idea? All of these functions can be programmed to happen at specific times up to a week in advance… without a hub! Without sending information to the cloud! Without being connected to the internet! How awesome is that?

And did we mention the app is free? You can find it for both iOS and Android devices on their respective stores:

Coming Soon: The OORT SmartHub

Ok, so it’s cool that we can have all of this control without a hub, without the internet or the cloud… but what if we want to control it all from a remote location? Have no fear, the OORT SmartHub will soon be here!

The hub that OORT is releasing, and most likely shipping by March 2015, provides the link between your home or office devices and the internet. Using OORT’s cloud system, you can have complete access and control of everything on your network from anywhere in the world with internet access. With a SmartHub connection, users can create custom actions, such as triggering a blue light to flash when you receive a Facebook message, or red when your child comes home. Here is a video that shows some of those expanded capabilities:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVXo6px-NgM

Still Not Enough? Add Your Own Custom Devices to the Network!

OORT is set to make available a developer kit that allows you to convert just about any device to work with your SmartHome network. It will come with the Hub and a chipset on a PC board that will allow you to customize your way into the Internet of Things. Here’s a fun example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X06L1dkxqv4

And for the true developer and inventor in all of us, OORT is also making their API and SDK available too (Application Program Interface and Software Development Kit, respectively). Got a cool idea for something that you want to control via your smartphone or the internet? Get in there already, make it happen!

Conclusion

I’m sure this won’t be our only OORT Review. This company is on the move and we are pretty sure there are going to be many more products and developments to come.

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